CHICKEN WITH BULGUR PILAF

Here's a simple and quick dish that I love. My mom taught me how to make this. Bulgur wheat is a whole wheat grain that has been cracked and partially pre-cooked. As a whole grain, it is a naturally high-fiber, low-fat, low-calorie vegetarian and vegan food ingredient. It comes in four different grades – fine (#1), medium (#2), coarse (#3), and very coarse (#4)– and each type lends itself to a particular kind of dish. Bulgur is a versatile and flavorful grain that should become a staple in your pantry, if it's not already. This simple pilaf is a staple at any Turkish table. In our home, we serve it with chicken but you can eat it alone, with beef, or with veggies. Hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients:

• 3 boneless skinless chicken breast

• 1 onion

• 2 tblspns bharat (Arabic spices, usually found in international supermarkets)

• 1 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 tablespoon salt

• 3 cups bulgur #4 (This is the coarse bulgur. The fine one will not work!)

• 1 1/2 cups vermicelli

• 2 tablespoons ghee or clarified butter.

Directions:

1. Boil chicken with onion, Bharat, black pepper,& salt in pressure cooker. If you do not have one, you can use a regular pot. Boil until chicken is cooked. Make sure you have enough broth left in the pot to make the bulgur pilaf.

2. Drain the chicken, keeping the broth.

3. Soak the bulgur for 5 minutes.

4. Then place in pot and add the broth (2 cups broth to 1 cup bulgur) and bring to boil until cooked and there is no water left. Careful not to burn bulgur or let it stick to the pot.

5. In the meantime, fry vermicelli in ghee till light brown.

6. Pour vermicelli with ghee into the pot of cooked bulgur and fold into the pilaf.

7. Plate, topped with chicken, and serve! Tastes great served with yogurt and a salad!

*NOTE: If you do not have ghee or clarified butter, regular unsalted butter is perfectly fine!

If you make this recipe, be sure to snap a photo and hashtag it #EATDRINKPLAYLA. I'd love to see how yours turned out!