Itch (Armenian bulghur wheat salad)

I’d want to make this Armenian bulghur wheat salad for the name alone…

While itch is similar to kisir, using tomato sauce to hydrate the bulghur wheat places itch more in the realm of side dish than salad.

Having looked at a few recipes, the version I made is closest to this one from the Food 52 website.

Itch (Armenian bulghur wheat salad)
(serves 4)

• 3 Tb olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 Tb tomato paste
• 1 Tb hot pepper sauce (or to taste)
• 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 cup bulghur wheat
• salt and pepper
• juice of half a lemon (or to taste)
• 3 spring onions, sliced thinly crosswise
• 1/2 cup flatleaf parsley, finely chopped

1. Heat the oil in a lidded frying pan over a medium-low flame.
2. Add the onion and stir until softened.
3. Stir in the ground cumin, then the tomato paste and hot sauce.
4. Add the tomatoes and cook the sauce for a few minutes.
5. Remove from the heat, stir in the bulghur wheat, then cover and leave for half an hour.
6. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
7. Stir through the spring onions and parsley.

Tags: bulghur wheat, dairy-free, tomatoes, vegan, vegetarian