Spiced Veg With Lemony Bulgur Wheat Salad Food

SPICED BULGUR WHEAT WITH ROAST VEGETABLES

Steps:

• To make the bulgur wheat, very gently heat the oil in a heavy-based casserole over a low heat and stir the orange zest into the oil. Add the garlic and the finely chopped coriander stalks and stir these into the oil for about 30 seconds. Turn the heat up a little, just to medium-low, and add the fennel, cumin and coriander seeds, followed by the chilli flakes, and give everything a good stir.
• Turn the heat up to high and quickly add the bulgur wheat and lentils. Stir again well to make sure everything is mixed together. Now add 375ml/13fl oz cold water and the salt and bring to the boil. Once it's started bubbling, clamp on the lid, turn the heat back down to low and leave to cook gently for 15 minutes, or until all the water is absorbed. Turn off the heat, cover the pan with a clean tea towel, clamp the lid back on and leave for 40 minutes (though it will stand happily for a lot longer than this, I routinely leave this for 2 hours).
• To make the roast vegetables, preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7. Drop the leeks into a sturdy and fairly shallow roasting tin in which, ideally, all the vegetables will sit snugly; I use one that is 29x25x5cm/11½x10x2in. Add the peppers and cherry tomatoes to the roasting tin. Sprinkle the seeds and salt over the vegetables, add the oil and schmoosh to mix. Pour 2 tablespoons of cold water and 2 tablespoons of orange juice into the tin and roast in the oven for 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and the leeks are beginning to scorch. Add the radishes and mix. As the vegetables - ideally - fit so snugly in their tin, they make a wonderful, strongly flavoured sauce as they cook. However, if you've had to use a bigger tin, you may find that they're going a little dry and might be sticking to the tin in places. If so, add another tablespoon each of orange juice and water or more as needed. Put back in the oven to roast for another 10 minutes then leave to stand while you put the finishing touches on the bulgur wheat..
• Remove the lid and tea towel from the bulgur wheat and use a couple of forks to mix everything together in the pan and, importantly, to separate and fluff up the grains. Tip into a serving bowl or dish, add most of your chopped coriander leaves and fork it in. Add a third of the roast vegetables and mix in well but lightly with the forks. Taste for seasoning - I often want to add more salt at this stage. Top with the remaining roasted vegetables and sprinkle with the rest of the coriander.

BULGUR WHEAT AND ROASTED VEGETABLE SALAD

Steps:

• Cover bulgur wheat with cold water in a saucepan, partially cover pan with lid, bring water/wheat to boil and then simmer for approximately 10 minutes or until cooked (wheat should have a plump, soft but slightly chewy consistency, take care that the water does not boil over the pan or the wheat will go everywhere!).
• Drain wheat in sieve, rinse with recently boiled water to remove starch, set aside in a bowl to cool.
• Wash and slice courgette, carrot and 1/2 the onion fairly thinly, chop pepper and mushrooms a little more chunkily (i like my pepper slightly crunchy, but prepare according to your taste).
• Mix veggies on a baking tray with 1 tsp oil, 1 tsp herbs, paprika and salt (this can be ommitted if you're watching your salt intake, the flavour of the veggies is still yummy).
• Grill vegetables under a moderately high grill until browned at the edges/cooked to your taste, remembering to turn after about 5-10 minutes to ensure cooking on both sides, set aside to cool.
• Chop the other 1/2 onion and the garlic clove, blend can tomatoes in a food processor (alternatively you could buy passata, or concentrated tomato juice); mix with onion, 1 tsp herbs, pinch black pepper, garlic and 1tsp olive oil in a saucepan.
• Cover with a pan-lid and simmer tomato sauce over a low heat for 10-15 minutes, until the liquid has reduced by about 1/3- it should be a relatively runny paste (alternatively you can microwave the sauce in a bowl, covered with microwave cling-film, for approximately 3 minutes on a high setting, followed by another three on a medium setting), set aside to cool.
• To the cooled bulgur wheat, add the linseeds and mixed pine nuts/pumpkin and sunflower seeds; mix the cooled sauce with the cooled vegetables, toss into the wheat/seeds.
• Enjoy, (or store in an airtight container in the fridge and eat within two days).