Beef & Bulgur Pitas

Through the evolution of our food blog and our desire to expand our tastes, Steve and I have tried many new foods, that we most likely would not have if it were not for this blog. And I am glad to say that we have now both tried bulgur and are very glad that we did!

As you may know, Steve and I are big fans of the show 'Best Recipes Ever' on CBC. Back in December we were watching the show when a recipe for 'Beef and Bulgur Pitas' came on. We had both heard of bulgur before, but had never tried it. We were intrigued by the recipe because the show's host assured those watching that it was a simple recipe and a great way to introduce a new grain to our diet - so naturally we had to try it! So we bookmarked the recipe online and then added it to our weekly supper list.

We were not as impressed with the recipe as we had hoped we would be. But we did think that it was lacking in sauce. At the time we added sour cream (that is the sauce that you will see in the photos) to help with this problem but it just did not quite fix the issue. So I am glad to see that the online ingredients and recipe for this dish now include a yogurt sauce - I think that that would have made a huge difference for us. And will now lead us to try this recipe (now modified) again!

One of the handy tips that I did learn from the show's host was how to reinforce your pita - you just cut off the top third off each pita and then place it inside each bottom of the pita! This is great advice for this recipe and all future pita recipes!

Here are all of the ingredients that you will need for this recipe:

1/2 cup (125 mL) bulgur, medium or coarse
8 oz (227 g) extra-lean ground beef
1 carrot, grated
1 zucchini, grated
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp (15 mL) chili powder
1 tsp (5 mL) ground cumin
1/4 tsp (1 mL) pepper
1 cup (250 mL) no-salt-added tomato juice
1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh coriander or parsley, chopped
2 tsp (10 mL) lime juice
4 whole wheat pita pockets
4 leaves leaf lettuce
16 slices English cucumber
16 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup (60 mL) low-fat plain yogurt

And here is how you will bring it all together:

1. In saucepan, bring 3/4 cup (175 mL) water to boil; stir in bulgur. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until no liquid remains, about 10 minutes.
2.  Meanwhile, in nonstick skillet, sauté beef over medium-high heat, breaking up with spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain off any fat from pan.
3. Add carrot, zucchini, onion, garlic, chili powder, cumin and pepper; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add tomato juice and bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer until liquid is almost evaporated, about 5 minutes. Stir in bulgur, 1/4 cup (50 mL) of the coriander and lime juice.
4. Cut top third off each pita; place inside each bottom. Line each with lettuce leaf and some of the cucumber. Spoon in beef mixture; top with tomatoes, remaining cucumber, yogurt and remaining coriander.

This is a recipe that we are going to definitely try again - and we encourage you to try it too!
We will also be looking for lots of other bulgur recipes, given that we have lots and lots of bulgur left!

Bon appetite & enjoy!