In the region of Kob Elias, in the heart of the Bekaa valley, some 50 km from Beirut, FTL has identified a small family business of four people who decided to fight to stay at home and not to flee their impoverished rural areas. For over 30 years, they have transformed wheat into bulgur, a very popular product in Lebanon.
The bulgur is a delicate product and its preparation represents a challenge. To achieve a top quality bulgur, you need to apply a specific detailed order for the entire process.
To begin with, Durum wheat is soaked in boiling water for 3 hours, until cooked.
Then it is drained and dried in the sun, extended in circular thin layers over a clean floor. The drying time is a secret.
Dried cooked wheat is then cut up and goes into the mill, according to the desired size: fine, medium, coarse, and whole grains. The different sizes are used for different purposes.
The variety of thick brown bulgur is packed in bags of 500 gr for Fair Trade Lebanon.
This product is available in France, Lebanon and Germany.
What you probably don't know about Bulgur...
"Bulgur is precooked and requires only minimal preparation before eating. Unlike cracked wheat, bulgur is ready to eat after just ten minutes of boiling, roughly the same amount of time that it takes to prepare pasta.
Bulgur has a delicious, mildly nutty flavor.
It is a good source of protein, iron, magnesium , and B vitamins. It is packed with fiber — a 1-cup (182 g) serving of cooked bulgur has 8 grams of fiber and contains very little fat. You can add nutritional punch to casseroles and other dishes by substituting bulgur for converted rice. Incorporating bulgur into your diet is both nutritionally smart and easily accomplished."
Lebanese tabbouleh is a classic example for an easy salad using bulgur. We’ve published the tabbouleh recipe here.
More about Bulgur here.
