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tabbouleh

American  
[tuh-boo-luh, -lee] / təˈbu lə, -li /
Or tabouleh

noun

Middle Eastern Cooking.
  1. a variant of tabouli.


tabbouleh British  
/ təˈbuːlɪ /

noun

  1. a kind of Middle Eastern salad made with cracked wheat, mint, parsley, and usually cucumber

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of tabbouleh

C20: from Arabic tabbūla


Explanation

Tabbouleh is a delicious Mediterranean salad made with bulgar, parsley, and tomatoes. The next time you visit your favorite falafel joint, order some tabbouleh on the side! Tabbouleh is a specialty of the Levant region of the Middle East, and it's found in the cuisines of many countries, including Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria. It is usually made with bulgar wheat, a chewy grain, plenty of chopped parsley and tomatoes, mint, onion, and a light olive oil dressing. The name is Arabic in origin, from tabbūla.

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Vocabulary lists containing tabbouleh

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Their first post captured Ararat El-Rawi, bursting with energy as he served them a multicourse meal including tabbouleh, lamb burgers, spinach pie, baklava and endless wine.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

Sitting down for dinner alone, she “discreetly googled some of the words on her phone under the table: cotija, calabacitas, tabbouleh, bisque.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

This tabbouleh is delicious either at room temperature or slightly chilled.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 1, 2023

The hummus could use more garlic, the tabbouleh more mint.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 8, 2022

And in tabbouleh, it joins forces with a lot of parsley — or a little parsley, depending on who you ask.

From Salon ● May 17, 2022

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