1. Salad With an Exotic Flair
Cracked wheat is also called bulgur wheat. This whole grain is dried, broken up wheat berry. When soaked in water, cracked wheat softens and swells, taking on a consistency similar to cooked brown rice. The Middle Eastern salad known as tabouleh is made from soaked bulgur wheat, olive oil, parsley, feta cheese, black olives and other vegetable ingredients. You can buy prepared tabouleh in Middle Eastern groceries and the deli departments of some groceries, or you can make your own.
2. From Pilaf to Stew Pot
Substitute cracked wheat for all or part of the rice in a pilaf recipe. Ladle stews or sauces over it, or serve it with roasted vegetables, fish, meat or poultry. Add it to other dishes, such as vegetable soups or stews, in which you would use cooked grains like rice or barley. Stir the soaked bulgur into your soup or stew shortly before serving.
3. The Staff of Life
If you bake bread, add some soaked cracked wheat into your dough to boost the whole grain content and add texture and flavor. Start with a small amount, about a 1/4 cup per loaf of bread. Bulgur will add weight to the loaf, and the dough might require a more rising time. The addition of cracked wheat to bread made with white bread flour provides the nutritional benefits of whole grain to bread with the rise and texture of white bread.
4. A Good Way to Start the Day
Try cracked wheat as a hot cereal. Combine it with cream of wheat, oatmeal or another hot cereal, or let it stand alone. Add fruit and nuts for flavor and nutritional benefits. It is a delicious way to get the benefits of whole grains, which include fiber, vitamins and minerals, straight from the source rather than through processed breakfast cereals. Sweeten the cereal with honey or maple syrup rather than refined sugar for a great flavor combination.
5. Sprinkle and Stretch for a Nutritional Boost
Try using cracked wheat in places where you might use dried bread or cracker crumbs, and stir it into ground meat recipes. For example, sprinkle it on top of casseroles, or incorporate it into a bread coating for fish or poultry. Mix it into meat loaf. Combine it with hamburger to make patties for the grill. The addition of cracked wheat to burgers stretches the meat, reduces the amount of fat and cholesterol per patty and boosts the fiber, vitamins and minerals in the meal.
