🥔 SIDE
Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf)
Coarse bulgur cooked with onion, vermicelli toasted golden in olive oil, and ripe tomato, then left to steam until fluffy, the everyday Cypriot side served with a bowl of yogurt.
Cypriot · easy · serves 4
prep 10 min · cook 25 min
~467 cal · 13g protein · 70g carbs · 17g fat · 10g fiber · 8g sugars · 4g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Pourgouri, known in Greek as pligouri, is : wheat that is boiled, dried and cracked, and in Cyprus it is cooked more often than rice. Village families once made it themselves, boiling sacks of wheat in a big pot, drying it for days on a sheet spread on the flat roof and grinding it in a hand mill.
Pourgouri pilafi is the way it is eaten most. A little and chopped onion are fried golden in olive oil, grated ripe tomato goes in, then water or and the , which cooks for a few minutes before the pot comes off the heat and sits, covered with a cloth and a lid, until every drop is absorbed. It was cooked weekly in Cypriot homes, as a meal on its own or beside grilled meat, souvla and afelia, and it is still one of the dishes served at weddings and christenings.
A spoonful of cold, thick yogurt on the side is the classic partner, and it is a children's favourite across the island.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
- 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 60 g (fidé), broken into short pieces
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 medium ripe tomatoes, grated, skins discarded
- 125 ml tomato passata
- 600 ml hot water
- 250 g coarse (pourgouri)
- 1 tsp salt
- to taste black pepper
- 300 g thick plain yogurt, to serve
Instructions
- 1Warm the olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat and fry the vermicelli for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring, until golden brown.
- 2Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring, until soft and lightly coloured.
- 3Add the grated tomatoes and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until they thicken a little, then pour in the passata and hot water, add the salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
- 4Stir in the bulgur, bring back to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, until most of the liquid is absorbed.✎ Chef’s noteCoarse bulgur is already cooked when it is made, so it only needs to soften. Fine bulgur will turn to mush here.
- 5Take the pot off the heat, lay a clean tea towel over it under the lid and leave it for 10 minutes until the grains are dry and fluffy. Fluff with a fork and serve warm with a bowl of yogurt, or beside grilled meat.
Cypriot home tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Nicosia. The spice that marks Cypriot cooking is coriander seed rather than the leaf, crushed into afelia of pork cooked in red wine, into loukaniko sausages, into lountza, and into olives cracked and dressed with lemon. It is the flavour Cypriots themselves name as the island's own.
🗺️
Cyprus. The flavour that marks Cypriot cooking out from Greek and Turkish is coriander seed rather than the leaf, crushed into afelia, pork marinated in red wine, and into loukaniko sausage, lountza and the olives cracked with lemon. Kleftiko takes its name from klefti, thief, and is lamb sealed in a clay oven so no smoke gives it away.
🌍
Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Cyprus
SheftaliaHerby caul-wrapped sausages of pork and onion, charcoal-grilled and tucked into pita with salad.
Halloumi and EggsSlices of grilled halloumi with fried eggs and fresh tomato, the classic Cypriot breakfast.
KoupesTorpedo-shaped bulgur shells stuffed with spiced minced meat and onion, fried crisp, a favorite Cypriot snack-lunch.
Browse all Cyprus recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Cool leftover rice quickly and refrigerate within an hour. Keep up to 2 days and reheat until piping hot all the way through.
Make it a Cyprus meal
Cypriot Brandy SourDrink
LoukoumadesDessert
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf)?
Coarse bulgur cooked with onion, vermicelli toasted golden in olive oil, and ripe tomato, then left to steam until fluffy, the everyday Cypriot side served with a bowl of yogurt.
Where does Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf) come from?
Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf) is a Cypriot dish from Nicosia, Cyprus.
Can Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Pourgouri Pilafi (Cypriot Bulgur and Vermicelli Pilaf) take to make?
About 35 minutes total (10 minutes prep, 25 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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