Mediterranean Farro Salad
Farro falls into the category of Ancient Grains and refers to the grains of three different wheat species and is processed several different ways. There is whole farro, which like dried beans, must be soaked overnight prior to cooking. This by far has the most nutrients, but prep time is longer. You can also find semi-pearled or pearled. The more processing, the fewer nutrients, but the easier to cook. In most stores you will find the pearled, although the label is likely to show just "farro", but the directions for cooking on the back will give you an idea. Any form you choose will still yield a lovely, nutty, chewy grain that works for both sweet an savory. Mix with fruit and yogurt or cream, use instead of rice when making risotto, or enjoy in this easy salad recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup Farro (270g) (pearled farro)
- 3 cup water (711ml)
- 3 tbsp olive oil (45g)
- 2 tbsp lime juice (30g)
- 1/2 tsp salt (3g)
- 2 medium size garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp ground cumin powder (2.3g)
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro (40g)
- 1/2 cup chopped green onions - white and green parts (45g)
- 1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper (50g)
- 1 cup diced Persian cucumber (100g)
- 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds (55g)
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the 3 cups of water, along with a teaspoon of salt to a sauce pan, and bring to a boil. Add the farro and stir. Turn the heat down, and simmer. Cooking times vary by the age and brand of the farro, but generally its about 15 to 20 minutes. Cook until they are tender, but still a bit chewy. Pour out through a strainer and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking process. Dump the cooled, drained farro into a bowl.
- Mix together the lime juice, salt, pepper, minced garlic, cumin and olive oil. Pour over the still warm farro and stir to combine.
- Next, stir in the cilantro, green onions, sweet red pepper, cucumbers and toasted almonds. Let it set at least one hour to absorb all the flavors from the dressing. Serve cold or at room temperature. This salad will keep for 3 to 4 days.*Cooking times given in this recipe were for the pearled variety of farro.