I’m experimenting with a new grain this week, farro, and the first thing I wanted to make was a salad. Farro is a delightful chewy grain with a neutral flavor that will make any salad very “meal” worthy. I decided to go a mediterranean route with tomato, cucumber, seasoned and sautéed chickpeas, and my favorite creamy (and vegan) tahini dressing. This Mediterranean Farro Salad was pretty quick to prepare and I can keep the ingredients in the fridge all week to assemble whenever I want a fresh salad.
What is Farro?
Farro is an “ancient grain” with a delightfully chewy texture and nutty flavor. It’s packed with protein and fiber, but has a neutral flavor, which makes it a great addition to salads, bowl meals, skillets, and more. Farro isn’t quite as popular in the U.S. as other grains, so you’re more likely to find it at health food stores or international markets.
How Do You Cook Farro?
Farro is really easy to cook. Like other grains, you simply boil it in water until tender. I suggest making a batch of farro to use throughout the week, so you don’t have to cook it fresh every night. This salad recipe assumes you have farro already cooked. For detailed cooking instructions, check my tutorial on How to Cook Farro.
Can I Use a Different Grain?
Absolutely! If you don’t like farro or can’t find it in your area, you can use bulgur (cracked wheat), couscous, brown rice, or even quinoa in place of the farro.
Mediterranean Farro Salad with Spiced Chickpeas
Servings 4Ingredients
DRESSING
- 1/3 cup tahini ($1.13)
- 1/3 cup water ($0.00)
- 1/4 cup lemon juice ($0.18)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.03)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
SPICED CHICKPEAS
- 1 15oz. can chickpeas ($1.15)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.12)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional) ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked black pepper (10-15 cranks of a mill) ($0.03)
- Salt to taste ($0.02)
SALAD
- 3 cups cooked farro (or other grain) ($1.49)
- 2 Roma tomatoes ($1.39)
- 1 cucumber ($0.99)
- 1/4 bunch fresh parsley ($0.79)
Instructions
- To make the dressing, combine the tahini, water, lemon juice, minced garlic, cumin, cayenne, and salt in a blender. Blend until smooth. Set the dressing aside until ready to use (keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days).
- Rinse and drain the chickpeas in a colander. Heat the olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Once hot add the drained chick peas. Sprinkle the smoked paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper (if using), and some freshly cracked pepper over top. Stir the chickpeas to coat in the spices, then continue to sauté for about five minutes, or until the outside of the chickpeas are slightly browned and blistered. Season with salt to taste.
- Chop the tomatoes, cucumber, and parsley. Place about 3/4 cup cooked farro in each bowl, then top with chopped tomato, chopped cucumber, spiced chickpeas, and a large pinch of chopped parsley. Drizzle the dressing over top and serve.
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Nutrition
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How to Make Mediterranean Farro Salad – Step by Step Photos
Make the dressing first so that the flavors have a few minutes to mingle. Add 1/3 cup tahini (sesame seed paste), 1/3 cup water, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 2 cloves of garlic (minced), 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1/2 tsp salt to a blender. Blend until smooth. Set the dressing aside, or refrigerate for longer storage (up to five days).
Dice two roma tomatoes and one cucumber. Roughly chop about 1/4 bunch parsley (I only chopped a small amount of parsley in the photo).
Rinse and drain a 15oz. can of chickpeas.
Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a non-stick skillet and heat over a medium flame. Add the chickpeas, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp cayenne (optional), and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a mill). Stir to coat the chickpeas in oil and spices. Continue to sauté the chickpeas until they get slightly brown and blistered on the outside (about 5 minutes). Season with salt to your liking.
Begin to assemble the bowls by placing about 3/4 cup cooked farro in each bowl, then topping with some diced tomato, cucumber, spiced chickpeas, and a sprinkle of the chopped parsley.
Drizzle the tahini dressing over top.
And now it’s time to eat! There’s so much flavor packed into this one bowl, it’s incredible.
Nomnomnomnomnom…
The textures and flavors are wonderful! I divided this into four containers for lunches and topped with dressing and salad greens each morning. This is a great vegetarian lunch that can compete with all of the $12 takeout salads I could have instead. I used dried beans, so mine may have been even cheaper than Beth’s.
Did you eat it reheated or cold?
Absolutely delicious as is! However, I did add some feta cheese at the end. So good! Next time I think I’m going to try some grilled chicken breast and cilantro.
This recipe’s so good I might get it tattooed on my arm
Hahaha love it! :D
My wife and I love this recipe. We decided to swap out the farro for wheat berries which I think is a bit more filling. The change we made that we LOVE is swapping tahini sauce for plan old peanut butter. This makes the meal a LOT more affordable and, in my opinion, taste better too!
Thanks for this recipe. It’s a weekly favorite.
I must have done something wrong, because this one did not work out for me. The cucumbers are the worst part of it (and obvi not Beth’s fault) so maybe I just got a bad one, or maybe I should have peeled it. The dressing is good but not great, and doesn’t really infuse into the salad the way I expected. The chickpeas never really roasted for me (I’ve done it in the oven before for better results) but probably wouldn’t have stayed crisp til Friday’s lunch anyway. So probably my fault, but this one was a loser for me (among hundreds of winner recipes!).
I am eating this right now. I did not want to wait until I was finished to thank you. This will definitely be a new healthy staple in my household. Thank you so much!! 😍🤗
I made this tonight and it was a hit. I felt like my cells were singing in appreciation of all the healthy nutrients.
Beth! I CANNOT thank you enough for this *amazing* recipe which I’ve made so many times (and currently devouring!) I couldn’t find Farro in my area so I instead made tabbouleh. To make this the ultimate feast, I also add some frozen sweetcorn and a chicken drumstick (pre-made and frozen of course – Budget Bytes worthy!) All defrosted of course lol. DELICIOUS. Thank you!!!!
And lettuce! Can’t forget my romaine lettuce! Oh I’m stuffed…!
You’re so very welcome!! I’m glad it was such a hit for you. :)
Made this today, doubled the recipe for the week for the boyfriend and me. AMAZING! Took a fair bit of work but was TOTALLY WORTH IT!
Beth,
I made this last night, WOW YAYAYAYAYAY YESSSSSSSSSSSS!@$@!~@~~~!!!! Thank you!! I made extra dressing and made it into a salad by serving everything over 3 cups of kale (which I massaged the dressing on for about 30 seconds to soften it up). It was fantastic! I cooked the farro in chicken broth and it was a nice, subtle addition. I cooked the chickpeas on too high heat initially and chickpeas went flying everywhere…. my dogs thank you for the airborne treats X-D This is definitely going into the regular dinner rotation. I was so full and satisfied!
I will try to attach a pic below!
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UuBkEg2DWwI/WH7A61_G9GI/AAAAAAAA6jM/pUeZL_f1PdMNG_Y4XwBGGLDb66xEodzdwCL0B/h1152/733641558182367957%253Faccount_id%253D1
Loved the dressing so much I’ll double it next time!
This was terrific. It’s the third recipe I’ve tried from this site and I’ve had a great experience will all three. Very easy to make.
Wow Beth, this recipe is amazing! Tried it for the first time for dinner yesterday and it was a big hit. So easy, nutritious and flavorful! I added a big handful of spinach and rocket, thinly sliced red onions and a few slices of kalamata olives. Delicious to the max. Hubby loved it too. We’re going to have it again tonight. Thank you!
Really, really good! I substituted brown rice for farro. I was worried it would taste “too healthy,” but it was packed with flavor! This will definitely be a new lunch staple.
Outstanding! The best dinner I’ve had in ages. What flavour. And so healthy as well. You don’t have to be on a restricted diet to find this recipe super satisfying and tasty. I made it with groats (couldn’t find farro, not a fan of quinoa) and it was delicious. I will make it again and again (especially because there was very little left over).