Be taught how you can cook dinner farro completely each time! This straightforward stovetop technique makes chewy, nutty grains you should utilize in salads, soups, or aspect dishes.

When you’re looking out for complete grains which might be nutritious and really scrumptious, right here’s one which checks each field for me: farro! This historical grain has a chewy texture and nutty taste that makes it nice for the whole lot from grain bowls to soups to aspect dishes like my favourite farro salad.
Studying how you can cook dinner farro may be very easy, and you should utilize your stovetop, rice cooker, or Instantaneous Pot. I’ve examined all three approaches in my kitchen. In contrast to rice or quinoa that may flip mushy with out exact timing, I’ve discovered cooking farro is forgiving.
What Is Farro? (Origin & Background)
Farro is an historical grain that’s nutty and chewy, with a texture much like barley. It grain fueled Roman empire for hundreds of years and has even been present in Egyptian tombs. In Italian cooking, it’s a staple ingredient utilized in hearty soups and contemporary salads.
The nutty taste is of course wealthy and with its chewy taste, I really like that it feels substantial on the plate and makes meals really feel extra satisfying.
One other factor that units farro aside from complete grains like brown rice is that its cooking technique is forgiving. Its chewy texture doesn’t get mushy even when it’s a bit overcooked. This makes it nice for meal prep for the reason that texture holds up for a number of days within the fridge.
The three Varieties of Farro
Whenever you’re looking for farro at grocery shops, you’ll discover three several types of farro. It’s vital to know these distinction so you know the way to cook dinner farro correctly:
- Pearled farro has the entire bran faraway from the grain. It has the quickest cook dinner time of 15 to twenty minutes, making it nice for weeknight dinners. It has much less fiber than the opposite varieties.
- Semi-pearled farro has a part of the bran eliminated, so extra fiber and vitamins are retained. The cook dinner time is 25 to Half-hour, and it’s an excellent stability of diet and comfort.
- Entire farro is the entire grain with all bran, and has the longest cook dinner time at 30 to 40 minutes. It’s the toughest to search out in grocery shops, so my recipe focuses on pearled and semi-pearled.
Professional tip: I’ve discovered that package deal labeling will be complicated as a result of many manufacturers don’t clearly state the sort. You’ll be able to merely examine the cook dinner time listed on the package deal as a information. If it says 15-20 minutes, you’ve gotten pearled farro. If it says 25-Half-hour, it’s semi-pearled farro.

Cooking Suggestions for Excellent Farro
The best approach to cook dinner farro is on the stovetop utilizing the “pasta technique,” the place you’ll cook dinner it in water then drain as soon as the farro is tender. That is completely different from grains like rice or quinoa the place the entire water is cooked out. Listed here are the essential steps for how you can cook dinner farro on the stovetop (or leap to the recipe beneath):
- Rinse: Rinse the grains below chilly water in a positive mesh strainer. This removes any particles and extra starch.
- Add water: In a big saucepan, place 1 cup farro, 3 cups water and ½ teaspoon kosher salt and convey it to a boil.
- Simmer: Cut back the warmth to a simmer and canopy. Cook dinner till the grains are tender, about 15 to twenty minutes for pearled, 25 to Half-hour for semi-pearled.
- Drain: Drain any extra water. This technique is extremely forgiving and prevents the grains from turning into mushy.
- Season: I like so as to add 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil for richness, 1 minced garlic clove for depth, 2 tablespoons chopped contemporary herbs like thyme, oregano, chives, or basil, or an additional pinch of salt to style.

Instantaneous Pot and Rice Cooker Strategies
I like cooking farro on the stovetop as a result of I can taste-test the grains as they cook dinner and alter the timing as wanted. Regardless of my farro model, it normally takes about Half-hour to cook dinner: so it’s fairly fast!
For a very hands-off cooking technique, take a look at my information on how you can cook dinner farro in an Instantaneous Pot, which is nice for meal prep.
If you wish to cook dinner farro in a rice cooker, use the brown rice setting: this can normally take about 45 minutes.

Serving Concepts
One cup of raw farro yields about 3 cups of cooked grains, making it nice for meal prep and batch cooking. Listed here are my favourite methods to make use of this versatile complete grain:
- Grain Salads: Farro makes an awesome base as a result of it holds its chewy texture even with dressing. Attempt my Hearty Farro Salad with veggies, herbs, and a lemony dressing, or my Autumn Salad with farro and apples. Any grain salad recipe will be tailored to make use of farro.
- Grain Bowls: I really like this Farro Bowl with Mediterranean-inspired toppings like chickpeas, roasted greens, and hummus dressing. Or attempt it in a Energy Bowl for lunch or dinner.
- Aspect Dish: Once I need a fancy aspect dish, I make Farro with Mushrooms and Parmesan: it’s simply as scrumptious as risotto however simpler to arrange.
- Cozy Soups: My Cozy Farro and Brussels Sprouts Soup is a cold-weather favourite that’s each hearty and nourishing.
- Substitute for Different Grains You need to use farro wherever you’d usually use barley, quinoa, or brown rice. The chewy texture works nicely with stir-fries or breakfast bowls.
- Sheet Pan Meal: For a simple weeknight dinner, add farro to our Simple Sheet Pan Dinner or Sheet Pan Hen.
Find out how to retailer and reheat
Cooked farro shops extremely nicely, which makes it good for meal prep.
- Fridge Storage Retailer in an hermetic container for as much as 5 days.
- Freezer Storage For longer storage, cooked farro freezes nicely for as much as 3 months. Portion it into freezer protected containers and label with the date. Thaw in a single day within the fridge once you’re prepared to make use of.
- Find out how to reheat Add a splash of water, broth, or olive oil when reheating to stop the grains from drying out. You’ll be able to microwave it, or reheat in a skillet over medium warmth for a couple of minutes.
Dietary notes
This farro recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.
Often requested questions
About 2 ½ to three cups cooked.
Spelt, emmer, and einkorn are different names for the grain in English for various sizes, from largest to smallest. Emmer is what you’ll discover in most American shops. In Italy farro is labeled to indicate its measurement as farro grande, farro medio, and farro piccolo.
Soaking farro is just not required.
I like to recommend rinsing farro below chilly water earlier than cooking to take away any particles or extra starch, but it surely’s not completely important. When you’re brief on time, you may skip this step. Rinsing can enhance the ultimate texture barely.
Sure, cowl the pot whereas farro simmers on the stovetop. This helps the grains cook dinner evenly and prevents an excessive amount of water from evaporating. That stated, I’ve additionally cooked it uncovered with good outcomes: it’s very forgiving.
Completely! Farro makes an excellent risotto-style dish. Do this Farro Risotto recipe.
I do each! I add about ½ teaspoon of sea salt to the cooking water, much like cooking pasta. This seasons the grains from the within as they take up water. Then I add one other pinch of salt after draining to regulate the ultimate seasoning.
Find out how to Cook dinner Farro (Completely Chewy Grains Each Time)
This fundamental stovetop farro recipe delivers completely chewy, nutty grains that work in numerous dishes from salads to soups.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook dinner Time: 20 minutes
- Whole Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Class: Aspect Dish
- Technique: Stovetop
- Delicacies: American
- Weight-reduction plan: Vegan
Components
- 1 cup raw farro, pearled or semi-pearled (not complete)
- 3 cups water
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped contemporary herbs (thyme, oregano, chives, or basil), optionally available
- 1 garlic clove, minced, optionally available
Directions
- Rinse the farro below chilly water in a positive mesh strainer. In a big saucepan, place the farro, water and ½ teaspoon of the kosher salt and convey it to a boil.
- Cut back the warmth to a simmer, cowl, and cook dinner till the grains are tender, about 15 to twenty minutes for pearled farro and 25 to Half-hour for semi-pearled farro. Style take a look at a grain to see whether it is tender (if the package deal is unmarked, simply cook dinner till tender).
- Drain any extra water. Add the extra ¼ teaspoon salt and the olive oil or butter. If utilizing, stir within the minced garlic and herbs. Style and add extra salt if desired.
Notes
For hands-off cooking, take a look at my information on how you can cook dinner farro in an Instantaneous Pot, which is ideal for meal prep.
If you wish to cook dinner farro in a rice cooker, use the brown rice setting: this can normally take about 45 minutes.