Nutty farro paired with onions, garlic, tomatoes, basil and parmesan. It’s a heavenly side dish, made in one pan!
I saw a recipe for this floating around months ago, and have had it on my meal plan forever. I just never got around to making it, and now I’m kicking myself. It is super easy, and although the cook time might seem long – it’s mainly hands off, so you can get on with other things.
[Tweet “Nutty #farro paired with delicious #italian inspired flavors. #side #recipe”]
Farro
Farro is a new-to-me grain. Much like quinoa, it really didn’t hit my radar until fairly recently. I’d heard of it, but wasn’t entirely sure how to cook with it. I’d describe it as a chewy brown rice type consistency, with a nutty flavor – perfect for blending with some quality ingredients. There are a few types of farro (pearled/perlato, semi-pearled/semi-perlato, whole/unpearled). Pearling basically describes how much of the exterior bran is removed, and will determine cooking time. Pearled will take about 15-20 minutes, semi pearled 25-30 and whole/unpearled up to 80 minutes! In this recipe, I used pearled, and the cook time reflects that.
What to serve with it?
I made this as a side for some grilled pork chops, and usually… there’s leftovers of sides, and no pork chops.
When I put this on the table though, there were leftover pork chops, and there was NO farro. I call that a win. Combining tomatoes, basil and parmesan was ALWAYS going to be a winner – but I had no idea how much! Give this a try and let me know what you think!
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup pearled farro
- 1 medium sized onion cut in half and thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- 1.5 cups grape or cherry tomatoes halved, basically the whole clamshell/punnet
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 Tbs olive oil
- 5-6 large basil leaves cut into thin ribbons
- 1/2 Cup shredded parmesan cheese for serving
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Add the water and farro to a small saucepan, and let it sit while you cut the onions, garlic and tomatoes.
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Add the sliced onion, sliced garlic and halved tomatoes to the saucepan, along with the salt and olive oil.
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Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, stirring occasionally for around 15-20 minutes.
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The farro is cooked when the liquid is almost all absorbed, and the farro is tender (will have a chewy bite to it but will not be hard)
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Transfer to a serving dish,
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Garnish with with the basil and parmesan.
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Devour
Raia says
I’ve never made farro before. Sounds easy and yummy! And anything with parmesan on top s always a winner. 😉
Kylee says
You should totally try it, Raia! My whole family enjoyed it!
Sam | Ahead of Thyme says
This is making my mouth water!! How am I hungry when I JUST had breakfast lol!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Kylee says
If there’d been leftovers, I’d have actually eaten them for breakfast. It’s that good.
Kathi @ Laughing Spatula says
I do believe Farro will be the new Quinoa this year! I didn’t realized it came pearled and semi pearled…great info and beautiful pics!
Kylee says
I hope so! I’m over quinoa. Farro for the win!
Ali @ Home & Plate says
What a great alternative to other types of grains. This side dish looks delicious and I can imagine full of flavor from the fresh tomatoes. Delicious!
Kylee says
It was truly mind blowingly good. Try it!
peter @feedyoursoultoo says
I love working with farro. Such good texture. This is a tasty and hearty dish.
Judy says
I really enjoy quinoa, but have not tried farro. Now I have a recipe to try!
Kate says
I live farro. Have you done wheat berries? I find them similar.
Kylee says
I haven’t done wheat berries yet, but I bet they’d be awesome!
Janice @Kitchen Heals Soul says
Love farro and I’m always looking for new ways of using it. This tomato base sounds great for farro 🙂
Jules Julian says
Can you eat this cold?
Kylee says
Absolutely