Greek Farro Salad
Bursting with fresh flavors and packed with veggies, my Greek Farro Salad makes for a satisfying side dish or light lunch! This colorful salad is nutritious, easy to make and ready in just 30 minutes!
Creamy and tangy feta, fresh and crunchy veggies, as well as chewy and nutty farro — this dish is all about contrasting textures and flavors!
Key ingredients
- Farro: If you’re not familiar with farro, it’s a nutrient-rich grain with a chewy texture and almost nutty flavor. The ancient grain is super versatile and easy to cook.
- Broth: I like to cook my farro in broth for extra flavor, but salted water will also work.
- Vegetables: Cucumbers and tomatoes (cherry, grape, roma — whatever you have) are my favorite veggies for this salad. I also add fresh dill, red onion and green onions for flavor.
- Feta: Buying block feta in brine will give you the best flavor, but pre-crumbled feta will work in a pinch.
- Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice works best.
Recipe variations
I tend to make variations of this farro salad with whatever I have on hand. Here are some of my favorite additions:
Mix up the vegetables. Vegetables that work well in this Greek Farro Salad include zucchini, yellow squash or bell peppers. Spinach and arugula also make great mix-ins!
Use your favorite fresh herbs. Fresh oregano and parsley make great substitutes for the green onion and dill.
Customize the dressing. No lemon juice? Substitute a bit of red or white wine vinegar.
Step by step instructions
This salad is so simple and can be made in three easy steps:
Step 1: Cook the farro. I prefer to cook farro for this recipe just like pasta: bring a pot of salted water (or vegetable broth) to boil, add the farro and cook until tender. Then just drain and rinse with cold water.
Farro Cook Time: The cook time will differ depending on whether your farro is whole, pearled (without the bran), or semi-pearled (with some of the bran intact). The majority of farro I’ve come across in the United States is pearled or semi-pearled which will take about 20-30 minutes.
If you’re looking for a super quick option, I’ve also used Trader Joe’s partially cooked farro in this recipe, which is ready in just 10 minutes!
Step 2. Prep the veggies. Chop all the veggies into bite size pieces, crumble the feta and chop the red onion, green onion and dill.
Step 3: Mix and enjoy! While we’ve given concrete amounts for the veggies and dressing, everything in this type of salad is best adjusted to taste. Looks like it could use a few more tomatoes? Toss them in! Could do with a bit more brightness? Add another squeeze of lemon juice!
Storage
This Greek Farro Salad will keep for five days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
FAQs
Farro is an ancient grain that’s nutritious, easy to cook and super versatile! Here I prepare it by boiling it in broth and draining any excess liquid.
Farro has a chewy texture and almost nutty taste. If you’re familiar with barley, it has a similar flavor profile.
Yes! In fact, the flavors will have a chance to really marinate together as the salad sits. If you’d like the farro salad warm, try mixing up everything except the farro a day in advance and cooking the farro when you’re ready to enjoy.
Yes! Simply leave out the feta.
You can serve Greek Farro Salad warm or cold. I like to serve it warm right after the farro is cooked, but also enjoy any leftovers straight from the fridge!
For more salads perfect for a potluck or picnic, check out these recipes:
Greek Farro Salad Recipe
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: side
- Method: no bake
- Cuisine: global
Description
My Greek Farro Salad is a hearty and nutritious grain-based salad perfect for your next cookout, potluck or even a regular old Tuesday night!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (160 grams) farro, rinsed
- 3 cups (700 ml) vegetable broth*
- 8 ounces (230 grams) cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup (60 grams) kalamata olives, pitted and halved
- 1 medium cucumber, chopped
- 1/2 small red onion, finely diced
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
- 6 ounces (170 grams) feta cheese, crumbled
- 2–3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- Bring the vegetable broth to boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the farro and cook until tender (about 20-30 minutes).* Drain any excess liquid and rinse with cold water.
- While the farro is cooking, prepare the remaining ingredients. Combine the chopped tomatoes, olives, cucumber, red onion, green onion, dill and feta in a large bowl. Fold in the cooked farro.
- Stir in the lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Adjust to taste.
Notes
Vegetable broth:Â Salted water can be substituted for vegetable broth.
Cooking farro: Pearled farro and semi-pearled farro will generally be ready in 20-30 minutes. Whole grain farro will take longer and is best soaked overnight. For best results, follow the cook time on your package instructions.
Storing: This salad will keep for 5 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
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