Italian Farro Salad
Italian farro salad is a simple and easy cold salad made from a base of cooked farro, flavored with seasonal vegetables and dressed in a tangy dressing made from olive oil and lemon juice. Large parmesan shavings give this hearty salad a salty bite, making it feel rich and adding a ton of flavor.
Ingredients
- 1 cup farro
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 6 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 cup shaved parmesan cheese (45 g)
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 1 1/2 cups arugula (rocket)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Add the ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar and salt well. You can learn how to do this in detail in xx. Add the farro and cook until al dente (cooked but with a slight bite), about 20-25 minutes. Drain well.
- While the farro is cooking, make the dressing and cook the asparagus. Whisk the lemon juice with ¼ cup (4 of the 6 tablespoons) extra virgin olive oil. Season with pepper.
- Clean the asparagus and cut into bite size pieces. Heat the remaining two tablespoons of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat and add the asparagus and a pinch of salt. Saute until bright green and charred, between 2-5 minutes depending on how thick the asparagus is.
- Drain the farro well and immediately dress with the salad dressing. Let cool. Add the asparagus. You can assemble everything up to this point one day in advance. Right before serving, toss in the arugula and finish with large shavings of parmesan cheese (which can be accomplished with a vegetable peeler). Serve immediately.
Notes
- When making Italian farro salad, always dress the farro when it’s warm, helping it to soak up the dressing, ultimately creating a more flavorful salad.
- You can use par cooked farro if you like, which should take only 10 minutes or so to cook.
- Cooking farro is similar to cooking pasta in Italy. It shouldn’t be mushy nor should it break your teeth. Read more about how to cook pasta (and thus, farro) in xx.
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