Farro Salad with Zucchini and Radish
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This Farro salad with zucchini and radish is a riff on Charlie Bird's Farro Salad, a salad served at Charlie Bird, an eclectic, Italian-influenced restaurant in Soho, NYC. The recipe for their salad was recently published in the New York Times. As usual, I took my own spin on it. It is simple, satisfying and endlessly modifiable. I hope you use the recipe to create your own version. If you do, please share your variations in the comments below.
Make a Big Batch and Eat it for Days
This salad holds up well as a leftover. I make a big batch and eat it for days. You can extend the life of the salad if you keep the pistachio, arugula, herbs, zucchini and radishes separate from the dressed farro, and then combine them right before serving. If that is too much work, don't worry; when tossed all together, the salad still will be delicious for several days.Click to download our free e-cookbook: 15 Recipes To Make You Look Like A Star
Grill or Roast Your Zucchini
The zucchini can be grilled or roasted in the oven. Take whatever approach is easiest for you. If my husband is around, I ask him to grill it for me. If it is just me, I find it easier to roast it in the oven while I prep the other ingredients. The recipe provides instructions for both methods.Types of Farro
There are three kinds of farro: whole, semi-pearled and pearled.- Whole farro is rare in the U.S. It has the entire bran intact, is the most nutritious, requires pre-soaking and takes the longest to cook.
- Pearled farro is the most common in the U.S. It has the entire bran removed, does not require pre-soaking and is the quickest cooking.
- Semi-pearled farro is somewhere in between. It has some of the bran removed.
Cook Farro with Sautéed Shallots in Chicken Stock
I do things a little differently from Charlie Bird. For starters, I sauté chopped shallots in a little olive oil before adding the farro to the pan. Then I toast the farro before adding chicken stock. For this salad, I use chicken stock for the cooking liquid. I find chicken stock gives the farro a rich and savory flavor. Charlie Bird cooks their farro in apple cider. I have a Fall farro salad in the works, made with yellow squash and raisins. Stay tuned!How I Cook with Farro
I use farro three ways:- To make farro risotto, which I actually like better than traditional risotto, both for its taste and for its nutritional value.
- To make layered salads using my Master Salad for Dinner Recipe. Farro gives these one-dish-meal salads more satiety.
- To make farro salads where farro is the mail ingredient, like this Farro Salad with Zucchini and Radish.
More SNFD Farro Recipes
Eggplant, Pomegranate and Farro Salad
Mushroom, Zucchini and Farro Salad For Dinner
Mushroom, Lemon and Rosemary No-Stir Risotto
Master Salad For Dinner Recipe
I hope you enjoy this Farro Salad with Zucchini and Radish recipe as well as the farro recipes above. PrintFarro Salad with Zucchini and Radish
This farro salad with zucchini and radish is a riff on a salad served at Charlie Bird in Soho, NYC. It is lovely for a meatless Monday dinner or as an accompaniment for chicken or other protein. Leftovers are awesome for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
Scale
For the farro:
- Splash extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small shallot, diced
- 1 cup pearled farro, rinsed
- 4 cups good chicken stock, I like Zoup
- 2 bay leaves
For dressing:
- 2 T fresh lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
- 3/4 cup good olive oil
For the zucchini:
- Splash EV olive oil
- 4 medium zucchini, sliced length-wise into three or four slabs
For salad:
- 2 – 3 ounces good Parmesan cheese, shaved using a vegetable peeler
- 1/2 cup chopped pistachios or walnuts
- 3 ounces arugula or spinach
- 1 large handful of parsley or basil, stemmed and roughly chopped
- 1 large handful of mint, stemmed and roughly chopped
- 1 cup finely sliced radish
- 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
For the farro:
- Put a splash of olive oil in a saute pan. Heat on medium heat and add diced shallots. Saute until lightly colored, about 4 – 5 minutes.
- Add farro and saute another 2 -3 minutes, stirring.
- Add chicken stock and bay leaves. Bring to a boil and turn down to medium-low. Cook until al dente, about 20 – 25 minutes, depending on package directions. Drain any excess water from the cooked farro and set aside.
For dressing:
- In a bowl large enough to toss salad, whisk together lemon juice and olive oil. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.
For the zucchini:
Roasting method:
- Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place the zucchini slices in a sheet pan and brush them with olive oil and season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Roast in oven until both sides of slices are golden brown, turning after 15 – 20 minutes and roasting another 10-12 minutes.
- Remove zucchini from the oven and allow to cool. Slice into 1″ bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
Grilling method:
- Prepare the zucchini using the same preparation method above. Grill on a medium-hot barbecue until both sides are golden brown.
- Remove zucchini from the grill and allow to cool. Slice into 1″ bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
For the salad:
- Put the farro, zucchini, pistachios or walnuts, spinach, herbs, radishes and tomatoes in the bowl with the salad dressing. Toss and season with kosher salt, freshly ground pepper and crushed red pepper flakes.
Notes
- Use a mandolin to obtain nice, thin radishes. Alternatively, use a very sharp knife.
- If you want to make this salad in advance or serve this salad multiple days, toss the farro in the dressing and keep it separate from the remaining ingredients. Combine just before serving.
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