Italian Farro Salad with Feta is made with wholesome and nutritious farro. It's perfect as a a healthy lunch option or as a side dish!
If you’re not familiar with farro, it’s an ancient whole grain, much like other whole grains such as barley, quinoa, and wheat berries. It has a chewy texture, but in a good way!
It also has a dose of vitamins A, E and minerals like iron and magnesium.
How to cook farro
Farro will take on whatever flavors you infuse it with.
When cooking farro, I like to substitute vegetable or chicken stock for the water. It imparts a flavor into the cooked farro, adding another flavor dimension!
Because it's a whole grain, it takes about 30 minutes to cook. Get started on this step of the recipe before you go any further. Then, you can use that window of time to prep your veggies!
Making Italian Farro Salad with Feta Cheese
You've got your farro cooking - perfect!
Next up, chop your onions and zucchini. You'll cook these in another pan and season them with salt, pepper and garlic.
Remember, we are layering the seasonings for some big time flavors!
When the farro is done, most of the liquid will have been absorbed, but there may be some additional liquid. Drain that and combine the ingredients while the farro is still warm.
You know what's coming here, right? You're mixing it together while it's warm so we can layer some flavors!
Serve warm or at room temperature. Add feta just before serving.
Now, before you report me to the cheese police, I think I should mention this.
Now, I know feta is not Italian cheese.
It's just really like feta. I think it gives a great salty element to this farro salad, and I like that it's dry and crumbly.
But if you're a purist, or don't like feta, pick whatever cheese you think belongs in here. Fresh mozzarella, shredded Parmesan. Just not Velvetta 😉
Who am I to judge?
Italian farro salad is awesome for a packable cold lunch because let's face it - we can all use a sandwich alternative from time to time.
Or, serve it as a side with a dish like rosemary grilled chicken.
If you like this recipe, be sure to check out my Mediterranean Chopped Salad and Creamy Potato Salad recipes.
Be sure to tag me on social media with your creations at #thisfarmgirlcooks!
Italian Farro Salad with Feta
Ingredients
- 6 ounces cooked farro
- generous ¼ cup chopped grape tomatoes
- 1-2 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 zucchini quartered and sliced
- ½ onion diced
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 Tablespoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ¼ cup favorite vinaigrette
- ¼ cup Crumbled feta
Instructions
- Cook farro according to package directions.
- Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, heat to medium high heat. Add oil to pan.
- When oil is warmed, add onion and zucchini. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent and zucchini has begun to cook through, about 4-5 minutes. Sprinkle with salt & pepper and add garlic. Cook for one more minute, remove from heat.
- Drain farro and place in a medium sized bowl while still warm. Add cooked vegetable mixture, grape tomatoes and remaining ingredients. Toss to combine.
- Serve warm or at room temperature. Add feta just before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
This Farm Girl Cooks is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
