Farro adds delicious chewy texture and nutty flavor to this fresh, versatile salad recipe. Enjoy it for a healthy lunch, or serve it as an easy side dish.
I don’t think I’ll ever stop experimenting with new farro salad recipes. This chewy, nutty grain lends itself well to all sorts of ingredient combinations, and there’s nothing I enjoy more than stumbling across a really good one that I haven’t tried before.
I first made this farro salad recipe earlier this fall as a way to use up odds and ends we had on hand in the fridge. Arugula, radicchio, most of an apple… I loved the way the nutty farro played off the bitter greens, the sweet fruit, and some salty, funky pecorino cheese I tossed in at the last minute. The balance of flavors was delicious and a little unexpected. It only took a few bites for me to realize that I had to share this farro salad recipe with all of you.
Farro Salad Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this farro salad recipe:
- Farro, of course! My favorite method for how to cook farro is to boil it like pasta, cooking until the farro is tender but still has an al dente bite. The cooking time can range from 10 or 20 minutes for pearled farro to 45 minutes for whole farro. Be sure to check which type you have before you start cooking! Learn more about the different types of farro here. And heads up: farro is an ancient variety of wheat, so it is not gluten-free. If you’re looking for a gluten-free sub for this recipe, brown or wild rice would do the trick.
- Arugula and radicchio – These bitter greens create the salad’s fresh base.
- Honeycrisp apple – For sweetness and crunch.
- Medjool dates – They add more sweetness and yummy chewy texture.
- Walnuts – Another crunchy element! They enhance the farro’s nutty flavor as well.
- Pecorino cheese – Its saltiness balances the sweet apples and dates.
- Fresh parsley and thyme – They make the salad aromatic and refreshing.
- Apple cider vinegar dressing – Bright and tangy, it’s my go-to salad dressing for a fall farro salad.
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
The first step in this farro salad recipe is cooking the farro. To get ahead, you can cook the farro up to 3 days in advance and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to make the salad. You can make the dressing ahead of time too!
Once you prep these components, place the farro in a salad bowl with the arugula, radicchio, apples, dates, pecorino, walnuts, and herbs. Add half the dressing, and toss to coat. Season to taste, adding more dressing as desired, and serve.
Farro Salad Serving Suggestions
The farro makes this salad substantial enough to eat for lunch, but it’s a great dinner side dish too. Pair it with your favorite protein, or serve it alongside brothy beans, a baked sweet potato, a roasted cauliflower steak, or any of these soup recipes:
Like to plan ahead? Consider serving this salad as a Thanksgiving side dish! It would offer a nice fresh contrast to holiday classics like green bean casserole, stuffing, and mashed potatoes. Enjoy!
More Favorite Fall Salad Recipes
If you love this recipe, try one of these fall salads next:
- Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic
- Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
- Carrot Salad
- Green Bean Salad
- Pear Salad with Balsamic and Walnuts
- Sweet Potato Salad
- Kale Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing
- Or any of these 51 Best Salad Recipes!
Farro Salad
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked farro, from 1 cup dry
- 1 cup arugula
- 1 cup sliced radicchio
- 1 Honeycrisp apple, thinly sliced
- 3 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
- ½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- ½ cup shaved pecorino cheese
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large bowl, place the farro, arugula, radicchio, apple, dates, parsley, walnuts, cheese, and thyme.
- Add half the dressing, the salt, and several grinds of pepper and toss to combine. Season to taste, adding more dressing as desired.
This might be the best thing I’ve ever eaten. Well done!
Delicious!!! Made this and loved the salad. My only comment was that the fresh thyme flavor was a bit distracting. Would do again with a smaller amount or just exclude. Otherwise a fantastic salad and very filling.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Agreed! This salad was excellent and can’t wait to make again but next time I would omit the thyme.
Loved it! Added butternut squash and it was a perfect meal.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
So delicious! Love the sweet, salty and tart flavors. Will absolutely make this again.
Hi Sara, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Very tasty, but I’d skip dates, they are too sweet.
I will be making this again and again! This is so good – crunchy chewy savory with a tiny bit of sweet from the apple and dates. Such a great flavor profile.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Hi can you advise if this salad will keep for more than one day or two? Thanks!
Hi Annamarie, I’ve eaten it for up to 4 days. The apple and the arugula are the only things you may want to add at the last minute.
great recipe! Thank you for sharing, 🙂
Loved this – hearty and healthful. The pecorino really adds a nice salty zip.
Hi Amanda, I’m so glad you enjoyed the salad!
So delicious! We swapped out the pecorino with gorgonzola instead – smart decision if you’re a blue cheese fan
That sounds delicious! So glad you loved the salad.
Add pomegranate! Thank me later
I made this for my family and everyone loved it. It’s got wonderful flavor with the contrast of bitter greens and the sweet of the apples and dates. I will make it again!
Hi Teri, I’m so glad you loved the salad!
This is peak fall – so delicious!! I don’t habitually buy radicchio, my usual store doesn’t even sell it, but I made the extra trip to Sprouts and I’m so glad I did! I was a little worried about the radicchio too, tried a few pieces while chopping and worried that the salad would be too bitter with that and arugula, but you knew better. There’s sweetness from the dates and apples, crunch from the apples and walnuts, chew from the farro, and tang from the dressing. So so good and a welcome change from my usual kale + apple combo.
I’m so glad you loved the recipe!
Absolutely fantastic – I used Little Leaf baby spring mix and spinach instead of arugula and added strawberries but we munched the whole salad down as an entree it was so GD good!
That sounds delicious! So glad you enjoyed the recipe.