Farro Tabbouleh Salad

Name: Farro Tabbouleh Salad
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ cups farro; 1 bunch parsley; chopped (about 2 cups chopped ); 1 long English cucumber; peeled, seeded, and diced; 1 cup tomatoes; seeded and diced; ½ cup diced red onion; ½ cup extra virgin olive oil; ½ cup lemon juice (from about 2 lemons); 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tablespoon dijon mustard; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper

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Farro Tabbouleh Salad is a tasty twist on the traditional Lebanese tabbouleh salad made with bulgur. Made with Farro, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, and lemon juice, this salad is a delicious, easy and healthy salad!

Farro Tabbouleh Salad features a delicious combination of ingredients with a chewy crunchy texture. You’re going to love this simple and delicious mediterranean salad!

For another simple salad, don’t miss this Italian Tomato Onion Salad. And, if you love cooking with easy side salads, be sure to try my Lemon Orzo Salad.

Why this recipe works!

The combination of flavors and textures makes this salad truly special. If you like traditional tabbouleh salad, you are going to love this hearty farro variation.

This is a simple and easy salad to make ahead of time. It’s perfect for meal prep and seems to get better as it sits in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh for up to 5 days.

I like to serve this Farro Tabbouleh Salad when I’m grilling because it seems to work well any food you serve it with. Plus, you don’t have worry about the dish spoiling if it stays out at room temperature too long.

Don’t have an ingredients, no worries! This salad is great for substitutions and works well with any fresh vegetables you have on hand.

Ingredients

To make Farro Tabbouleh Salad you need: farro, tomatoes, parsley, lemon, cucumber, red onion, olive oil, garlic, dijon mustard, kosher salt, and pepper.

Farro: farro is a high-protein whole grain wheat that looks similar to barley. If you can’t find farro, you can always substitute bulgur, barley, or quinoa here.
Parsley: parsley is a key ingredient in any tabbouleh salad. Use the standard curly parsley rather than the Italian parsley.
Veggies: the veggies needed in traditional tabbouleh are parsley and tomatoes. Here, I like to add and use cucumbers and red onion as well.
Mint: mint is also traditionally used in tabbouleh. I prefer mine without the mint, but feel free to add in half a cup of diced mint if you like it.

Read on to see how simple this recipe is!

How to Make Farro Tabbouleh Salad

The most time consuming part of making this dish is waiting for the farro to cook. You can buy farro precooked or par-cooked at some stores. Otherwise, plan on 30 minutes to cook the grain.

To start, cook the farro. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook until al dente. Drain the farro and rinse with cold water to cool it off. Place it in a large bowl.

process shots showing how to make the recipe including the lemon dressing, chopped veggies, and mixing it all together.

Step 1: while the farro cooks, prepare the dressing. In a bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, fresh garlic, dijon mustard, salt and pepper.

Step 2: place the cooled farro to a large bowl. Add in the diced cucumber, tomato, parsley, and red onion.

Step 3: pour the dressing over the salad. Use a rubber spatula to mix all of the ingredients together. Chill the salad for about an hour or serve immediately.

Step 4: serve the salad in large bowl and garnish with more chopped parsley.

Farro Tabbouleh salad in a white bowl with lemon next to it.

Farro Tabbouleh Salad holds up excellent in the fridge and can last about 5 days. Add grilled chicken, salmon, or tofu, and you have a complete meal.

Recipe Tips and FAQs

Farro Tabbouleh Salad is a great recipe to have on hand for any occasion. It’s also perfect for meal prep. Here are my tips for making the best salad every time.

You can find farro in the grain section of most grocery stores. Farro cooks just like pasta, in a large pot of salted boiling water. Cook until al dente, drain, and then rinse with cool water to remove some of the starches.
Typical tabbouleh salad includes mint. If you’re a mint fan, add about ½ cup of chopped mint along with the parsley in the salad.
To keep the salad from being too runny, remove the seeds from the cucumber and tomato before dicing.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days.

What is Farro?

Farro is an ancient whole wheat grain that is high in protein and looks similar to barley but is slightly larger. It has a nutty chewy texture and is great in salads, soups, and risottos.

What can I substitute for Farro?

If you can’t find farro, a good substitute would be barley, quinoa, brown rice, spelt berries, wheat berries, or kasha.

What is tabbouleh?

Tabbouleh is a traditional Lebanese salad made with bulgur, parsley, cucumber, tomato, lemon, and olive oil. Parsley is the main ingredient in tabbouleh salad.

overhead photo of farro tabbouleh salad in a white bowl with lemons and parsley next to it.

What to serve with Tabbouleh Salad?

If you are looking for more healthy and delicious Mediterranean-style salads, be sure to check out:

Parsley Quinoa Chickpea Salad is a tasty and refreshing take on traditional tabbouleh salad.
Kale Quinoa Salad tastes amazing with raisins, walnuts, parmesan, and a lemony dressing.
Brussels Sprouts Salad is so easy and healthy, it is the perfect side dish for holidays, brunches, or weeknight dinners.

Farro Tabbouleh Salad in a white bowl with lemons next to it.

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For a super simple make-ahead meal, try Farro Tabouli Salad with easy Make-Ahead Greek Chicken. Delicious!