Charlie Bird’s Farro Salad
Updated July 3, 2025
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1cup farro
- 1cup apple cider
- 2teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed
- 2bay leaves
- 8tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 70grams Parmesan cheese, shaved with a vegetable peeler (½ cup)
- 70grams chopped pistachio nuts (½ cup)
- 2cups arugula leaves
- 1cup parsley or basil leaves, torn
- 1cup mint leaves
- ¾cup halved cherry or grape tomatoes
- ⅓cup thinly sliced radish
- Maldon or other flaky sea salt, for finishing
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
398 calories; 27 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 17 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 8 grams sugars; 12 grams protein; 409 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a medium saucepan, bring farro, apple cider, salt, bay leaves and 2 cups water to a simmer. Simmer until farro is tender and liquid evaporates, about 30 minutes. If all the liquid evaporates before the farro is done, add a little more water. Let farro cool, then discard bay leaves.
- Step 2
In a salad bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Add farro, cheese and pistachio nuts and mix well. This salad base will keep for up to 4 hours at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator (bring to room temperature before serving). Just before serving, fold in arugula, herbs, tomatoes, radish and flaky salt to taste.
Private Notes
Comments
When discussing these notes and peoples' tribulations with farro cooking time my wife - something of a farro aficionado - pointed out that there are pearled and non-pearled versions available. Apparently the non-pearled takes twice as long to cook. Perhaps this is the source of confusion over cooking times?
I used pearled (without knowing the difference at the time) and it was perfect - a little nutty with a very slight crunch but perfectly edible - in 30 minutes using hard cider as liquid.
This was good but with some adjustments:
Made this with Trader Joe's 10-minute farro so I used 1C apple cider and 1C water and only simmered for 15 minutes. I cut down on the olive oil and did NOT add salt. (The first time I made this the 2 tsp of salt overpowered everything and I had to throw the farro out.)
This is such a fantastic recipe, although as others noted, the salt added in to the farro is too much, especially once you put the salty parmesan on top. I roasted some sweet potato in chunks to add instead of the tomatoes to make a more autumn-y salad, I thought it was delicious and wished I had made more of the farro to make it last longer! The base easily lasted 5 days in my fridge and made for delicious lunches at the office.
The flavors are amazing! I've made this twice in one week; once for my friend's sunmer party and the second time for my mom I cut the salt in half as others had suggested. Just wonderfully delicious!
I’ve made this several times and absolutely adore it. I use Trader Joe’s quick cooking faro and drain the extra liquid. I also use apple juice because I never have cider around (I might add a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar next time after reading the comments). Otherwise I don’t change a thing and it’s divine.
Just a story— at 7:30 this morning I was at the farmer’s market (in Chicago) and saw apple cider so I thought I would make the salad. I asked the vendor if he had smaller amounts than the half gallon on the stand. He said, “Are you making Charlie Bird?” I laughed and (keeping in mind that this is early morning in Chicago) he said I was far from the first, and that the cider freezes well for multiple salads 😂.
Loved your story....