Skillet Beet and Farro Salad

By Martha Rose Shulman

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Rating: 5(382)
Notes: Read community notes

This hearty winter salad can be a meal or a side dish, and warming it in the skillet makes it particularly comforting. Cook your farro until you see that the grains have begun to splay so they won’t be too chewy and can absorb the dressing properly.

Featured in: Healthy Comforting Food: Warm Skillet Salads

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Ingredients

Yield:Serves 6

For the Salad

2medium or 3 small beets, roasted
1cup farro, soaked for 1 hour in 1 quart water
Salt to taste
1ounce lightly toasted pistachios (scant ¼ cup)
¼cup chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, tarragon, marjoram, chives, mint
Freshly ground pepper

For the Dressing

2tablespoons sherry vinegar
1teaspoon balsamic vinegar
Salt to taste
1small garlic clove, minced or pureéd
1teaspoon Dijon mustard
⅓cup extra virgin olive oil
2tablespoons walnut oil
Crumbled feta for garnish (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Roast the beets and meanwhile cook the farro. Place in a medium saucepan with the soaking water and bring to a boil. Add salt to taste, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes to an hour, until the grains have begun to splay. Turn off the heat and allow to sit for 15 minutes or longer in the water. Drain through a strainer set over a bowl.
Step 2
While the farro is cooking, make the vinaigrette. Whisk together the vinegars, salt, garlic, and mustard. Whisk in the oils. Pour into a wide frying pan or saucepan and add to the farro, along with a couple of tablespoons of the farro cooking water. Peel and dice the beets and add, along with the herbs and pistachios. Stir over medium heat until heated through and serve, with a little feta sprinkled over the top if you wish.

Tips

Advance preparation: The cooked farro and the roasted beats will keep for 3 or 4 days in the refrigerator.
If you want to reduce the fat and calories in this dish, substitute buttermilk for some of the oil. Be careful not to allow the dressing to come to a boil when you heat it in the pan or the buttermilk will curdle.

Ratings

5 out of 5

382 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Megan6 years ago

I made this almost exactly as directed and it was fantastic. No leftovers and my 2 and 5 year olds ate it too. The only change I made was to add the beet greens into the skillet to make it a more complete one dish meal. I didn't use quite all of the dressing, and I did use feta. The only herb I added was flat leaf parsley. Definitely going to do this one again.

ET6 years ago

Delicious - more than the sum of its parts. I chopped one bunch of lacinato kale and sauteed it in the skillet before adding the vinaigrette. I used scant oil in the vinaigrette then drizzled the beets and farro with buttermilk before stirring them into the warmed vinaigrette, less chance of curdling. Served it tonight with feta cheese and hot sauce - I'll add grilled pork sausages to tomorrow's leftovers.

Will try adding a bit of grated nutmeg next time I cook this.

Jim5 years ago

First made 12/15/18 -best to double the recipe - otherwise, only 2-3 lunch portions -2 cups uncooked farro -2 package of TJ’s beets -add 2 bunches of kale -no need to double the dressing -needs hot sauce

Amy6 years ago

Add hardy greens

Christa5 years ago

Lovely and simple, nourishing lunch on a rainy afternoon--I absentmindedly forgot the herbs, but it was fine without it. You don't even need the skillet, though I can imagine that would be warming in the winter or if you made the beets and farro ahead of time. As an afterthought, I added some arugula to add some green. Wonderfully simple, flavorful salad--I always love farro.

Karen5 years ago

I used fresh dill for the herbs—yum!

Clare5 years ago

I multiplied the recipe by 1.5. This was a great portion size, about enough for 3-4 days of lunch. (1) To roast the beets, I cut off the ends, peeled the skins with a vegetable peeler, cubed them, wrapped them in foil , and put them in at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes. (2) I got quick prepare farro, which only took 15 minutes of boiling to "splay," no soaking needed. (3) I hate feta, so I subbed in mild crumbled goat cheese. (4) I recommend tripling the garlic. No regrets. This is delicious.

Barbarajs6 years ago

I sautéed salad greens in the dressing before I added the farro and beets. It worked great.

Christa5 years ago

Even though Martha understandably describes this as a winter salad, I look foeward to making it every summer when beets appear at the farmstand. I didn't even recook it in a skillet--just tossed it all together. Didn't have nuts, but I have made it in the past with walnuts.

Katy5 years ago

Phenomenal. Added carrots and then fresh fennel, put pistachios or goat cheese on top.

Elizabeth5 years ago

Thanks for this suggestion. I added a block of tempeh, cubed then sauteed, and some leftover cabbage to fill it out for 3.5

Anastasia2 years ago

Great effort-to-result ratio with this one. The final assembly step is super quick, so this can be a reliable dish to put on the table on a predictably busy night if you cook the farro and the beets ahead of time. Agree with the note to double the recipe, but if you're planning to have leftovers, keep the nuts, the feta, and the herbs prepped and stored separately, to be added in at the last minute for the best effect.

billie2 months ago

Added baby spinach, chickpeas and caramelized leeks to round it out. Delicious!

LW5 months ago

I really wanted to like this -- and expected to enjoy it! But I found it quite oily, very skimpy on the beets in proportion to the grains, and desperately in need of seasoning. Once I'd added enough salt to give it flavor (a lot of salt), it tasted balanced yet not sharp, bright, or otherwise interesting. Further tweaking helped, to a point. But by that point, I was far from the instructions as-written. This recipe reflects a good concept, disappointingly conveyed.

Brenda7 months ago

I like to add a little lemon juice

allison10 months ago

Delicious! I used the Trader Joe’s 10 minute farrow and that worked great. I don’t think I fully followed the directions on sautéing the dressing and all that but it all worked out. Will definitely be making it again.

Margaret P10 months ago

One of the most delicious recipes I've made from NYT Cooking. The only changes I made was to follow the instructions for cooking the Farro from the package, being careful not to under- or overcook it. I forgot to save the cooking water so I used half buttermilk/half water instead. I took the advice to reduce the oils by substituting buttermilk, which I thought was genius. I probably used more herbs (mix of parsley, basil, and mint) than was recommended, but I didn't overdo it.

Lena11 months ago

I’m not a huge fan of beets but they were in my CSA box so I tried this recipe. Overall it was good but I think there is just too much oil in the dressing. If I make this again, I’ll be halving the olive oil.

Kate F.11 months ago

So good! Used beets from our CSA and a blend of parsley, mint, and chives. Loved the herbs and sweet beet combo. I cooked the farro to the package instructions which was much faster than the recipe. I meant to serve on top of arugula and will do that with the leftovers!

Maggie1 year ago

If you have cooked farro - or barley, as I did - the beets can be grated using a food processor and then sauteed for maybe 8 minutes before adding the other ingredients. I used brown butter, referencing a beets and pasta recipe on this site, but varioius oils would work too.

TheResearchDepartment1 year ago

Delicious! Texturally interesting with the farro. I think that the walnut oil really made a difference. Skipped the feta, because I don't do dairy, and didn't miss it. Forgot the herbs, and didn't miss them.

Weslie2 years ago

I really like this recipe. Not only is it delicious, but it has such nice textures with the beets, farro, and goat cheese or feta (I've used both.) When I get a bunch of beets with nice greens, I blanch them and add them in place of the herbs. The buttermilk substitution is great too. So very versatile.

a cook from Toronto2 years ago

Cooked farro and roasted the beets separately then combined them with the dressing and pistachios in a bowl. The dried tarragon that I added did not seem to add much but my fresh herbs are under snow! Did not have sherry vinegar so used red wine vinegar. Served with chicken breast. Will definitely make this again.

Anastasia2 years ago

Beth Ann4 years ago

I tossed this with arugula and added goat cheese instead of feta, Such a perfect grain salad!

Maia4 years ago

Love this. Great make-ahead weekday salad. Add beet greens for even more veg.

Big Lar4 years ago

Delicious as written! Added the beet greens

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