Prep time 10 min cook time 30 min
Considered one of the top eight Middle Eastern superfoods (See article ), this delicious blend of freekeh’s smokey nutty taste with sweet raisins and rich browned almonds makes this a luscious side dish.
Freekeh is green wheat, a highly nutritious and gluten free grain used in a lot of Middle Eastern cooking. I was introduced to it by Marcelle, my second wife who during our courtship in Cairo and in keeping with the adage that “food is the way to a man’s heart ” kept seducing me with roasted farm fresh, organic pigeon stuffed with freekeh. Not quite a gourmet quickie but a slow cooked, moist, fall off the bone, melt in your mouth Egyptian pigeon dish that I succumbed to every time she served it.
As a side dish freekeh is much more nourishing and tastier than rice and is as versatile. This recipe works well with any grilled meat or poultry but a little too rich as a complement to fish.
I also use it as part of vegetarian meals and pair it with ingredients like Portobello Mushrooms Caprese.
A word of caution. Use cracked freekeh not the whole grain that takes much longer to cook. You can use bulgar wheat instead but it does not have that lovely smokey flavor that freekeh is well known for.
Freekeh With Almonds and Raisins
by
Derek Farwagi
Ingredients
- ½ cup chopped yellow onion
- 2 tbsp olive oil (divided)
- ¼ cup sliced or slivered almonds
- 1 cup freekeh
- 1 ½ cups water or vegetable stock ( for a richer taste)
- ¼ cup raisins
- slat and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Sauté almonds in a little oil for 3-4 minutes on medium heat until golden brown and set aside on a sheet of kitchen towel to dry.
- Sauté onion in olive oil over medium heat until clear ( 3 minutes). Add freekeh and cook until slightly toasted, 1 – 2 minutes.
- Add water or vegetable stock and bring to a boil.
- Add raisins and almonds, reduce heat, cover and cook until liquid has absorbed, about 20 – 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Season to taste with salt.
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