Backpacker's Lightweight Farro with Lemon and Feta

As I have been experimenting with new grains, I have come to love farro. I made use of it for a recent backpacking trip and it turned out well. I used lemon to brighten it up, scallions for extra flavor and feta to give it a salty finish. There are various accounts of how well feta dehydrates, so if you have the opportunity just carry it fresh to top with. I dehydrated the whole thing for my latest multi-day trip. It worked fine for me.

If you’re loading up your backpack for a multi-day trip check out some of our other great recipes such as Thai Larb or IncredHERBal Israeli Coucous with Sun-Dried Tomatoes.

1 c farro, I use Bob’s Red Mill
3 c water
1 tsp bouillon
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp ground pepper
Pinch of crushed red pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 minced shallot
3 scallions, sliced
1 tbsp mint, chopped
3 tbsp parsley, chopped
2 tbsp feta, crumbled

Add the farro, water and bouillon to a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil. Once it’s boiling, lower the heat to a simmer for 20 minutes. Leave the farro in a strainer in the sink to drain and cool while you work on the vinaigrette. Mix together the lemon juice, zest, pepper, red pepper, olive oil, shallot, mint and parsley in a large bowl. When the farro goes from hot to warm, dump it in to combine with the dressing and mix it together. Put it in the fridge to cool for a few hours. You can either keep it in a cooler as is for camping or use the backpacking instruction below.

To dehydrate, mix in the feta (unless you’re carrying separate) after it’s been completely cooled and dump it out evenly on the plastic trays of your dehydrator. This will take about 6-8 hours to dehydrate at 140 degrees. Once it’s completely dry, you can store it in a sealed container for your next adventure. Because there is oil, you can store it in the freezer if you won’t be using it over the next few weeks. To hydrate, put water in to cover at camp and let it sit for 25 minutes.

Serves 4