Freekeh

Ingredients

Grain

• 400 gfreekeh, cracked or whole

Meat

• 800 glamb shoulder, in chunks
• 3 tbspghee
• 2onions, chopped
• 1.2 litreslamb stock

Spices

• 1 tspground allspice
• 1 tspground cinnamon
• ½ tspground cardamom
• 1 tspblack pepper
• salt

To finish

• 100 gpine nuts and almonds, fried in ghee
• parsley
• yoghurt

Directions

1. Rinse the freekeh through several changes of water and pick out any grit or small stones, then soak cracked freekeh for 20 minutes or whole freekeh for an hour.
2. Rinse it thoroughly. Freekeh is threshed in the field after burning and it genuinely does carry grit.
3. Brown the lamb hard in the ghee, then lift it out.
4. Soften the onions in the same pot for 10 minutes, then add the spices and fry them for a minute.
5. Return the lamb with the stock, cover, and simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes until tender.
6. Lift the meat out and measure the broth: you want about two and a half parts broth to one part freekeh by volume.
7. Add the drained freekeh to the broth, bring it to the boil, then cover and cook on the lowest heat for 25 minutes for cracked freekeh or 45 for whole.
8. Do not stir it while it cooks. Freekeh is a pilaf here, and stirring releases the starch and turns it porridgy.
9. Take it off the heat and let it stand, covered, for 10 minutes.
10. Fork it through, fold the lamb back in, and season.
11. Top with pine nuts and almonds fried golden in ghee, and plenty of chopped parsley.
12. Serve with yoghurt alongside to cut the richness.
13. The wheat is durum harvested green and burned in the field, then rubbed clean, which is where both the name and the smokiness come from. It was an ancient way of saving a harvest that came in early.

Technique

• Cracked and whole freekeh are not interchangeable in timing. Check which you have bought before you start.
• The smokiness is in the grain itself rather than added, and good freekeh smells of it in the bag.
• It is high in fibre and genuinely filling, which is worth knowing when judging portions.

Substitutions

• Bulgur, which cooks faster and lacks the smoke entirely.
• Chicken in place of lamb, reducing the simmer to 40 minutes.

Variations

• Made as a soup, shorbat freekeh, with more broth.
• With chicken and a whole roasted bird set on top.
• Vegetarian, with mushrooms and vegetable stock.

History

Green durum wheat burned in the field then rubbed clean, an ancient Levantine way of saving an early harvest.

Frequently asked questions

What is Freekeh?

Freekeh is a main from Syria: smoky green wheat pilaf with meat and toasted nuts. Green durum wheat burned in the field then rubbed clean, an ancient Levantine way of saving an early harvest.

How long does Freekeh take to make?

Freekeh takes 20 min plus 1 hr soaking of preparation and 2 hr 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Freekeh?

Yes, within limits. Bulgur, which cooks faster and lacks the smoke entirely. Chicken in place of lamb, reducing the simmer to 40 minutes.

What is the most important thing to get right in Freekeh?

Do not stir it while it cooks. Freekeh is a pilaf here, and stirring releases the starch and turns it porridgy.