Freekeh is green wheat harvested while young, then roasted and dried, which gives it its characteristic smoky flavor.
Ingredients
Freekeh
- 2 cups freekeh, soaked in water overnight
- 5 cups vegetable broth
- If making the vegetable broth at home: 1 carrot, 1 onion, 3 bay leaves, a pinch of fenugreek, a handful of barley, and 3 cardamom pods
- A 4 cm piece of kombu if available; boil the broth ingredients well, strain, and use the resulting broth
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp seven-spice blend
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 5 tbsp oil
- Salt as needed
Topping
- 1 cup cooked peas
- 3 large carrots, cut into small cubes and cooked
- A handful of toasted cashews
- Salt as needed
- A pinch of black pepper
- A pinch of seven-spice blend
- A pinch of ground bay leaf
- 3 tbsp oil
Method
1. Cook the freekeh
- Heat the oil in a pot, add the freekeh, and sauté it briefly.
- Add the vegetable broth, spices and salt and mix.
- When it comes to a boil, lower the heat and cover the pot.
- When the liquid has been absorbed, turn off the heat. If the freekeh is still a little firm, add a small amount of water and continue cooking until tender.
2. Make the topping
- Heat the oil and sauté the carrots until they begin to color.
- Add the peas and stir briefly.
- Add the salt and spices. When cooked, turn off the heat and add the toasted cashews.
- Transfer the freekeh to a serving dish and spoon the carrots, peas and cashews over the top.
Serve with cucumber salad and plant-based yogurt. You can make the yogurt by thinning our soy, rice and almond labneh with water, or use our vegan almond yogurt.
Freekeh with peas and carrots: grains + legumes + vegetables
Freekeh is roasted green wheat, and with peas, carrots and cashews the dish becomes much more than a “rice substitute”: grains, legumes, vegetables and plant fats in the same meal.
When freekeh retains the whole-grain components, it fits into the broader whole-grain category. A review of randomized trials found that replacing refined grains with whole grains improved several markers, including LDL, total cholesterol, HbA1c and CRP. Source.
Peas are legumes, so they add plant protein and fiber. Carrots provide beta-carotene, which the body can convert into vitamin A, important for vision and immune function. NIH.
We do not need to say that freekeh lignans are “anti-cancer” or that peas “prevent inflammatory diseases” as if they were treatments. The stronger argument is the package itself: a Levantine dish built from grains, legumes and vegetables, without meat being the protein source or center of the meal.
Because freekeh is wheat, it contains gluten and is not suitable for people with celiac disease.
Try our vegetable biryani or quinoa with salad.
