We really want to love farro. Really. It is so homey, so wholesome, so rustic. And yet we just cannot cook it long enough. One more recipe (is it our book?!) with this grain (is it our store?!) leaves us chewing almost to the point of muscle fatigue (have you ever had too much beef jerky?). According to Joyce Goldstein, the farrotto "is ready when it is tender but still chewy at the center." Well... it sure is chewy, despite spending almost twice as long in the pan as the recipe estimates (well over an hour in our case, instead of 40 min).
We started with a couple of fresh Portobello mushrooms sautéing in butter and oil. After they softened, we added a mix of re-hydrated wild Italian mushrooms (Porcini et al) along with their soaking liquid. Salted, peppered, and heated through, we set this mushroom mêlée aside until the last stage of the farrotto.
In a large, deep sauté pan, we warmed up olive oil and sautéed chopped onion in it until soft and translucent. In the meantime, we heated up vegetable stock to a boil and then kept it simmering as we ladled the stock, cup at a time, waiting for each to be absorbed into the grains or evaporate, into the farrotto. The farrotto initially consisted of the aformentioned onions and the farro grains, but along with the last cup the mushrooms went into it, too.
Once off the heat, we stirred in chopped parsley and butter.
- 1oz/25g dry wild mushrooms
- 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp olive oil
- fresh mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
- salt and black pepper
- 8 cups vegetable stock
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cups farro
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- butter