Farro (/ˈfæroʊ/ ⓘ) is agrain of any of threespecies of hulledwheat, namelyeinkorn,emmer, orspelt, sold dried and cooked in water until soft. It is used as a side dish and added to salads, soups and stews.
The English word is borrowed directly from Italianfarro, first documented in English in 1828 when the botanistSamuel Frederick Gray mentioned it. It derives from Latinfar, farris (spelt, grain).[1][2]
Farro is made from any of three species of hulled wheat (those that retain their husks tightly and cannot bethreshed):spelt (Triticum spelta),emmer (Triticum dicoccum), andeinkorn (Triticum monococcum).[3] In Italian cuisine, the three species are sometimes distinguished asfarro grande,farro medio, andfarro piccolo (large, medium, and small farro, respectively).[4]
Emmer is the most common variety of farro grown in Italy, specifically in certain mountain regions of Tuscany andAbruzzo. It is considered to be of higher quality for cooking than the other two grains and thus is sometimes called "true" farro.[5]
Confusion about the terminology for these three wheat varieties is generated by the difficult history in thetaxonomy of wheat and by colloquial and regional uses of the termfarro. For example, emmer grown in theGarfagnana region ofTuscany is locally known asfarro.[4] Some English speakers usefarro to mean steamed or boiled grain presented as salad and similar dishes, whereas in Italy it means the three grains, individually or together. Farro is sometimes translated as "spelt" in English, but this is only one of three possibilities.[6][7]
![Triticum dicoccum, emmer wheat, produces what is sometimes called "true" farro.[5]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aUsdaemmer1.jpg)
