Salmon Farro Grain Bowl With a Lemon-Scallion Vinaigrette

4 servings
35 min

This salmon farro grain bowl was a happy accident. I often discover new recipes because of the following things.

  1. There has to be at least one thing, preferably two things, on the plate that my toddler will eat.
  2. There are ingredients I have leftover in the fridge from a recipe earlier in the week and I don’t know what to do with them.
  3. Or, there’s an item in the fridge that looks like it needs to be used up pronto or I risk throwing it out in a day or two.
  4. And nowadays, a peculiar item was substituted in my online grocery order and I need to work into the week’s meal plan.


This recipe was developed because I know my toddler likes “pink chicken” (aka salmon). She also really likes crunchy cucumbers. More accurately, she likes exactly one bite out of each cucumber slice. After that first bite, she discards her sampled cucumber by feeding it to her daddy. Then she gets herself a fresh one. She does not do this sort of thing with cookies or ice-cream.


The dill in the fridge was also looking like it should be used up sooner rather than later. Therefore, I knew my dish was going to be based around salmon, cucumber and dill (a pretty classic pairing). In addition, I knew I needed an acid and I had some fresh lemons on hand. The rest snowballed from there. Oh, I’ve got farro! Let’s make this a grain bowl! I could make a vinaigrette! How about I add in this purple cabbage? It’ll add some great color and nice crunch. Plus, it’ll up the veggie count. And so on and so forth.


This salmon farro grain bowl is a beautiful, healthy and easy weeknight meal. My husband went back for seconds. I always feel extra accomplished when he does that with a meal that I didn’t slave over for hours. Instead, I just whipped it up and called it dinner. I plan to add it into the rotation for sure. It’s even simple enough to be a lunch favorite too!

Salmon Farro Grain Bowl With a Lemon-Scallion Vinaigrette
Recipe details
  • 4  servings
  • Prep time: 15 Minutes Cook time: 20 Minutes Total time: 35 min
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Ingredients
For the Salmon Farro Grain Bowl with Cucumber and Red Cabbage
  • 4 4 oz salmon steaks or fillets
  • 1.5 cups farro
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/3 cup fresh dill, chopped
  • 1 cup sliced red cabbage
  • 4 Persian cucumbers sliced (you can substitute 2 english cucumbers, seeded)
  • kosher salt and pepper to taste
For the Lemon-Scallion Vinaigrette
  • 1 scallion, minced
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 lemons
  • kosher salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Prep the Vegetables
Wash the fresh produce.
Chop the dill until you have 1/3 cup of the chopped herb.
Slice the cucumbers on a diagonal discarding the ends.
Peel the onion and dice it.
Peel the scallion and mince it.
Core the purple cabbage. Thinly slice 1/4 inch thick wedges until you have approximately 1.5 cups worth.
Make the Vinaigrette
Zest one of the lemons into a small bowl. Squeeze its juice into the bowl.
To the small bowl, add 2 Tbsps of EVOO, the minced scallion and salt and pepper to taste.
Cook the Salmon
Pre-heat the oven to 400 F.
Bake the salmon skin side down on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet for 15 minutes or until easily flaked with a fork.
Cook the Farro
Heat 1 tbsp of EVOO over medium heat in a large non-stick pan.
Add the diced onion. Crack salt and pepper over the top to taste. Cook for 2-3 minutes stirring occasionally until they become translucent and start to get a little color on their edges.
Add the farro to the pan and toast for 1-2 minutes.
Add three cups of water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, if some water remains, drain farro and onions in a fine-mesh sieve. Push the grains down with the back of a large serving spoon to remove any excess water.
Place the farro and onions in a large bowl.
Assemble & Garnish
To the bowl of farro, add the vinaigrette, dill, sliced cucumber and sliced purple cabbage. Stir to combine. Evenly divide the grain and vegetable mixture into 4 bowls.
With a fork, roughly flake the salmon apart. Discard the skin. Top the bowls with about 4 ounces of salmon each.
Quarter the second lemon, removing any visible seeds.
Place some fresh dill sprigs on top of each bowl and one lemon wedge.
Better than Zest | Alex
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