Hungry for healthy? Give this satisfying Farrout Broccoli Walnut Chicken Salad a try.
This hearty main course salad is packed with nutritious ingredients that also delight the taste buds. Farro, a small nutty grain, lends it’s name to the kitschy “Farrout” title for this recipe.
Bite-size pieces of broccoli and toasted walnuts provide crunchy goodness. Slivered sun-dried tomatoes and dried apricots may sound like an unusual combination, but are a perfect pop of savory, sweet and chewy. Shredded chicken amps up the protein, along with a final flourish of shredded Parmesan Cheese.
A perky lemon vinaigrette balanced with a touch of honey, Dijon and shallot complements this earthy combination.
Farrout Broccoli Walnut Chicken Salad Tweaks & Tips
Of course salads can be tweaked to your heart’s content. In fact, I adapted this Farrout Broccoli Kale Salad by adding chicken and toasted walnuts to create a main course version. I also modified the servings and the amount of farro to 6 servings. I love baby kale, but couldn’t find any, so instead I used mixed greens which included kale.
Marinated Broccoli
If you have extra time, you can kick up the flavor factor by marinating the broccoli. If you decide to do this, make 1 1/2 times the dressing. Place the broccoli in a shallow bowl, pour the extra dressing over the broccoli florets and toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate for several hours. Then add your broccoli to the salad when you are ready to serve.
Additional Veggies You Could Add
I added julienne-sliced carrots to some leftover salad and plan to make that part of my standard recipe going forward. Chopped red pepper would be nice as well and provide additional color. Again, it’s a salad, so toss in whatever strikes your fancy.
Leftover Farro?
If you find yourself with extra uncooked farro, give this hearty family-style skillet recipe a try.
More Broccoli Salads
Here are a few more tasty broccoli salads you can also check out.
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Farrout Broccoli Walnut Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup farro
- 2 1/2 cups Water
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 2 cups shredded or chopped cooked chicken
- 3/4 cup toasted walnuts halves broken into large pieces.
- ⅓ cup sundried tomatoes julienne cut or whole cut into small strips
- 1 head fresh broccoli cut into bite size pieces
- 9 oz mixed greens (with baby kale if you can find it)
- 10 dried apricots cut into small strips
- ½ cup freshly shredded parmesan cheese
Vinaigrette
- 1 clove garlic minced fine
- 1 small shallot minced fine
- 2 tablespoons Grey Poupon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon Honey
- 1 lemon, juiced
- ⅛ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Rinse farro under cold running water. Combine with water and and salt in small saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook until tender & water is mostly absorbed (about 20-25 minutes). Remove from heat, drain if necessary, and chill in refrigerator for several hours.
- While farro is cooking, cut broccoli, sun-dried tomatoes and apricots.
- Optional Step: You can opt to marinate the broccoli while the farro is cooling. To do this, make 1 1/2 times the vinaigrette. Place the broccoli in a shallow bowl, pour the extra vinaigrette over the broccoli florets and toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate for several hours. Then add your broccoli to the salad when you are ready to serve.
- Once farro is chilled, combine with chicken, walnuts, sun-dried tomatoes, apricots, broccoli and mixed greens in salad bowl. Pour dressing over and gently toss. Top with Parmesan and serve. Alternatively you can line individual plates with mixed greens, top with remaining salad ingredients, drizzle with dressing and top with Parmesan.
Vinaigrette
- Combine vinaigrette ingredients in a salad dressing shaker or small jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to combine.
Wow this a salad with a lot of flavor. We loved it. I had bulgur in the cupboard, so I used that instead of farro.
I will make this one again for sure.
This looks really good and I love the idea of marinating the broccoli. I even have sundried tomatoes I need to use. I’ll add the rest to the shopping list and treat myself for mother’s day 🙂
Enjoy and Happy Mother’s day! 🥰