Nigel Slater’s freekeh with avocado and chives salad recipe

Super freekeh: Nigel Slater’s freekeh with avocado and chives salad recipe. Photograph: Jonathan Lovekin for the Observer

The recipe

Put a pan of water on to boil. Rinse 150g of freekeh in cold water, then add to the boiling water and leave to cook for 40-45 minutes until tender but slightly chewy. Drain the cooked freekeh and set aside.

Peel 180g of cucumber, halve lengthways and remove the seeds, then cut the flesh into small dice. Finely chop eight chives (roughly 2 tbsp). Halve, stone and peel a ripe but firm avocado, then cut into small cubes.

Warm 2 tbsp of olive oil in a shallow pan, add 2 tsp of ras el hanout and let it warm through. (It is already roasted, so a minute or two over heat is long enough.) Add a 400ml can of chickpeas, drained, and the cooked and drained wheat to the pan, together with a little salt. When the chickpeas are hot stir in the chopped cucumber, chives and avocado. Stir only gently – you don’t want to crush the avocado. Trickle over a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and serve. Enough for 2.

The trick

Freekeh is whole roasted wheat. It can take a good 45 minutes to cook, but check it after 30. It should still be nutty and enjoyably chewy. I find it best to salt it after cooking rather than adding salt to the cooking water, which sometimes seems to toughen it.

The twist

All manner of grains can be substituted for the freekeh, such as barley or rye, but the cooking times will vary according to which grain you choose. Whole grains, such as pot barely, will take longer to come to tenderness than pearl barley. Use this salad as a base for adding other ingredients as you wish, such as chopped tomatoes, mint or spring onions. You can add feta or grated ricotta salata, the aged and salted sheep’s cheese, if you wish. I sometimes add lemon juice to the warm oil and vinegar dressing.

Email Nigel at nigel.slater@observer.co.uk
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