Blistered Tomato and Farro Shrimp Salad

  • Level: Easy
  • Yield: 4 to 6 servings
  • Total: 1 hr
  • Active: 30 min
This salad has all the color, texture and flavor necessary to qualify it as a main course dinner entree. The farro really is the star of the plate, and one of the most satisfying toothsome grains out there.
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Ingredients

Lemon Shallot Vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons minced shallots

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Zest from 1 lemon

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Farro:

Kosher salt

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

1 1/2 cups farro

Shrimp and Blistered Tomatoes:

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes

Assembly:

2 cups baby arugula, loosely packed

1/4 cup toasted and salted pumpkin seeds

4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled from the block

2 tablespoons basil chiffonade

Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Make the vinaigrette: In a bowl, whisk together the shallots, honey, mustard, lemon juice and zest. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Whisk in the oil until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
  2. Cook the farro: Fill a large saucepan with 6 cups of water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and the vinegar. Add the farro and gently simmer until al dente, 15 to 20 minutes; drain well. While the farro is warm, put into a large mixing bowl and immediately stir in about three-quarters of the vinaigrette (set aside the rest to punch up or remoisten the salad later if necessary).
  3. Cook the shrimp and tomatoes: Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil. Sprinkle both sides of the shrimp with salt, pepper and the sugar. Sear the shrimp in the pan until cooked through and no longer opaque, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the shrimp to a plate and add the cherry tomatoes to the pan. Sauté until just blistered, about 5 minutes total. Season with salt and pepper.
  4. Assemble the salad: Add the arugula, half of the tomatoes, the pumpkin seeds and half of both the feta and basil to the farro. Drizzle with more vinaigrette. Gently toss so as to not burst the tomatoes. Transfer to a serving bowl. Top with the shrimp and remaining tomatoes. Sprinkle with the remaining feta and basil and a couple of grinds of pepper. Serve.

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kellyjkarr

This was fantastic. Only thing I would do next time is half the salt it says to put in the farro. I thought 1 TBS was kind of alot and I thought it was too salty. I also assembled plate by plate (versus one big dish.)

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