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Cracked wheat and freekah salad with barberry dressing

Cracked wheat and freekah salad with barberry dressing

“Of the many shared plates I’ve enjoyed at Cumulus Inc, the most intriguing was the cracked wheat and freekah salad with barberry dressing. Will chef Andrew McConnell share the recipe so I can try it at home?”
Leah Thompson, Brunswick East, Vic

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Cracked wheat and freekah salad with barberry dressing

Serves 4
Cooking Time Prep time 15 mins, cook 50 mins (plus soaking, cooling)
40 ml   olive oil
2   celery stalks, finely chopped
2   golden shallots, finely chopped
1   garlic clove, finely chopped
80 gm   (½ cup) coarse bulghur (cracked wheat; see note)
60 gm   butter, coarsely chopped
85 gm   (½ cup) freekah, soaked in 185ml water for 30 minutes, drained (see note)
1½ tsp   finely chopped preserved lemon rind
60 gm   almonds, roasted and coarsely chopped
½ cup each   coarsely chopped mint and flat-leaf parsley
Juice of   1 lemon
1 tsp   chardonnay vinegar
6   labne (about 120 gm; see note)
Barberry dressing
30 gm   (1/3 cup) barberries (see note)
60 ml   (¼ cup) extra-virgin olive oil


1 Preheat oven to 160C. Heat 2 tsp oil in an ovenproof saucepan over medium heat, add half the celery, half the shallot and half the garlic and sauté until soft (5-7 minutes). Add bulghur, half the butter and 185ml water. Bring to the boil, cover closely with a round of baking paper and bake in oven until tender (15-20 minutes), then spread on a tray to cool completely.
2 Meanwhile, heat 2 tsp olive oil in a separate ovenproof saucepan over medium heat, add remaining celery, shallot and garlic and sauté until soft (5-7 minutes). Add freekah, remaining butter and 200ml water. Bring to the boil, cover closely with a round of baking paper and bake in oven until tender (15-20 minutes), then spread on a tray to cool completely.
3 Meanwhile, for barberry dressing, bring barberries and 120ml water to the boil in a saucepan over medium heat, remove from heat, strain through a fine sieve, reserve liquid and barberries separately and cool. Whisk barberry liquid and oil in a bowl to combine, season to taste and set aside.
4 Combine bulghur, freekah, preserved lemon rind, almonds, herbs, lemon juice, vinegar, remaining olive oil and reserved barberries in a bowl. Season to taste and toss to combine. Arrange on a serving platter, scatter with labne, drizzle with barberry dressing and serve immediately.

Note Freekah is dried immature durum wheat. Freekah and bulghur are available from health-food sections of select supermarkets and delicatessens. Freekah is also available online from greenwheatfreekeh.com.au. Labne is strained yoghurt cheese available from delicatessens. Barberries are small dried red berries with a tart flavour available from select delicatessens and Middle Eastern grocery stores, and online from pariyafood.com.

RECIPE Andrew McConnell, Cumulus Inc PHOTOGRAPHY Jason Loucas STYLING Emma Knowles


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