Freekeh

This article is about the Middle Eastern dish. For the village in northern Syria, see Farikah.

Freekah

Uncooked freekeh
Alternative names	bowl of dry green grains
Course	Main
Place of origin	Levant
Main ingredients	Green durum wheat
Media: Freekah

Freekeh (sometimes spelled frikeh) or farik (Arabic: فريكة / ALA-LC: farīkah; pronounced free-kah /ˈfɹiːkə/) is a cereal food made from green durum wheat (Triticum turgidum var. durum) that is roasted and rubbed to create its flavour. It is an ancient dish derived from Levantine and North African cuisines,^[1][2] remaining popular in many countries of the eastern Mediterranean Basin, where wheat was first domesticated.^[3]

Freekeh is the name for the wheat grain prepared in a specific way. Harvested while still green and the seeds still soft, it is piled and sun-dried, and then carefully set alight such that only the straw and chaff burn, with the grain protected by its high water content. This roasted wheat is then threshed, winnowed and sun-dried again to achieve a uniform flavour, texture, and colour, and make it suitable for long-term storage. The threshing or rubbing of the burnt chaff off of the grains is what gives this food its name, from the Arabic word farīk or "rubbed". The dried berries can also be cracked into smaller pieces that resemble green bulgur.^[1][4]

History

Traces of wild wheat berries of the emmer variety used to make bread were found in a hearth at a Natufian site in the Levant, and dated to 14,000 years ago.^[5] The variety of wheat used to make freekeh, Triticum turgidum was domesticated around 10,000 years ago in the same general region. A subspecies of this durum wheat is grown globally today, primarily to make semolina for pasta, as it is a hard grain, less suited to producing fine flour; and this is the same grain used to make freekeh.^[5]

Qalûy^[6] (Biblical Hebrew: קָל֤וּי‎, scorched or roasted) and carmel^[7] (Biblical Hebrew: כַּרְמֶל‎), are terms identified by Hebrew Bible scholars as references to the Arabic word freekeh.^[6][8][9] In the Book of Kings II, for instance, it is said that Elisha miraculously fed about a hundred people with some barley bread and carmel.^[7] Syriac versions of the Bible also translate carmel as froka, a cognate of the Arabic freekeh.^[8][9] While scriptural references have been cited as evidence that freekeh was a part of ancient Israelite cuisine,^[6][8][9] freekeh was largely unknown in modern Israeli cuisine until recently, and is traditionally farmed by Palestinians and Arabs, constituting a main staple in their cuisines.^[10][5]

The term freekeh is derived from the Arabic verb, farik, meaning "to rub", nodding towards the process by which it is produced, which involves rubbing the chaff off of the burnt wheat berries against a winnowing tray, known in Arabic as the ghorbal/ghurbal.^[5] It is a labor intensive process, as due to the immaturity of the grain at the time of picking, the chaff does not easily separate from the berry, and a second rubbing against coiled flat baskets made from the previous years' harvest is also undertaken.^[5]

Freekeh is mentioned in an early thirteenth-century Baghdad cookbook as farīkiyya.^[1] In that recipe, meat is fried in oil and braised with water, salt, and cinnamon bark. Then, dried coriander is stirred in with young wheat ("freekeh") and is cooked. Finally, the meal is served with cumin, cinnamon, and fresh lamb tail fat.^[1] This is a luxurious recipe with such cookbooks generally written to prepare dishes for the wealthy and royalty, whereas freekeh was most commonly consumed as a staple of the common people.^[5]

In his 1865 book The Land of Israel: A Journal of Travels in Palestine, British clergyman and scholar Henry Baker Tristram documented the preparation of freekeh near the Sea of Galilee:

Many fires were lighted on the shingle by the shores of the lake, fed by the clumps of papyrus roots torn up and washed ashore; and groups of Arabs who had laid aside their sickles, for the evening sun was setting, were clustered around them. We watched with interest the preparation of their evening meal. A few sheaves of wheat had been brought down from the fields above; these were tossed on the fire, and as soon as the straw was consumed, the charred heads were dexterously swept from the embers onto a cloak spread on the ground. The women of the party then beat the ears and tossed them into the air until they were thoroughly winnowed, when the wheat was eaten without further preparation ... the green ears had become half-charred by the roasting, and there was a pleasant mingling of milky wheat and a fresh crust flavour, as we chewed the parched corn. We were delighted to have seen the preparation, and to have partaken parched corn, so often mentioned in the Old Testament Scriptures.^[11]

Freekeh is harvested in Palestine in the late spring, sometimes early summer, when the wheat berries of durum are still green, and just before they become golden and dry, during a phase in their growth that only lasts about one to weeks.^[5] Wheat has long been a staple of fellahin and bedouin diets, along with wild foraged greens, with the consumption of meat generally reserved only for special occasions.^[5] It is not clear when or how the practice of producing freekeh began exactly, though local lore provides various explanations. One theory attributes it to accidental discovery following the burning of a village's wheat storage silos; another to a deliberate practice to harvest part of the wheat crop early, to have some insurance against drought or locusts spoiling the crop.^[5]

The texture of freekeh in cooking varies; if consumed immediately after roasting when they still retain some of their water content, there is a unique chewiness in the grains, absent from those left to dry out further for storage.^[5]

Culinary

In Egyptian cuisine, freekeh is served as ḥamām bi’l-ferīk, which is pigeon stuffed with freekeh (ducks are also used^[12]). Freekeh is also prepared in Egypt with onion and tomato, and sometimes with chicken. Shūrbat farīk bi’l-mukh is a freekeh and bone marrow soup from Tunisia. Freeket lahma, a green wheat pilaf dish with roasted lamb, spring peas, and pine nuts, comes from Jordan, and shūrba al-farīk is a soup with green wheat and chicken.^[1][13] Chicken stuffed with freekeh is a traditional dish found in several Arab countries.^[14][15]

In Syria, freekeh usually is prepared with lamb, onion, butter, almonds, black pepper, cinnamon, cumin, and salt.^[16][17]

In Tunisia and Algeria, freekeh is usually prepared as a main ingredient in a tomato-based soup called Chorba frik and is considered a traditional food.^[18][19]

In Turkey, freekeh is known as firik, and a pilaf dish based on freekeh, called firik pilavı, is found in traditional Southern Anatolian cuisine. It may be combined with bulgur; legumes such as chickpeas and various herbs and spices, and sometimes meat, may be added. With the influx of millions of Syrian refugees since 2011, firik is available in markets all over Turkey.^[20]

In Palestine, a variety of freekeh pilaf is made with lamb, onion, olive oil, raisins, dried cherry plums, almonds, pine nuts, black pepper, cinnamon, cumin, and salt. Freekeh is also served in a soup along with chickpeas and meat (beef or chicken).^[21][22] In the Galilee region, freekeh and other wheats are a staple, especially among Druze and Bedouins, as opposed to rice.^[23]

• 
  Freekeh soup from Palestine
• 
  Turkish firik (left) and bulgur (right) before cooking
• 
  Chicken stuffed with freekeh from the Levant
• 
  Freekeh with roasted vegetables

Nutritional value

Freekeh (green durum wheat)

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy	1,418 kJ (339 kcal)
Carbohydrates	71 g
Fat	2.5 g
Protein	14 g
Vitamins and minerals Vitamins Quantity %DV^† Thiamine (B1) 35% 0.42 mg Riboflavin (B2) 9% 0.12 mg Niacin (B3) 42% 6.7 mg Pantothenic acid (B5) 19% 0.94 mg Vitamin B6 25% 0.42 mg Folate (B9) 11% 43 μg Minerals Quantity %DV^† Calcium 3% 34 mg Iron 19% 3.5 mg Magnesium 34% 144 mg Manganese 130% 3.0 mg Phosphorus 41% 508 mg Potassium 14% 431 mg Sodium 0% 2 mg Zinc 38% 4.2 mg
Other constituents	Quantity
selenium	89 ug
water	11 g
Link to Full USDA Database
^†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults,[24] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies.[25]

Freekeh is comparable in nutritional content to other cereal grains, especially durum wheat, from which it is derived, depending on the durum cultivar.^[1][26] Durum is notable for its high content of protein (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV), dietary fiber, B vitamins, and several dietary minerals, especially manganese (143% DV) (table). Before roasting, freekeh is 11% water, 71% carbohydrates, 2.5% fat, and 14% protein.

See also

• Grünkern, a similar preparation made from spelt
• List of African dishes
• List of Middle Eastern dishes

References

1. “Freekeh - Farik - Green Wheat”, Food History, Clifford A. Wright.
2. Anissa Helou, "Freekeh", in Alan Davidson, ed., The Oxford Companion to Food
3. Jenkins, J.A. (1966). "The origin of cultivated wheat". Can J Genet Cytol. 8 (2): 220–32. doi:10.1139/g66-028.
4. Tanis, David (23 August 2019). "An Ancient Grain Brings the Warmth". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
5. Ahmad, Amanny, "Freekeh and Fellahin: A Symbiotic Relationship of Sumud" (PDF), Jerusalem Quarterly, Institute for Palestine Studies
6. Farber, Zev I. (2019). "Israelite Festivals: From Cyclical Time Celebrations to Linear Time Commemorations". Religions. 10 (5): 323. doi:10.3390/rel10050323. ISSN 2077-1444. qālûy in biblical terms, known today by the Arabic term, freekeh
7. "כרמל - Carmel". Academy of the Hebrew (in Hebrew). 2019-03-26. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
8. Musselman, Lytton John; Al-Mouslem, Abdel Baset (2001). "Triticum Durum in Northern Syria—Parched Corn (Frikeh) of the Bible?". Economic Botany. 55 (2): 187–189. Bibcode:2001EcBot..55..187M. doi:10.1007/BF02864557. ISSN 0013-0001. S2CID 40331293.
9. Bayram, M. (2008). An analysis of scorched immature wheat: FREKEH. Cereal foods world, 53(3), 134.
10. Prever, Victoria (2021-11-04), Feeling Freekeh: Find out all about the ancient wheat that's popping up on modern menus, Jewish Chronicle, She also explains that freekeh is mostly farmed by Arab farmers. "It's a main staple of Arabic communities and becoming more so in Israeli communities. It's also farmed across the region, in Lebanon, Egypt and possibly Turkey."
11. Tristram, H. B. (Henry Baker) (1865). The land of Israel : a journal of travels in Palestine, undertaken with special reference to its physical character. Robarts - University of Toronto. London Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.
12. "أكلات مصرية.. طريقة عمل بط محشي بالفريك" [Egyptian cuisine: How to make stuffed duck with freekeh]. Sada El-Balad (in Arabic). 6 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
13. "كل صح... طريقة عمل حمام محشي فريك" [Eat right...pigeons stuffed with freekeh]. Sada El-Balad (in Arabic). 9 November 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
14. "Chicken Stuffed With Freekeh Recipe - Muzna Bishara". Asif Culinary Institute. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
15. "طريقة عمل دجاج محشي بالفريك" [Chicken stuffed with farik]. Al-Ain News (in Arabic). 20 April 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
16. "Freekeh with Meat: Authentic Syrian Freekeh Pilaf". 5 February 2017.
17. "Get Your Freekeh on (Recipe)". 4 March 2021. Archived from the original on 26 December 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
18. "Chorba frik (Algerian lamb and freekeh soup)". 13 February 2024.
19. "Tunisian shorba frik recipe". 6 June 2017.
20. Akin, Engin (2015). Essential Turkish Cuisine. Anya Bremzen. ABRAMS (Ignition). ISBN 978-1-61312-871-8. OCLC 1281976159.
21. "Freekeh Soup". 2 September 2019.
22. "20 Traditional Palestinian Food Dishes".
23. Solomonov, Michael; Cook, Steven (2015). Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 978-0-544-37328-0. Retrieved 28 October 2025.
24. United States Food and Drug Administration (2024). "Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels". FDA. Archived from the original on 2024-03-27. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
25. "TABLE 4-7 Comparison of Potassium Adequate Intakes Established in This Report to Potassium Adequate Intakes Established in the 2005 DRI Report". p. 120. In: Stallings, Virginia A.; Harrison, Meghan; Oria, Maria, eds. (2019). "Potassium: Dietary Reference Intakes for Adequacy". Dietary Reference Intakes for Sodium and Potassium. pp. 101–124. doi:10.17226/25353. ISBN 978-0-309-48834-1. PMID 30844154. NCBI NBK545428.
26. Velland E (14 July 2015). "Grilled Halloumi and Freekeh Salad". The Globe and Mail, Food and Wine, Toronto.