If you want to shake up your grain routine, it is time to meet einkorn. I first ran across it while reading Eating to Extinction: The World’s Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them by Dan Saladino, and I knew I had to try it. Learning about these endangered food traditions even made me want to track down a batch of emmer wheat next. While modern wheat has undergone decades of intensive breeding, einkorn remains beautifully unchanged as the world’s oldest cultivated wheat.
Einkorn’s history traces back over 10,000 years to the Fertile Crescent. In German, einkorn translates to single grain, referring to the solitary seed nestled within each husk. Unlike modern wheat, which has been highly hybridized to maximize yields, einkorn possesses a simple 14-chromosome genetic structure. Because it has never been modified, it retains a powerhouse nutritional profile with 30% more protein than modern wheat, high levels of carotenoid antioxidants, zinc, iron, and B vitamins. Its unique gluten structure also breaks down easily during digestion, making it much gentler on sensitive stomachs, though it is still not safe for individuals with Celiac disease.
Taste-wise, einkorn offers a rich, distinctly nutty, and slightly sweet flavor. The whole berries provide a satisfyingly firm, chewy texture, which I put to the test recently. I cooked a batch in my rice cooker to serve as a side dish instead of rice. Matt thought it was a “good brown rice”—which is high praise for him! To make it, I simply rinsed 1 cup of whole einkorn berries, placed them in the cooker pot with 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt, and turned it on using the brown rice setting. Once it switched to warm, I let it steam with the lid closed for an extra 10 minutes before fluffing.
The next day, I took the leftovers, topped it with marinated beans and pepitas, and served it over a bed of arugula for lunch (photo is of the einkorn & arugula before I added the other toppings). It was fantastic because the grain really held its texture beautifully without getting mushy, making it a phenomenal substitute for rice, farro, or barley in any meal.
