Organic Cracked Freekeh

Our organic cracked freekeh is essentially wheat that has been harvested early, while the grains are still tender and green. The kernels are then parched, roasted, dried and rubbed.

Technically, the term freekeh is actually the name of a process used to prepare grains, and not the name of a specific grain variety. However, it typically refers to wheat, and generally to durum wheat. So, although the freekeh process can be applied to other grains (such as barley), what you find is usually wheat.

Freekeh’s fiery story dates back thousands of years, possibly as far back as 2,300 BC. Allegedly, a Middle Eastern village came under enemy attack and their crops of young, green wheat caught fire during the siege. The villagers ingeniously found they were able to salvage their food supply by rubbing away the burned chaff to reveal the roasted wheat kernels inside. This is what we know today as freekeh, which means “to rub” or “the rubbed one.”

Freekeh became common in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines and has long been part of the food culture in countries such as Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and Syria.

Occasionally called "farik" or "frik". The Arabic-derived word "freekeh," from farak, which means "to rub," refers to the production process, not the name of a plant. Growers harvest durum wheat before it fully ripens, then burn the stalks to remove the chaff. The moist young grains survive the fire, and vigorous "rubbing" or threshing releases the now toasty green kernels.