How to Cook Wheat Berries

This versatile whole grain can take a little too long to cook conventionally, so plug in your instant pots, amigos! Here’s how to cook wheat berries (no soak!) in just 35 minutes!

Why I love wheat berries

Oi Gente!!

I never knew what wheat berries even were until a couple of years ago. I was a line cook at a really nice restaurant on the Sunset strip here in Los Angeles, and one of the dishes we served there were wheat berries sauteed with greens. Such a simple dish, and so delicious.

Right then and there I got hooked and started to add it to my weekly meal plans. I like the fact that I can prepare wheat berries in bulk, so I have enough for the week to quickly toss into a salad, sautee with some greens (and an egg on top!), and even sprinkle over my morning yogurt with some fruit and a drizzle of honey.

They make my life so much easier when I know I’ll have a busy week. They freeze wonderfully too, so if you think you might not get through all you cooked, just freeze away for later.

What are wheat berries & where to buy them

Wheat berries are literally the whole edible wheat kernel, and they’re commonly known as the grains used to make whole wheat flour. They can be red or white in color and resemble short grain rice.

It’s important to note that wheat berries are NOT gluten free, so people with allergies or intolerance should avoid them. You can find wheat berries fairly easily in grocery stores all over, primarily healthy stores like Whole Foods or Sprouts. They are usually located in the dry pantry isle, close to dry rice, quinoa etc.

You may also find them in the bulk section of the market, where you can buy them per pound. If you can’t find them in your local stores, you should be able to easily buy them online on Amazon.

Wheat berry nutrition

Wheat berries are super nutritious! Since the grain is left whole, it isn’t stripped out of any nutrients, so they’re packed with fiber, protein, iron, and tons of vitamins and antioxidants.

Nutrition overload!

How to Cook Wheat Berries in the Instant Pot

• Add the wheat berries to the instant pot
• Cover them with water
• Cook on manual 35 minutes
• Drain the leftover water

And there you go! Now you have a nice batch of cooked wheat berries you can use all week to add to salads, sautee with veggies, add to soups, replace rice… So many things!

Ingredients

• 2 cups dry red wheat berries
• 1 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

• add 5 cups of water, and stir to combine
• safely release the pressute manually, then open the pot
• drain the leftover water and serve