Emmer

This Emmer was grown, among other places, in North West Fryslan, on the Wadden Sea coast on the grounds of It Fryske Gea. No artificial fertilizer or chemicals are used in these nature reserves in Fryslan; it is essentially organic but does not have the certification.

Emmer wheat, the ancestor of durum wheat (Triticum durum) and Khorasan wheat or Kamut (Triticum turgidum), is historically the most important type of wheat. Remains of this wheat species have been found in numerous excavations in the Middle East and Europe. Domesticated emmer wheat was cultivated as early as 7000 BCE, including in Egypt. It is also one of the plants that were cultivated in the Netherlands roughly 2000-3000 years ago on the so-called "raatakkers," also known as "Celtic fields."

Before the Second World War, emmer wheat was still cultivated in Germany, in Thuringia and Southern Germany. In Northern Bavaria, near Coburg, emmer wheat is once again being cultivated. This is partly for the production of emmer beer. There are also experimental projects with emmer wheat in the Netherlands, such as in the Haarlemmermeer. On a larger scale, it is only grown in Ethiopia, Turkey, and Syria, where the species also occurs in the wild.

Emmer wheat can grow up to 2 meters tall. The auricles are large and ciliate. The ligule is medium-sized and blunt-toothed. The spikelet has an awn a few centimeters long on the lower lemma and two florets. The grains are tightly enclosed by the glumes, which is why emmer wheat must be hulled to free the grains. Emmer wheat lodges easily. Harvesting takes place in August. The grain is quite small, and the yield per hectare is low, a maximum of 2,500 kg per hectare.

Due to its low gluten content, emmer wheat is only suitable for bread making with cold fermentation and sourdough. The bread has a slightly nutty flavor and is moist. This type of wheat can also be used as a flavoring for wholemeal bread. (source, among others, Wikipedia)

Nomenclature:
Latin: Triticum dicoccum
Dutch: Emmertarwe
Also known as: Emmer. Tweekoren
English: Emmer Wheat