Kamut substitute

Best substitute

Wheat berries

Use the same amount as the kamut you are replacing

Best for grain salads

Close match

Wheat berries are the closest swap for kamut berries at 1:1, and farro or spelt berries are nearly as good with a shorter cook time. If you need it gluten-free, whole sorghum or brown rice gives you the same chewy body in a grain salad but loses the buttery flavor.

Other kamut substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Farro (whole or semi-pearled)
Close match
Use the same amount
Another ancient wheat, sold either whole or with some bran abraded off, with a nutty flavor and springy chew.
What changes
Best for
grain salads, pilafs, soups, warm side dishes
The big practical win is speed: semi-pearled farro is done in 25 to 30 minutes against kamut's hour. The grains are smaller and softer at the center, so a salad made with farro reads as tender where the same salad with kamut reads as pleasantly bouncy. Check it early, because farro goes from chewy to mushy faster.
3Spelt berries
Close match
Use the same amount
Whole spelt kernels, an ancient wheat with a slightly sweet, nutty character.
What changes
Best for
grain salads, pilafs, grain bowls, breakfast porridge
Cooks in roughly 45 to 55 minutes, close enough to swap without rethinking the recipe. Spelt is a touch sweeter and softer than kamut and the grains split open more readily, which makes the dish look less tidy but taste much the same.
4Hulled or pearl barley
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
Barley kernels, either whole (hulled) or polished (pearl), with a mild earthy flavor and a soft, slippery chew.
What changes
Best for
soups, grain salads, pilafs, braises
Barley releases starch as it cooks, so a salad made with it feels a little slick and the grains cling instead of staying loose and separate the way kamut does. Rinse the cooked barley under cool water to wash that starch off if you want a cleaner salad. Pearl barley cooks in about 30 minutes, hulled in 50 to 60.
5Whole sorghum or brown rice (gluten-free)
Different taste
Use the same amount
Two naturally gluten-free whole grains that hold their shape and offer real chew.
What changes
Best for
gluten-free grain salads, grain bowls, pilafs
Sorghum is the better match: round, poppy and firm, done in 50 to 60 minutes. Brown rice is softer and its flavor is more neutral, so the dish leans on your dressing rather than the grain. Neither one has kamut's buttery richness, so be generous with olive oil, toasted nuts or a hard cheese to give the bowl something to hold onto.
6Freekeh
Different taste
Use the same amount
Green durum wheat that is roasted while still young, giving it a smoky, savory flavor.
What changes
Best for
pilafs, grain salads, soups, stuffings
This is a swap that changes the character of the dish on purpose. Freekeh tastes campfire-smoky and savory where kamut is mild and nutty, so a lemony grain salad becomes something darker and more assertive. Cracked freekeh cooks in about 20 minutes, whole in 40.

What is Kamut?

Kamut is Kamut is the trademarked brand name for khorasan wheat, an ancient wheat whose unusually large, torpedo-shaped kernels cook up plump, chewy and distinctly buttery.

Cooking tips

Kamut berries need a long cook, 50 to 70 minutes in plenty of salted water. Soaking them overnight cuts that to about 35 to 40 minutes and makes the kernels swell more evenly, which matters because underdone khorasan is unpleasantly hard rather than just firm.
Cook kamut like pasta, in a large pot of salted water rather than a measured amount, then drain. Absorption ratios are unreliable for whole berries and you avoid the scorched bottom.
The kernels are enormous compared with wheat berries or farro, so 1 cup dry kamut yields close to 3 cups cooked. If you swap in a smaller grain by volume you will get a similar cooked volume, but the dish will feel finer grained.
Kamut is not gluten-free. Khorasan is a true wheat, so if the reason you are substituting is celiac disease or gluten intolerance, only the sorghum, brown rice, quinoa or millet routes are safe.
Cooked kamut holds up better than any other grain on this list for meal-prep salads. It will still be chewy on day three where farro has gone soft, so if that longevity is why you bought it, wheat berries are the closer swap than farro.

Frequently asked questions

Is kamut the same as khorasan wheat?

Yes. Kamut is a registered trademark; the grain itself is khorasan wheat, sometimes called Oriental wheat. If a recipe calls for khorasan, kamut berries are exactly what it means, and vice versa. Bags may say either name.

Can I use kamut flour instead of kamut berries, or the other way round?

No. These are different products doing different jobs. Whole kamut berries provide chew and structure in a salad or pilaf. Kamut flour is milled and behaves like a whole wheat flour in baking. If a recipe wants berries and you have flour, you need a different grain, not a different form.

Can I just leave it out?

Only if kamut is a minor addition, like a handful stirred into a soup for body, in which case skip it or add a little barley or rice instead. If it is the base of a grain salad or bowl, it is the structure of the dish and something has to take its place. In that case the substitute matters more than exact fidelity to kamut, so use whichever chewy whole grain you actually have.

What job does kamut do in a dish?

Two things: structure and a specific kind of chew. It gives a salad or bowl its physical body, and it contributes a mild, buttery, faintly nutty flavor plus grains that stay distinct and springy rather than clumping. When you evaluate a substitute, ask whether it will still be pleasantly firm after it sits in dressing for an hour. That is the property doing the real work.

Do I need to change the liquid or time when I substitute?

Almost always yes, and this is the part people get wrong. Farro and pearl barley finish in roughly half kamut's time, so start checking at 25 minutes. Cracked freekeh finishes in 20. Wheat berries, spelt berries and hulled barley are close enough to kamut's hour that you can follow the original timing. Taste a grain rather than trusting a clock.

Related substitutes

More grains & starches substitutes

Kamut substitute

Other kamut substitutes

2Farro (whole or semi-pearled)

3Spelt berries

4Hulled or pearl barley

5Whole sorghum or brown rice (gluten-free)

6Freekeh