Grain
Triticum turanicum
C tier
Triticum turanicum (Khorasan wheat; often treated as T. turgidum ssp. turanicum) is an ancient free-threshing tetraploid wheat with very large, elongated amber grains. It is the botanical type behind many “Khorasan” and trademarked Kamut marketings, though not all turanicum grain carries a brand name. Flavour is sweet-nutty with a firm, chewy berry texture when cooked whole. Milled flour supports bread, flatbreads, and pasta where bakers want ancient-grain character and relatively high protein without the hardness profile of modern durum.
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Characteristics
Preparations
Traits
Grading systems
Grades are placed along a shared scale so systems can be compared side by side.
History
Turanicum-type tetraploid wheats were grown across the Iranian and Central Asian grain belt.
Large-kernel freethreshing wheats spread along Silk Road and Near Eastern trade routes.
Botanical collections catalogued Triticum turanicum as a distinct Khorasan wheat form.
Experimental and farm plantings of Khorasan stock appeared in North America from research collections.
Organic and specialty markets revived non-branded and branded Khorasan as ancient-grain ingredients.
Artisan bakers and whole-grain cooks distinguished botanical Khorasan from the Kamut trademark.