Food styling by Joan Moravek. Photo by Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune

The overnight sensation takes time. Consider farro.

The chewy grain turns up everywhere. It stars in soup, salad and sweet. It doubles for rice, for barley, for pasta. It poses in the spring salad bristling with asparagus and fennel, Insta-glam.

But farro is no flash in the pan. The ancient form of wheat has been sustaining soldiers for thousands of years. Uncooked, the light-brown nubs once served as coin. Stockpiled, it counted as treasure. Simmered, it’s bolstered generations of Italians.

With good reason. Farro is delicious, wholesome and hearty. And, unlike many a celebrity, worthy of its newfound fame.