Mushrooms are on sale again, we had half a rotisserie chicken in the fridge, and there was silverbeet (Swiss chard) ready to harvest in the garden, so this recipe was a natural choice for dinner. Sadly, it didn't work out quite right. For whatever reason, the barley refused to cook. I gave it an extra half an hour of simmering and it was still somewhat al dente and more soupy than creamy. It was delicious anyway, but I was somewhat disappointed with the delays and final appearance, even if the flavour was still excellent.

Barley Risotto with Chicken and Mushrooms

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 6 c. chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 200g mushrooms, sliced
• freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 c. dry white wine
• 1 c. pearl barley
• 150g Swiss chard (silverbeet), chopped
• 350g cooked chicken, shredded
• 1/2 c. grated Parmesan

Directions

1. Bring the stock to a boil, cover, and set aside.
2. Heat oil over medium heat.
3. Add onion and garlic and cook until softened (~5 minutes).
4. Add mushrooms, cover, and cook until they have released their liquid.
5. Season to taste with pepper, add the wine, and cook for another minute or two.
6. Add the barley and 5 c. of the stock and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
8. Add 1/4 c. of the remaining stock and cook, stirring often, until it has been absorbed.
9. Repeat process with remaining stock.
10. Add the chard along with the last portion of stock.
11. Stir in the chicken and Parmesan and cook until heated through (3-5 minutes).
12. Serve topped with additional Parmesan.

This recipe claimed to be for stew, but it's definitely more of a soup. I even cut the broth by 1/3 and it was still more of a soup than a stew. A delicious soup, to be sure, but still a soup.

I ended up using chicken sausage instead of the turkey called for because I found some on sale and used spinach instead of kale (which I doubled, since the 125g called for didn't seem like nearly enough). I also went with a mix of pot barley and pearled wheat because I got wheat instead of barley by accident when I was at the grocery store restocking. Whoops! That said, both grains seemed to work just fine, so I wouldn't hesitate to use either (or both) again in the future.

It was interesting that the recipe called for cooking the barley separately and then adding it to the soup later. I'm used to just adding the uncooked grains to the soup and letting them cook in the broth. I think I'd be tempted to try it that way next time, just to see if doing it that way makes a noticeable difference.

Spinach, Chicken Sausage, and Barley Soup

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 2 c. water
• 1 c. pearl barley (and/or pearled wheat)
• 500g chicken (or turkey) sausage
• up to 4 c. chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small (~400mL) can diced tomatoes
• 250g frozen chopped spinach (or kale)
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Bring water to a boil.
2. Add the barley and cook until tender¹.
3. Drain the barley and set aside. (I reserved the cooking liquid and used it to poach the sausages rather than pan-frying them.)
4. Either pan-fry the sausages in a little oil until well-browned on all sides or poach them in some water (or the residual barley cooking liquid until cooked through. Set aside.
5. Measure out the residual cooking liquid (if you reserved it) and add enough stock to bring the total volume up to 4 c. Set aside.
6. Heat the oil over medium heat.
7. Add the onion and garlic and cook until softened (4-5 minutes).
8. Slice the sausages and return to pot. Cook for another 5 minutes.
9. Add the tomatoes and chicken stock and bring to a boil.
10. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.
11. Add the barley and spinach and cook until heated through (4-5 minutes).
12. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

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¹ This took ~25 minutes for my mix of pot barley and pearled wheat. Pearl barley may cook somewhat faster, I'm not sure. ^Back

This is a pleasingly simple and straight-forward recipe to put together. It takes a little while for the barley to cook, but requires very little effort and doesn't require many ingredients.

It may not necessarily work as a stand-alone dinner, but it makes a great base with some greens and pleasant flavours. Just add some protein (and maybe a few more veggies) and you're good to go!

Barley with Kale and Lemon

Slightly adapted from Healthy Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 tsp. stock concentrate (eg. Better Than Bouillon)
• 1/2 c. pearl barley
• 300-500g chopped kale (preferably black kale)
• 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest
• 1-2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Directions

1. Fill a small pot about halfway with water and the stock concentrate.
2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and add the barley.
3. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until barley is tender (~40 minutes).¹
4. Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium heat.
5. Add the onion and cook until golden (~6 minutes).
6. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two.
7. Add the kale and red pepper flakes and cook until kale is tender (and either wilted or thawed depending on whether you used fresh or frozen).
8. Stir in the cooked barley and lemon zest.
9. Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice. (Use 1-2 Tbsp. according to your taste.)

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¹ My barley had absorbed most of the liquid by this point. If yours still has appreciable liquid, drain it before continuing with the recipe. ^Back

I modified and abused this recipe quite a bit. The original was meant to be a 30-minute meal. It used pre-cooked chicken sausages along with "quick-cooking barley" (which I'd never heard of before). I had some regular old pot barley and some beef and barley sausages, so I made it with that. And, since my sausages were not pre-cooked, I decided to cook them on the stovetop. And since I already had the pan out for that, I decided to just convert the whole recipe to be done on the stovetop. Oh, and I also omitted all but 1 Tbsp. of the oil called for (1/3 c. in the original recipe). And, because I'm trying to be a bit health-conscious, I also cut back (slightly) on the Parmesan and the pistachios. Personally, I think it worked quite well! But I realize that it's quite a bit different from what the original recipe described.

Also, I didn't think of this until after I was already eating a bowl, but I think some pomegranate seeds/arils and/or a drizzle of pomegranate molasses would go quite nicely with this dish. Pistachios and pomegranate are such a nice combination! I've listed pomegranate as an optional ingredient below. Feel free to give it a try!

Photo goes here.

Barley with Broccoli and Sausage

Adapted from Cook's Country October/November 2018

Ingredients

• 1 c. pot barley
• 1-2 c. chicken stock
• 1-2 c. water
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, divided
• 450g beef, chicken, or lamb sausages
• 340g broccoli, cut into florets
• 1/4 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/3 c. shelled pistachios
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 c. pomegranate arils (optional)

Directions

1. Combine the barley with the chicken stock and water. You want a total of 3 c. of liquid, but the exact proportions aren't super important. If you're using mostly water, or if your chicken stock isn't very salty, add ~1/4 tsp. of salt as well.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then cover and reduce to a simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a separate pan, cook the sausages.
4. Once the sausages are mostly done, add the broccoli and continue cooking.
5. Once the sausages are nicely browned on all sides and cooked through, remove them from the pan.
6. Season the broccoli with 1/4 tsp. each of salt and pepper and drizzle with the oil and continue cooking over medium heat until broccoli starts to develop some good browning.
7. Reduce heat slightly and add the pistachios and cook until they are toasted and dark, but not burnt.
8. Remove from heat and add the garlic. Let it sizzle in the residual heat of the pan.
9. Chopp the sausages and return them to the pan.
10. Once the barley is cooked and most of the liquid has been absorbed, remove from heat and stir in the cheese.
11. Stir the contents of the pan into the barley.
12. Stir in the basil and pomegranate (if using).

Just a quick write-up because I'm tired, but I also don't want to forget. Again.

Barley-Rye Sourdough

Ingredients

• 100% flour: 80% hard whole wheat, 10% rye, 10% barley
• 65% water
• 20% active (ripe/fed) starter (100% hydration)
• 4% honey
• 2% salt

Directions

1. Feed your starter and make sure it's nice and active.
2. Combine whole wheat flour and water. Mix well, cover, and let stand for 1-12 hours.
3. Add the starter and honey and work them into the dough.
4. Add the salt and work it in as well.
5. Use the rye and barley flour to generously flour the work surface and turn the dough out onto it.
6. Knead in the remaining flour.
7. Once the flour has been worked in, wet your hands and try to work in a little more water if you can.
8. Place dough in covered bowl and set aside to ferment. Rising time will vary depending on room temperature and starter activity.
9. Knock dough back and shape as desired.
10. Cover and allow to rise again (either at room temperature or in the fridge).
11. Bake at 230°C (450°F) with steam for the first 15 minutes, then remove steam pan and reduce heat to 180°C (350°F) and bake until done (usually ~20 minutes for my standard sized loaves, but will vary depending on loaf shape and size and how well-proofed it was).

Steamed Couscous

Learning how to steam couscous was a revelation. I'd only ever had it prepared according to package directions. It's fine this way. I still make instant couscous a lot of the time. It's quick, easy, and convenient and the results are pretty good. That said, if you want really nice couscous, you can't beat steaming!

These instructions are written for 450g of instant couscous. If you manage to find hand-rolled/non-instant couscous somewhere, it will need slighlty different handling. The instructions for hand-rolled couscous can be found below the instant instructions. I've also given instructions for several other types of couscous.

Wolfert advises that if you're dealing with more than 450g of couscous, you can scale up the water by 50% and add 5 minutes to each round of steaming. I would be seriously inclined to say that if you're planning on cooking more than half a kilo of couscous in one go... don't. Unless you're making dinner for a group of a dozen or more and/or couscous will be the only dish on offer, you probably don't actually need that much couscous.

Steamed Instant Couscous

Slightly adapted from The Food of Morocco by Paula Wolfert

Ingredients

• 450g instant couscous
• 4 c. water or 3 1/2 c. water + 1/2 c. milk, divided
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• butter and/or ghee (varies by recipe)
• up to 1 c. broth (varies by recipe)

Directions

1. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
2. Place couscous in a large wide and shallow pan or very large plate, cover with 2 c. of water and allow to sit for 1 minute.
3. After 1 minute, stir and pour off any remaining water.
4. Toss the grains gently to break up any lumps. Rake the grains with your fingers (or a whisk) to allow them to swell.
5. Line a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with cheesecloth.
6. Set the lined steamer over the pot of boiling water, being sure that no steam is leaking out the sides.
7. Transfer the couscous to the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
8. Use the cheesecloth to transfer the couscous to the pan/plate.
9. Spread the grains with a whisk and sprinkle with 1 c. of cold water (or 1/2 c. cold water + 1/2 c. milk).
10. Toss with salt and oil.
11. Stir and rake the grains to gently break up any lumps.
12. Allow to dry for 10 minutes.
13. Place the cheesecloth back in the steamer and transfer the couscous back to the lined steamer.
14. Steam, uncovered, for another 20 minutes.
15. Transfer back into the pan/plate and repeat the whisking and raking process, sprinkling in the last 1 c. of water.
16. Toss and stir to break up any lumps.
17. If necessary, at this point the couscous can be covered with a damp cloth and held for several hours before the final steaming.
18. Whisk the grains again, breaking up any lumps with whisk and/or wet fingers.
19. Bring the water in the bottom of the steamer/couscousier to a boil.
20. Line the top of the steamer with cheesecloth and transfer the couscous back into the lined steamer.
21. Steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
22. Transfer the couscous to a wide serving dish and toss with butter and ghee (amounts will vary depending on the exact recipe you are making).
23. Gradually add up to 1 c. of broth to the couscous.
24. Toss one more time, again breaking up any lumps.
25. Let stand for 10 minutes, then add any desired toppings and garnishes.

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Variations

Steamed Hand-Rolled Couscous

Ingredients

• 450g hand-rolled couscous
• 3 1/2 c. water (or 3 c. water + 1/2 c. milk), divided
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• butter and/or ghee
• up to 1 1/2 c. broth

Directions

1. Place the couscous in a fine mesh strainer and quickly moisten under running water.
2. Dump into a wide and shallow pan/plate, spread/smooth out the grains, and allow to rest/swell for 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle in 1/2 c. of the water and allow to sit for 5 more minutes.
4. Meanwhile, fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
5. Line a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with cheesecloth.
6. Set the lined steamer over the pot of boiling water, being sure that no steam is leaking out the sides.
7. Transfer the couscous to the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
8. Use the cheesecloth to transfer the couscous to the pan/plate.
9. Spread the grains with a whisk and sprinkle with 1 c. of cold water (or 1/2 c. cold water + 1/2 c. milk).
10. Toss with salt and oil.
11. Stir and rake the grains to gently break up any lumps.
12. Allow to dry for 10 minutes.
13. Place the cheesecloth back in the steamer and transfer the couscous back to the lined steamer.
14. Steam, uncovered, for another 20 minutes.
15. Transfer back into the pan/plate and repeat the whisking and raking process, sprinkling in the last 1 c. of water.
16. Toss and stir to break up any lumps.
17. Repeat the steaming process once more: steaming for 20 minutes, tossing with 1 c. of water, and then resting for 10 minutes.
18. If necessary, at this point the couscous can be covered with a damp cloth and held for several hours before the final steaming.
19. Whisk the grains again, breaking up any lumps with whisk and/or wet fingers.
20. Bring the water in the bottom of the steamer/couscousier to a boil.
21. Line the top of the steamer with cheesecloth and transfer the couscous back into the lined steamer.
22. Steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
23. Transfer the couscous to a wide serving dish and toss with butter and ghee (amounts will vary depending on the exact recipe you are making).
24. Gradually add up to 1 1/2 c. of broth to the couscous.
25. Toss one more time, again breaking up any lumps.
26. Let stand for 10 minutes, then add any desired toppings and garnishes.

Steamed Cracked Barley

These instructions are for coarse cracked barley or scotch barley.

Ingredients

• 4 c. (680g) cracked/scotch barley
• 8 c. water, divided
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2-3 Tbsp. ghee

Directions

1. Pour 6 c. of water over the cracked parley, stir, then drain off the excess water. Let sit for 30 minutes.
2. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
3. Butter the inside of a steamer (or the top of a couscousier).
4. Squeeze the barley to extract all excess water.
5. Add the barley to the top of the steamer slowly, rubbing the grains between your palms as you transfer it.
6. Steam, covered, for 20 minutes.
7. Dump the barley out into a wide pan/plate and break up any lumps with a fork or whisk.
8. Toss with the butter.
9. Very slowly add 2 c. of water. It should take 3-4 minutes to add all the water and you will need to toss and rake the grains the entire time to help keep them separate and allow them to swell.
10. Toss again, then allow to dry for 10-15 minutes.
11. Steam, covered, for 20 more minutes.
12. Dump the grains back into the pan/plate and break up any lumps with a fork or whisk.
13. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes. Rake and toss occasionally during this time to stop them from becoming lumpy. Do not add any water this time.
14. Transfer the barley back into the steamer and steam, covered, for 10 more minutes.
15. Dump the barley into a serving dish and toss with ghee.

Steamed Barley Grits

These instructions are for fine cracked barley, barley grits, or barley couscous.

Ingredients

• 450g barley grits¹
• 1 c. water
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter or olive oil
• 3/4 c. salted water²
• ghee (varies by recipe)

Directions

1. Dampen the barley grits with ~1 c. of water. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.
2. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
3. Line a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with cheesecloth.
4. Transfer the barley grits to the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
5. Dump the grains into a wide and shallow pan and break up any lumps with a fork or whisk.
6. Toss with the butter or olive oil.
7. Very slowly add the salted water. It should take 2-3 minutes to add it and you will need to rake and toss the grains constantly.
8. Allow to dry for 5-10 minutes.
9. Place the cheesecloth back in the steamer and transfer the grits back into the lined steamer. Steam, uncovered, for 10 more minutes.
10. Transfer the grits back to the pan/plate and break up any lumps.
11. Allow to sit for 15 minutes, raking and tossing occasionally to prevent lumps. Do not add any more water.
12. If necessary, the grits may be covered with a damp cloth and held for several hours before the final steaming.
13. About 30 minutes before serving, transfer the grits back into the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
14. Dump the grits into a serving dish and toss with ghee.
15. Add any toppings or garnish and pour over sauce or broth and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Steamed Corn Grits

These instructions are for corn couscous or coarse stone-ground corn grits.

Ingredients

• 680g corn grits
• 7 1/2 c. water, divided
• 3 Tbsp. argan oil or unsalted butter or olive oil, divided
• salt
• black pepper or white pepper
• up to 2 c. broth

Directions

1. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
2. Lightly grease the inside of a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with a neutral oil.
3. Moisten the grits with 1/2 c. of the water and toss until fully absorbed.
4. Add another 1/2 c. of water an allow to sit for 10 minutes.
5. Slowly add another 1/2 c. of water, spread the grits out, and allow to sit for ~5 minutes.
6. Sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. of the argan oil (or melted butter or olive oil) and toss and rub the grains to coat evenly.
7. Transfer grits to steamer and steam, covered, for 45 minutes.
8. Dump the grits into a wide and shallow pan and whisk to break up any lumps.
9. While tossing with the whisk, add 1 c. of lukewarm water.
10. Allow to sit for 5 minutes.
11. Toss with 1 more c. of water.
12. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
13. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.
14. Toss with another 1 c. of water.
15. Transfer grits back into steamer and steam, covered, for another 45 minutes.
16. Dump grits back into the pan/plate and repeat whisking and moistening procedure³ and toss with 1 more Tbsp. of the butter or oil.
17. Grits can be covered with a damp cloth and held this way for several hours if necessary.
18. Before serving, bring the water back to a boil and transfer the grits back into the steamer. Cover and steam for 20 minutes.
19. Dump the grits into a serving dish and toss with the remaining 1 Tbsp. of oil or butter.
20. Break up any lumps and toss with the broth.
21. Top and garnish as directed by recipe.

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¹ Wolfert doesn't specify how much barley this recipe is for. I'm guessing that it's written for 450g of barley based on the fact that her master couscous recipe was also written for 1 lb. of grains. But that is just a guess as I haven't actually tried any of the barley recipes yet. ^Back
2 Wolfert also doesn't specify how much salt goes into the "salt water". I'd probably start with 1 tsp. and go from there. ^Back
3 Wolfert says to "repeat step 3" which, in her version of the recipe covers all three additions of water after the first steaming. Given that, I assume that you would add another 3 c. of water here. That seems like an awful lot of water. But I guess corn is pretty absorbent (cf. polenta). ^Back

Barley Risotto with Mushrooms and Spaghetti Squash with Herbs

I'm a big fan of one-pot meals. I like to focus on one thing at a time. I'm bad at multi-tasking and I can never manage to time everything to be done at the same time, so something that's a complete meal in and of itself just makes my life a lot easier. That being my preference, I don't tend to make multi-dish dinners very often. Today was a rare deviation my from my usual pattern.

TF had requested barley risotto. It's tasty and the barley makes for a hearty and comforting winter dish. The problem with risotto though, is that it doesn't really make a complete meal on its own. I mean, I'm sure there are instructions out there for turning it into a one-pot wonder, but I really just wanted a simple mushroom risotto, so I opted for a side-dish to complete the meal.

I spent a while poking around online, looking for ideas of what else to add, and eventually settled on Spaghetti Squash with Herbs.

Honestly, spaghetti squash has never appealed to me all that much, but it didn't seem right to write it off before I'd even tried it. This recipe seemed simple, but also interesting with the inclusion of fresh herbs and hazelnuts so I figured I'd give it a try.

It came out alright, but I can't say that it turned me into a spaghetti squash convert. It was, however, worth making just to see how the squash flesh magically turned into spaghetti as I scooped it out. I mean, I was expecting it, but it was still actually pretty fun to see it first-hand.

The risotto that I made was mostly based on this recipe with a few of my own tweaks. Here's roughly what went into it:
1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 shallots, chopped
1/2 lb. cremini mushrooms, sliced
3 dried mushrooms (unknown variety), re-hydrated and chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 c. pot barley
2/3 c. dry white wine
4 c. beef broth + ~2 c. water (next time would just use 6 c. beef broth)
black pepper
1 c. frozen peas
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. celery seed
1 bay leaf
1/2 c. fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 c. grated Parmesan
1/4 c. butter

I'd probably make a few more tweaks next time, but I'm pretty pleased with how it came out overall. Next time, I think I'd put a bit less butter and a bit more Parmesan. I also feel that it needed just a bit more salt. (I didn't add any because I was using a commercial salted beef broth.) I'd also make half as much. I forgot just how much barley expands as it cooks!

It might be interesting to try adding a bit of pancetta as well. Bacon and mushrooms are a classic combo and I think the pancetta would hold up better in the risotto than regular bacon would. And I think just a little bit of meat added to the barley would be a nice touch.

I also think baby spinach would be a nice vegetable inclusion in place of the peas. Probably better than peas, actually.

I really like barley risotto in general. It packs in all the flavour and deliciousness of regular rice risotto, yet seems (and probably is) more wholesome and nutritious. It's no oxtail soup, but it is a nice dinner to sit down to on a cold day.