Barley: the new rice?

Generally, when people think of grains, they think of bread, pasta and rice. Or the images that fill the bottom part of the food pyramid. It’s time to change those traditional ideas because barley, quinoa and millet are starting to pop up on magazine pages and dinner tables everywhere, a refreshing flavor that offers endless possibilities.

Although barley may not be anything new, it has been recently pushed due to its health factor and variety of recipes that can be made with this unlikely grain. Not only can barley be made as a side dish to go along with a roasted chicken, but it is also a dominant ingredient in vegetarian meals. In a recent article from the Detroit News, eight grains are featured and various recipes that can be made with them are listed following the article.

So, what is barley? And how do you cook it? According to World’s Healthiest Foods Website, barley is “a wonderfully versatile cereal grain with a rich nutlike flavor and an appealing chewy, pasta-like consistency. Its appearance resembles wheat berries, although it is slightly lighter in color.” Cooking barley may take slightly longer than rice, but the wait is well worth it. eHow will teach you the best way to cook barley, a simple process that takes only 40 minutes. Like the article mentions, I recommend cooking it with vegetable or chicken broth to heighten the flavor.

Inspired to make barley for dinner now? Here are a couple easy barley recipes: rice and barley salad and Mediterranean barley vegetable stew(pictured below).



Next time you go to the grocery store and grab for Rice-A-Roni or a box of Barilla noodles, you may want to consider that less expensive bag of barley just a couple feet down the isle.