Barley Garnish

Pearl barley is useful, and earlier in Russia porridge was cooked from it in almost every home, and even wealthy people used it with pleasure. Now barley dishes are prepared mainly in the army, in hospitals and similar institutions. However, more and more supporters of healthy eating and economical housewives are making barley garnish for meat and fish dishes. This cereal goes well with vegetables and mushrooms, green peas and corn, which makes it possible to diversify the menu. However, the technology of cooking barley has many features, without the knowledge of which it is impossible to get the expected result.

Cooking Features

Pearl barley for garnish is easy to prepare, but it will take a long time. Considering the number of nuances listed below, even an aspiring cook will be able to count on the expected result.

The right choice of cereals plays a big role. The grains should be intact, have approximately the same brown-golden color, should not come across blackened grains. Pay attention to the shelf life of the product.
Even if you have acquired high-quality cereals, it must be carefully selected, removing the damaged grains, pebbles and other small litter. After that, the barley is necessarily washed. To do this, it is placed in a bowl and poured with water, rubbing the grains together against one another, after which the clouded liquid is drained. The manipulation is repeated until the liquid remains clear.
Barley is very slowly decomposed. If it is cooked without prior preparation, the process will take at least 2 hours. You can shorten the cooking time if you pre-soak the cereal for 10-12 hours in cold water. If water is replaced with a fermented milk product, the croup will become even more tender. For soaking pearl barley use the ratio of 1: 4, as it swells strongly. After soaking the excess water needs to be drained, the barley is rinsed again, and only after that you can start to prepare it.
If you forget to soak the barley, you can use a thermos. The barley is placed in it, it is poured with boiling water and left for 1-2 hours. You can do without soaking. To do this, the barley is first boiled for 10 minutes, then let it stand for the same time, then replace the water and cook the grits for readiness.
Soaking pearl barley makes it possible to reduce its cooking time by about half. In the pan, it will be ready in 40-50 minutes, in the slow cooker you need to cook it for an hour.
When cooking pearl barley porridge for a side dish, you need to achieve that it turns out crumbly. To do this, it is poured into already boiling water or poured hot water. In the water does not hurt to add a spoonful of oil.
To get crumbly pearl barley porridge, which will serve as an addition to the main dish, it is important to choose the right ratio of water and cereal. The optimum ratio will be 1: 2, 5. This means that for a glass of barley you need to take 2, 5 glasses of water. Sometimes it takes a little more. If the recipe specifies the weight of the cereal, you can transfer it to the volume, knowing that about 230 g of barley is placed in a 0.25 liter glass, about 185 g is placed in a 0.22 liter glass

As a garnish, barley is best suited to meat and articles made from it. It goes well with chicken. Despite the fact that cereals are not considered a suitable side dish for fish, exceptions are sometimes made for rice and barley, as many people still like this combination. In fish meatballs, sold in the form of canned food, it is pearl barley that is added. Therefore, barley can be considered a universal side dish, and make it worth learning to any hostess.

Simple Barley Recipe

Composition:

barley - 0, 2 kg;
water or broth - 0, 6 l (without consumption for soaking);
salt, spices - to taste;
refined vegetable or butter - 40 g.

Preparation Method:

Search for pearl barley, pour it on the table. Rinse to clear water.
Put the washed cereal in a bowl, pour 4 cups of water. Leave overnight. If you want to weld barley in the evening, you can soak it in the morning.
After the specified time, rinse the grits again.
In a saucepan, boil water, add salt and spices, and mix. Pour the oil into the water, add prepared grits.
Wait until the contents of the pan boil, remove the foam from the surface and reduce the heat.
Cook the barley over low heat under the lid for 40 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat, wrap. Leave it in this condition for 20 minutes.

After a specified time, you can lay out the barley on plates, supplement the main course and invite the household to the table.

Perlovka garnish in a multicooker

Composition:

pearl barley - 0, 2 kg;
water - 0, 6 l;
onions - 100 g;
carrots - 100 g;
refined vegetable oil - 20 ml.

Preparation Method:

The pearl barley, after sorting and washing, soak for 8-10 minutes in kefir or yogurt.
Wash, peel the vegetables.
Finely chop the onion, grate the carrot.
Pour oil into the multicooker bowl. Turn on the unit by selecting the program “Frying” or “Baking”.
After a minute, place the chopped vegetables in a multicooker container, fry them for 5 minutes.
Rinse the barley, shift it to the vegetables. Salt, season, fill with water.
Lower the lid and run a program designed for cooking cereals. The timer, if required, set to an hour.
After completion of the main program, mix the products and leave to languish in the heating mode for 20-30 minutes.

Cooking a side dish of pearl barley in a slow cooker simplifies the culinary task, since it usually does not burn food.

Perlovka with potatoes to garnish

Composition:

pearl barley - 0, 2 kg;
potatoes - 0, 3 kg;
onions - 100 g;
water - 0, 6 l;
refined vegetable oil - 40 ml;
salt - 5 g.

Preparation Method:

Enumerate the pearl barley, rinse, fill with clean water, leave for 10 hours. Rinse again.
Peel the potatoes, cut them into 1-1.5 cm cubes.
Free the onions from the husk, cut into small cubes.
Boil water in a saucepan, add salt to it, dip the barley into it and boil it over low heat until there is almost no liquid left in the pan.
Heat oil in a frying pan, put onions in it, and brown it until golden.
Spread the potatoes to the onions. Cook products together for 5 minutes over medium heat.
Reduce the heat, cover the pan with a lid and cook the potatoes until soft.
Put the potatoes in a pot of barley. Mix well.
Wrap the pot and leave for 20-30 minutes.

Such a barley is most often served on a side dish, but it can also serve as a separate dish.

Barley with beets to garnish

Composition:

pearl barley - 0, 2 kg;
onions - 100 g;
beets - 150 g;
garlic - 3 cloves;
water - 0, 2 l;
broth - 0, 4 l;
dry white wine - 50 ml;
lemon juice - 40 ml;
refined vegetable oil - 40 ml;
salt, seasonings - to taste.

Preparation Method:

Search for pearl barley, wash, put in a thermos. Fill it with hot water, leave for 2 hours.
Rinse the cereal again.
Wash and clean the vegetables.
Cut onion and garlic into small pieces. Beets cut into cubes about 1 cm in size.
Heat oil in a deep frying pan or cauldron, fry in it until golden brown onions and garlic.
Transfer the pearl barley to the fried vegetables, add a little salt and seasoning. Pour a glass of hot water mixed with wine and lemon juice.
Cook the barley over low heat until the smell of alcohol evaporates.
Add beets and broth. Continue cooking the food until there is no liquid left in the pan.

The recipe for this barley garnish will appeal to supporters of healthy food, as the useful barley in it is supplemented with at least useful beets.

Green Pea Barley to Garnish

Composition:

pearl barley - 0, 35 kg;
water - how much will leave;
carrots - 0, 2 kg;
refined vegetable oil - 60 ml;
onions - 100 g;
green peas - 0, 2 kg;
salt, spices - to taste.

Preparation Method:

Rinse the pre-soaked cereal and let it dry a little.
Scrape carrots, wash, chop on a coarse grater.
Onion, freeing from the husk, cut into small cubes.
In a cauldron or pot with a thick bottom and a good non-stick coating, heat two tablespoons of butter.
Pour the barley into the pan, fry it for 5 minutes, put it in the plate.
Add a spoonful of oil. Put onion and carrot in cauldron. Fry them until the onions are golden in color.
Add green peas and barley, mix.
Salt and pepper the products, fill with water so that its level is 2 cm above the barley.
On medium heat, bring the contents of the cauldron to a boil. After 3-4 minutes, reduce the heat and cook the dish under the lid for 40-50 minutes, stirring occasionally and making sure it does not start to burn.

This dish is reminiscent of vegetarian pilaf, so it can be served not only as a side dish, but also as an independent dish.

Barley is a versatile garnish. You can cook it with or without vegetables. There are many recipes from barley, which can be added to the main snack, and each of the options has its admirers.