When you say Barley to me, I think about people living amongst trees, wearing hemp sacks and singing along with the birds. I also think of dry, chewy and bland grain and how I used to despise it when my dad made it. But after my risotto post on Monday, one of my readers asked if she could try doing the baked risotto thing with Basmati rice. That got me thinking what other grains can be used instead of the normal arborio or carnaroli rice used for Risotto. I have heard of people who’ve used barley for risotto before and I thought I would give it a go, even though I really don’t like the stuff. I’ve heard that it is really good for you, a low-gi grain etc. but all of that doesn’t matter to me if I can’t stomach something so I had to come up with a way of making this delicious. Let me just tell you that when I told my husband I was cooking with barley he looked at me, raised his eyebrow and then asked “Isn’t barley used to make beer?” Yes darling, it is, but you can also eat it. And as I wanted a healthier, heartier accompaniment to the roast chicken breasts I was planning for dinner, I thought I would give it a go. I boiled the barley for 20 minutes in unsalted water to soften it and cut down on the actual risotto ‘cooking’ time. When the barley was soft but still ‘al dente’, I fried off some leeks and garlic, and then added the barley, stock and cream like you would if you made a normal risotto. The end result was, surprisingly, incredibly delicious. I fell in love with barley cooked this way and even my husband said it was amazing. I didn’t think my twins would touch it but they cleaned their plates and asked for more. I served the risotto with simply roast chicken breasts (skin on, bone in) and a simple watercress and rocket salad dressed with a zesty dressing. Just delicious and something I’ll definitely be repeating in the future.
Other roast chicken recipes you will love:
Easy Tuscan roast chicken
Pan-roasted chicken with lemon and garlic butter
