Back to Barley

After a weekend filled with sourdough pancakes, sourdough bread, sourdough pizza, and lots of watermelon and chocolate covered peanuts, I am in need of some vegetables.

My taco salad for dinner last night was full of veggies and just what I needed after a day of eggs, peaches, a ton of watermelon, leftover pizza, and a latte while driving home.

I just needed some green!

Weekends like this – not bad by any means, but different than I normally eat home – always leave me reaching for veggies when we get back home.

Today, I wanted them all in one dish and with a whole grain for some staying power.

I do love wheatberries for grain salads (and couscous and bulgur), but barley may be my all time favorite.

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I normally buy the quick-cooking  barley, which makes it even better and easier to get a dish together on a busy weekday evening – or at lunch!

And today I tried something different and cooked the barley in the microwave. I figured if I can do it with quinoa and  brown rice, I should be able to do the same with barley.

I put 1 cup of barley and 2 cups of water in a large (8 cup) glass bowl with high sides and let it cook on high for 5 minutes, took it out, stirred, and put it back in for 3 more minutes.

Perfect!

Fluffy, doughy, soft and hearty. Barley reminds me of thicker and doughier oatmeal. Maybe that’s why I like it so much? ;)

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After the barley was cooked, I mixed it with some pinto beans, diced tomatoes, corn, fresh cilantro, salt, garlic powder, and ancho chile powder.

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And for even more veggies, I plopped the barley salad on some romaine and added some perfectly ripe avocado on top.

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Not bad for a Monday lunch.

Now…time to eat and get some laundry going during my lunch break. Back to reality ;)

 

13 comments

  1. I’ll have to follow your lead on this one! Looks like an updated taco salad. Filling and nutritious, you can’t go wrong!

  2. I sat down with my lunch and got online only to find out we are eating similar lunches! No barley or corn in mine but you gotta love anything with avocado. I need to explore more with grains and this salad looks great.

    FYI…My friend’s Mom postponed her Michigan trip so NO TJ products for me just yet but hopefully soon.

    Congratulations on your nephew.

  3. that salad looks AWESOME. and barley is great, i need to make some grains this week… and get some veggies, my fridge is pretty bare :/

  4. If I could eat barley I’d be all over that! Maybe I’ll try it with buckwheat or brown rice :-)

    ~Alyssa

  5. Oh! I love barley…your salad with barley looks delicious, so colorful and so summery look…

  6. I’m not sure I’ve ever given barley a try. It looks a lot like brown rice, though..is it about the same?

  7. I am glad you had such a lovely weekend! I too crave fresh salads after weekends away. It’s all about balance!

  8. HAHA That’s how I felt after my weekend as well….VEGGIES!

  9. I just LOVE when I crave veggies. Sure I’ll have the random hankering for something salty or sweet but most of the time I want massive amounts of spinach, tomatoes, ‘shrooms, squash, etc. Plus tons of fruit in the summer.

    Glad you had a fabulous weekend!!

  10. What a great barley dish! I love how you brightened up its flavor with all the veggies. Great summer meal!

  11. I definitely know how it is when a week goes by and I think… have I eaten any vegetables? I’ve never made barley before but that salad looks really good!

  12. That was great! I love barley mixtures.

  13. Yup I love barley too!!!! I love the chewiness :)

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