Grilled Vegetable and Barley Salad
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Aperçu
Pearl barley cooked and cooled, tossed with grilled courgette, aubergine and peppers in a cumin and lemon dressing, with feta, herbs and pistachios. No country is claimed. **It is finished with pistachios, which the title gives no indication of.** Barley is the interesting part and the source makes a genuine point about it. In Egypt barley is eaten as a breakfast or dessert porridge rather than in salads, and it is one of the oldest cultivated grains in the region, domesticated in the Fertile Crescent and grown around the Nile for thousands of years. Turning it into a grain salad with grilled vegetables and feta is a modern Mediterranean move rather than an inherited one, which is worth being clear about. The technique that matters is cooling the barley completely before dressing it. Warm barley absorbs dressing greedily and unevenly, and it wilts the herbs. Cooled, it takes the dressing without soaking it all up in the first two minutes. Soaking the barley for an hour before cooking shortens the cooking time considerably and helps it cook evenly. Grilling the vegetables rather than roasting them is deliberate: the char is a flavour in its own right and it is the main thing standing up to the barley's earthiness. Its health section has not been carried across.
Ingrédients
Les mentions alimentaires sont fournies par les contributeurs à titre indicatif. Elles ne sont pas vérifiées par AFN et dépendent des produits que vous achetez. En cas d’allergie grave, vérifiez vous-même chaque ingrédient. Cuisine, allergies et votre propre jugement
Préparation
- 1
Soak the barley in water in a large bowl for 1 hour, then drain. This shortens the cooking and helps it cook evenly.
- 2
Meanwhile, light a grill. Brush the courgettes, aubergine and peppers with a quarter cup of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- 3
Grill the vegetables, turning occasionally, until tender and charred, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a board and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
- 4
Bring a medium pot of salted water to the boil and tip in the barley. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the grains are tender, about 45 minutes.
- 5
Drain the barley and set it aside to cool to room temperature. Do not dress it warm, warm barley soaks up the dressing unevenly and wilts the herbs.
- 6
In a large bowl, whisk the remaining olive oil with the lemon juice, cumin, coriander and garlic, then mix in the cooled barley. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a platter.
- 7
Arrange the grilled vegetables, feta, arugula, coriander, parsley, pistachios, scallions and chilli over the barley, and serve at room temperature.
Notes de l’Africook
Notes personnelles de Nympha Nzeribe- This is finished with pistachios. The title says nothing about it, so mention it when serving.
- Cool the barley completely before dressing it. Warm grain absorbs dressing unevenly and wilts everything green.
- Soak the barley for the full hour. It cuts the cooking time and gives a more even result.
- Grill rather than roast the vegetables. The char is a flavour in its own right and it is what stands up to the barley.
- Salt the barley cooking water. It is the only chance to season the grain from within.
- Assemble at the last minute. Herbs and arugula piled on a dressed salad wilt within twenty minutes.
Questions fréquentes
What is pearl barley?
Barley with its outer hull and bran polished off, which is why it cooks faster than hulled barley and comes out with a tender, slightly chewy bite. It is one of the oldest cultivated grains in the world, domesticated in the Fertile Crescent, and it has been grown around the Nile for thousands of years. It is sold in most supermarkets near the dried beans and rice.
Is barley eaten in African cooking?
In Egypt, yes, though not like this. Barley there is typically eaten as a breakfast or dessert porridge rather than in grain salads, and it has a very long history in the region. This recipe is a modern Mediterranean composition, grilled vegetables, feta, pistachios, herb dressing, built on an ancient grain rather than an inherited dish, and that distinction is worth being clear about.
Why cool the barley before dressing it?
Because warm grain absorbs liquid aggressively and unevenly. Dressed warm, the barley soaks up most of the olive oil and lemon in the first minute, leaving the rest of the salad dry and the barley heavy. It also wilts the arugula and herbs it is tossed with. Cooling it to room temperature first means the dressing coats rather than disappears.
Can I make it ahead?
Partly. Cook the barley, grill the vegetables and make the dressing in advance, all three keep well for a day refrigerated, and the vegetables are arguably better for it. What should not be done ahead is the final assembly: the arugula, herbs and feta go on at the last minute, since piled onto a dressed salad they wilt and collapse within twenty minutes.
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