Pearl barley.

[Jodi]

I ordered some bulk things and got my order yesterday. I ordered Pearl Barley by mistake. Meant to order something else, but since it's my fault I'm stuck. It would cost me as much as the barley cost to return it. I bought a 5lb bag.

Is there anything I can do with it? I'm confused as to if this is hulled or not. I do not find barley listed in the index of Alissas book, so I don't know if there is anything raw I can do with it. I know it can be cooked into a cereal, but I will only do that as a last resort so it doesn't go to waste.

Any ideas?

Thanks, Jodi

[Rawkinlocs]

Alissa has a "meatloaf" recipe that is actually quite tasty and you can make it in "loaf" style or do like RawPriestess does and make burgers out of it. Revvell likes it just as a pate' without even dehydrating it. But this recipe calls for sprouted barley.

I "think" there may be one or two more recipes that call for barley. Now, the index IN the book is the one a lot of people complained about, so Alissa had the index redone and if you go to the forum marked "Need to know more about raw food" (or something to that effect) you will see the NEW and improved index that you can print out and refer to and there, you might see the word "barley" so you can find what recipes call for it.

[Tanja_swe]

I prefer the taste of pearl barley to other grains like wheat etc. I just switch whatever wheat the recipe is called for and use the same ammount of pearl barley instead, never had a problem with that this far.

[sailaway]

I just made Alissa Pizza and it called for barely. page 406 and the chile page 400 both got rave reviews from family and the lunch group I feed everyday put them on the list of "keeper" recipes.

[bellamausi]

I read up on it, and the difference between pearled barley and hulled sprouting barley is, that pearled has been stripped of it's outer shells, just like white rice. So all the nutrients are gone. And I also was under the impression, that it doesn't sprout anymore. Here is the article I'm referring to:

Hulled barley:
This form of barley is not as widely available as the other types, but its superior nutrient content makes it worth seeking out (try a health-food store). Because only the outer, inedible hull, and not the bran, is removed, hulled barley is rich in dietary fiber. It also contains more iron and trace minerals than pearled barley--and more than four times the thiamin. The grains are brown, and they take longer to cook than pearled barley.

Pearled (pearl) barley:
To produce these uniform, ivory-colored granules, the barley grains are scoured six times during milling to completely remove their double outer hull (called the spikelet) and their bran layer. Unfortunately, as with white rice, this process also removes nutrients. The thorough milling, however, shortens the grain's cooking time considerably.

[Tanja_swe]

Interesting, however I've never had any problems with sprouting my pearl barley!

[bellamausi]

Interesting, however I've never had any problems with sprouting my pearl barley!

oh ok, wasn't sure if it did or didn't sprout.
:)

[caramba]

Funny...I jumped through hoops trying to get sprouting barley after I was told that pearl barley was processed and wasn't raw (and wouldn't sprout...) Hmmm?? Maybe I should have perservered?

Anyway, the Spanish Rice recipe in Alissa book uses sprouted barley and is great!

[Jodi]

Well, since I bought the Pearled by mistake...I'll try and sprout it and see how it goes. Right now I have just one sprouting bag and it has Mung Beans in it, so later this week I'll try sprouting the barley. Thanks for the replies!

Jodi

[Tanja_swe]

Maybe there's something wrong with my barley :D or me? :D

[CAdreamer]

I use sprouted barley as the 'substance' in my raw soups. Also, it can be eaten as a grain for breakfast, or add to several other grains for a breakfast mix. For lunch today, I had barley, coconut, coconut oil, maple syrup, pecans, dried berries, and buckwheaties as a cold cereal. I have some barley sprouting next to my wheat that will grow into greens for my juicer.

[siempresam]

I actually am having a hard time sprouting my pearled barley as well.... How long do you normally have to wait to get some sprouts growing? 2, 3, 4, 100 days? ;)

[luvnraw]

Well, since I bought the Pearled by mistake...I'll try and sprout it and see how it goes. Right now I have just one sprouting bag and it has Mung Beans in it, so later this week I'll try sprouting the barley. Thanks for the replies!

Jodi

Jodi,

I have had success with using jelly/jam strainer 'bags' found in most stores with the canning jars for sprouting bags.....two for $4 in IN.....they are small but have worked well with spelt, kamut, rye, peas and chickpeas for me!