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Bwolfe2
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#1 Posted : Saturday, January 28, 2017 9:31:45 AM(UTC)
Last night I made Martha Rose Shulman's Barley Soup with Mushrooms and Kale. I following the recipe exactly. It was very tasty but the barley was still quite crunchy. I left it simmering most of the evening and turn it off and went to bed (it has no meat or egg products so that was safe). This morning the barley was still crunchy. What did I do wrong? Is it the wrong barley? The barley bag says 'cook 40 minutes. If not at desired tenderness, cook 40 more.' It cooked all of that and changed texture very little from its usual form.
Jane
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#2 Posted : Saturday, January 28, 2017 5:39:55 PM(UTC)

Barley is meant to be chewy but it sounds like it was harder than that. Did the recipe specify whether to use hulled barley or pearled barley? Pearled barley cooks quicker and has a softer consistency (though is less nutritious).


It could also depend on how old the barley was. I agree it should have been fully cooked after 40 minutes. Sometimes it can help to soak the grain overnight before you cook it (a tip I got from Maria Speck's wonderful book Ancient Grains for Modern Meals).

Bwolfe2
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#3 Posted : Sunday, January 29, 2017 9:46:56 PM(UTC)
Jane,
Thank you! The recipe said pearled or hulled. Mine is not pearled but I'm not sure how old my barley is. I will order some new. And I may get pearled instead of hulled.
DJM
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#4 Posted : Thursday, February 2, 2017 2:30:50 PM(UTC)

After multiple failures with barley that is still chewy and inedible after hours of cooking, I have decided it must have a shelf live of less than 3 months.  It happened again this week I  have now decided to buy a new batch every time I cook something with barley. not at all economical but cheaper than inedible food going in the bin.

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