Day #5: Rice Cooker Herbed Barley
Feb. 6th, 2010 12:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
somethingnewDay #5 - It's another twofer! Or maybe a three-fer?
Last month I was on my "Monday morning trip to the grocery store for fresh bagels for the week" when I ended up doing some extra grocery shopping. I'd like to say that it totally wasn't my fault: the store is in the midst of renovating and it usually takes at least three laps around the place to find what I'm looking for. But the store's renovations didn't put the bag of pearled barley in my basket - I did.
A quick aside. I have slightly elevated cholesterol. It was only a few points over the suggested upper limit when I was tested, which thankfully meant it was probably something I could bring down with dietary and lifestyle changes. While I can't bring myself to give up cheese, for example, I've completely switched over to wheat pasta, brown rice, and other foods that are high in soluble fiber and low in saturate fat. Which includes working to better incorporate whole grains into my diet.
So when I saw the bag of pearled barley on sale, I realized this was an opportunity to spread my wings a bit and, well, try something new. Then I got home and realized that I had absolutely no idea what to do with barley. So it sat in my pantry.
Until earlier this week, when one of the blogs I follow posted about repurposing your rice cookers. Oh, man, I love my rice cooker. It's right up there with my slow cooker. It gets a work out every weekend making rice for the upcoming week. I had heard of repurposing rice cookers before, but I never had the nerve to try.
But, I told myself, rice is a grain. So is barley. So, in general, this wouldn't be as way out there as, say, making a chocolate cake in a rice cooker. (Which, by the way, is so going on my list of things to try.) With a little digging I was able to find a recipe from Meals For You to try.
I made a few small changes. I substituted margarine (trans fat free, low in saturated fat) for the butter. And I used vegetable stock instead of chicken stock, since I had some left from the last batch I made. I'll also admit to being impatient and checking it out after more than 40 minutes had passed and it wasn't finished.
I decided after the first bite that it could use something more, with that being a dash of red pepper flakes and a small sprinkling of grated asiago cheese. Without it's a bit bland for a main dish, but it would be an awesome side for chicken or fish. And this recipe is definitely going into my weekend cooking repertoire. This is exactly the kind of thing I like to make on the weekend to bring to work for lunch.
Results:
- First time I've cooked with pearled barley
- First time I've eaten pearled barley
- First time I've repurposed my rice cooker for something other than rice
- Oh, and an incredibly nom-worthy lunch.
Rice Cooker Herbed Barley
2 Tbs margarine
2 Tbs onion flakes
2 Tbs parsley flakes
1 1/2 C pearled barley
3 1/4 C vegetable stock
1/2 C water.
Non-stick cooking spray
Salt to taste
Spray rice cooker pan with non-stick cooking spray. Add ingredients and salt to taste. Cover and cook about 40 minutes or until rice cooker shuts off. Stir gently to loosen barley from the bottom of the pan. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Last month I was on my "Monday morning trip to the grocery store for fresh bagels for the week" when I ended up doing some extra grocery shopping. I'd like to say that it totally wasn't my fault: the store is in the midst of renovating and it usually takes at least three laps around the place to find what I'm looking for. But the store's renovations didn't put the bag of pearled barley in my basket - I did.
A quick aside. I have slightly elevated cholesterol. It was only a few points over the suggested upper limit when I was tested, which thankfully meant it was probably something I could bring down with dietary and lifestyle changes. While I can't bring myself to give up cheese, for example, I've completely switched over to wheat pasta, brown rice, and other foods that are high in soluble fiber and low in saturate fat. Which includes working to better incorporate whole grains into my diet.
So when I saw the bag of pearled barley on sale, I realized this was an opportunity to spread my wings a bit and, well, try something new. Then I got home and realized that I had absolutely no idea what to do with barley. So it sat in my pantry.
Until earlier this week, when one of the blogs I follow posted about repurposing your rice cookers. Oh, man, I love my rice cooker. It's right up there with my slow cooker. It gets a work out every weekend making rice for the upcoming week. I had heard of repurposing rice cookers before, but I never had the nerve to try.
But, I told myself, rice is a grain. So is barley. So, in general, this wouldn't be as way out there as, say, making a chocolate cake in a rice cooker. (Which, by the way, is so going on my list of things to try.) With a little digging I was able to find a recipe from Meals For You to try.
I made a few small changes. I substituted margarine (trans fat free, low in saturated fat) for the butter. And I used vegetable stock instead of chicken stock, since I had some left from the last batch I made. I'll also admit to being impatient and checking it out after more than 40 minutes had passed and it wasn't finished.
I decided after the first bite that it could use something more, with that being a dash of red pepper flakes and a small sprinkling of grated asiago cheese. Without it's a bit bland for a main dish, but it would be an awesome side for chicken or fish. And this recipe is definitely going into my weekend cooking repertoire. This is exactly the kind of thing I like to make on the weekend to bring to work for lunch.
Results:
- First time I've cooked with pearled barley
- First time I've eaten pearled barley
- First time I've repurposed my rice cooker for something other than rice
- Oh, and an incredibly nom-worthy lunch.
Rice Cooker Herbed Barley
2 Tbs margarine
2 Tbs onion flakes
2 Tbs parsley flakes
1 1/2 C pearled barley
3 1/4 C vegetable stock
1/2 C water.
Non-stick cooking spray
Salt to taste
Spray rice cooker pan with non-stick cooking spray. Add ingredients and salt to taste. Cover and cook about 40 minutes or until rice cooker shuts off. Stir gently to loosen barley from the bottom of the pan. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving.
