Thursday, July 26, 2012

Lemon Barley Pilaf

Just as the recipe said, it made us wonder
why we don't cook with barley more ~
Per Nana:

This recipe brings back memories of Hubby and I when
 we were newly married. When I was growing up, my mother did 
the cooking in our house  and being young,  I had more important 
 things to do than learn to cook. Six months into the marriage,
 I was really sorry that I did not pay attention.
But, way back then, we knew it all......
In any event, I bought a box of barley, and prepared it  according
 to the instructions.  Not only did the barley spill over onto everything
 while cooking, we had so much barley   we ate it for a week.
  (Back then, we didn't throw food out)
It was many years before I considered cooking barley, but
 I have since learned a few  important things about cooking
 rice and other grains. That said, I have actually prepared a
 wonderful beef barley soup that turned out quite well.

This recipe was good, a bit al dente, but I think it could use a little
 bit of a kick for flavor. I plan to use the leftovers in chicken  broth
 to soften it more, and to add cooked chicken for a nice
old fashion chicken barley soup.
All in all, this was a nice recipe and I can't wait to see how
 the rest of the Doristas enjoyed this one.
Per Tricia: 
Once again Nana hooked me up with some ingredients. 
I included a shot of the barley box to show how well loved it 
looks after making back and forth across the yards.  And with the 
success of this dish it may be getting more play.
This was a very simple recipe and with the exception of my not 
usually having barley in the house- the rest of the items were 
standard fare.  The prep time was minimal and most of the cooking time
 was spent with little to no interaction from the cook. My kind of recipe :)
My husband liked it and was very surprised at how "sweet" he thought it was.
 I didn't find it too sweet but did like lemon zest influence. 
It really made the dish, in my opinion, and I would not necessarily have 
added lemon to a barley dish unless Dorie told me to.  Good thing she did. 
 The boys liked it and agreed they really liked the lemon flavor, but were 
otherwise a bit lukewarm.  They can't all make it out of the ballpark.
Happy French Friday. Hard to believe we are staring down August......

16 comments:

  1. I really enjoy barley so was happy to do this one. I wish though I could hand my barley over the fence as I now have a ton of it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tricia yours looks like a lovely barley risotto! Nicely done!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ugh, August indeed :-(
    Lovley job all!
    P.S. Barley soup is one of my favorites.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I agree this would make good soup with more broth. Your barley experience I had it with lentils!
    I will catch up with recipes next week, and will keep in mind the lemon zest detail. Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I'd never had barley before, so this was new for me. I liked the barley itself a lot, though I think the recipe could use some more flavor. I want to look up more barley recipes now.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Both your Pilafs look colorful and delicious. A I like both your beautiful presentations! Love the photo of the box of pearl barley and the idea that it was shared - what a nice "snapshot in time"...

    Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love the ideas about using the leftovers in soup. It sounds like a great reason to make some soup!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Both look fabulous! Wonderful job, ladies! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Love Nana's story about not knowing how to cook when you got married. Sounds like you've come a long way:-)

    We enjoyed this dish, but I did the version with mint coulis which turned out to be quite tasty. And I like that it's healthy too.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I was lukewarm about this one, too. On to August!!! Have a great weekend~

    ReplyDelete
  11. I noticed you used regular barley instead of pearl barley. Your's looks softer than mine. I think I'll try regular barley. As far as flavor, I noticed you used low sodium broth. I have really found it doesn't work well in grain dishes especially ones that are relying on the broth for a good part of the flavor.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have to admit that if she handed me couscous over that "garden gate"...this would have been couscous lemon pilaf :) But it actually was labeled pearl on the box- though that word is quite small. We also keep low sodium broth on hand since it is easier to add salt to a recipe than remove it. That said, even our seasoning while cooking did not add enough "oomph". Next time I think I omit the lemon, though fun, and add some parmesan. Always an adventure and we do love sharing tips and techniques- whether across the garden gate or world wide web !

      Delete
  12. Yours looks delicious with the regular barley. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
  13. You both did such a nice job on your pilafs…I used regular barley, too! My store only had one kind of barley and I bought it!!
    Nana, I loved your story of your newlywed days!! I didn’t know much about cooking when I got married either…eventually I knew I had to learn. Have a great weekend, Ladies!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I agree - this was a nuce dish but could use a bit of a flavour boost. Good job by both of you.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Love that both of you ladies loved this too! :) I didnt realize you were neighbors!!

    ReplyDelete