When I try to eat more healthfully, I rarely change my diet right away. I try something new, go back to the old way, then try the more nutritious food again. Eventually, I come to prefer it.
After all, how did we develop our tastes in the first place? It’s not that we innately love processed food. We learn to like it, and we can, with a little effort, unlearn.
I’ve grown to enjoy the chewy texture of minimally processed whole grain barley, but I admit it took some getting used to after growing up with the pearled variety.
Pearling barley polishes away its tough, tightly adhering outer hull. Along with that goes the bran, fiber and much nutritional value. Whole grain types include hulled barley, which has had only the inedible outer hull rubbed off, and hulless barley, a variety that grows with a loose, easy-to-remove hull. These take longer to cook, but the flavor and added nutrients are worth it, as you’ll taste in this hearty entree.
Barley with mushrooms
Prep: 40 minutes
Cook: 60 minutes
Makes: 4 servings
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2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large shallot, finely chopped, about 1cup
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, chopped
1 rib celery, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 cup whole grain barley, rinsed
1 pound white mushrooms, cut into 1/8-inch slices (5 to 6 cups)
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup tightly packed basil, chopped
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted, see note
1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the shallots, garlic, carrots, celery and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallot begins to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the wine; cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is gone, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the broth and water; heat to a boil. Stir in the barley; reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the barley is tender, about 50 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Stir in the mushrooms; season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Strain any liquid into the barley mixture as it cooks; set the mushrooms aside.
4. When the barley is done, stir in the reserved mushrooms, parsley, basil and lemon zest. Served garnished with the pine nuts.
Note: Put the pine nuts in a dry skillet over low heat. Toast, stirring about 1 minute, until fragrant; transfer to a bowl to stop the cooking.
Nutrition information per serving: 416 calories, 14 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 66 g carbohydrates, 11 g protein, 642 mg sodium, 14 g fiber
Kay Stepkin teaches vegetarian cooking and owned of a vegetarian restaurant/whole grain bakery. Email: [email protected]