This week I decided to change things up a little, and try cooking barley porridge. I have no particular reason for this, other than to add variety. So, let's give it a try.
I'm working off my usual rolled oats recipe, so we'll start with 55g of pearl barley.
Various sources suggest rinsing and soaking the barley before cooking, so I gave it a quick rinse and then added a bunch of water to let it soak overnight.
The next morning it seemed to have absorbed some of the water, so I'd call that step a success.
I poured off the soaking water and added 250ml of fresh water, so that I'd know how much I was actually cooking with. I did not measure the soaking water.
Next up I added my usual seasonings: some salt, cinnamon, allspice, clove and cayenne.
And then comes the heat.
I simmered it down to roughly porridge consistency, like so.
And this took about 20 minutes.
Various sources claim to need to cook it for upwards of 40 minutes, so adding more water and simmering it for longer probably wouldn't hurt anything. I found the texture at this point to be quite pleasant, the barley was soft and chewy and the remaining moisture was starchy and creamy.
Finally, we top things off with butter, molasses and the roulette wheel of jams today said that apricot preserves were on the menu today.
This gets mixed in and then it's all topped off with milk. I didn't take a picture of it at that point, because I've learned over the year that porridge with milk looks delicious and tastes delicious, but it very much does not photograph delicious. So, just picture it in your mind instead.
Anyway, the result was, indeed, quite delicious.
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