The pearl barley is washed. Do I need to rinse pearl barley after cooking?

Useful properties of cereals

Pearl barley is barley grains processed in a special way; it is named so because it looks like freshwater pearls. The cereal is known for its various beneficial properties, which allowed pearl barley porridge to be one of the main dishes on the table of noble people.

Preparing real pearl barley porridge is a long process. If it is undercooked, it will be tasteless and tough, which is what cooks in the army sometimes do. Despite this, barley is still traditional in Russian cuisine today.

The nutritional value of 100 grams of pearl barley is determined by the following parameters:

Calorie content – 324 kilocalories;
Proteins – 9.3 g;
Fats – 1.1 g;
Carbohydrates – 66.9 g;
Dietary fiber – 7.8 g.

In addition, pearl barley is rich in vitamin B6, potassium, magnesium, selenium, phosphorus, fiber, and the amino acid lysine.

The glycemic index is 20, which helps reduce appetite.

Rules for cooking pearl barley in water

These rules are dictated by two points:

Proportions of components;
Cooking time.

To understand how to cook pearl barley in water correctly, you need to observe the proportions of the components that make up its composition. You also need to pay attention to your wishes, that is, decide what viscosity the porridge should be.

If you need crumbly porridge, then take one glass of pearl barley and two and a half glasses of water. To get a more viscous porridge, take one liter of water per glass of cereal.

As for the cooking time, it will also vary, on average from an hour to an hour and a half.

This will be affected by:

Pan wall thickness;
Cooking method;
Soaking time;
Pearl barley variety;
Grain size.

You also need to take into account when this cereal is grown. The longer it is stored, the longer it will cook.

How to cook pearl barley in water - proportions

There are rules for cooking pearl barley that must be strictly followed. These rules originate from the proportion of ingredients and cooking time.

Compliance with proportions when cooking cereals is one of the conditions, failure to comply with which will lead to damage to the final result. The first step is to decide what kind of porridge you want to see on your table. Friable or viscous. To cook crumbly pearl barley porridge, you need to take one glass of pearl barley and two and a half glasses of water. For a more viscous porridge, take a liter of water per glass of pearl barley. The time it takes to prepare the dish will vary accordingly. The average cooking time for pearl barley is one and a half hours.

Cooking time directly depends on:

The thickness of the walls of the container in which the cereal will be cooked;
From the method of preparation;
From the time it took to soak the cereal;
From the variety of pearl barley;
On grain size;
From the “age” of the cereal. The longer the cereal has been lying on the shelf, the more time it will take to cook.

Ingredients needed to cook delicious self-sufficient pearl barley porridge:

It is better to cook cereals after pre-soaking them in warm water overnight. In this case, the cooking time will be reduced by half. The cooking process itself takes place over moderate heat. To put pearl barley on the fire, you must first fill it with cold water.

Some chefs use a different cooking method:

The pearl barley is placed in a pan, poured with boiling water and covered with a lid.
So it is kept for about a quarter of an hour.
Then the cereal is cooked for half an hour until cooked.

Professional chefs consider the ideal proportion of water and cereal to be 1:4. Soaking time is at least five hours.

A simple and quick way to prepare pearl barley porridge in water

Every experienced housewife knows an excellent way to quickly cook pearl barley.

To prepare, you need the cereal itself, water, and salt.

Place the container with pearl barley on the fire, when it boils, change the water to cold, turn the heat to medium and cook, stirring.

Or you can simply pour boiling water over the pearl barley and leave it for a while.

Then half an hour will be enough and the dish is ready.

If you pour warm water over the cereal overnight, breakfast will also cook quickly.

When soaking, we maintain the following proportion - 1:4.

Soaking time is at least five hours.

We invite you to watch this video on how to quickly cook pearl barley in water:

Cooking pearl barley without soaking

Proper cooking of pearl barley will allow you to appreciate its taste and enjoy it while eating.

If you skip the process of soaking the cereal, then in this case you need to use a slow cooker. This device will help you get fluffy and crumbly porridge.

This is what the process of cooking cereals looks like without soaking it in advance:

Pour boiling water over the cereal. Let stand for ten minutes;
Now add salt and cook in the “Buckwheat” mode;
At the end of cooking, add butter, stew or vegetables as desired;
When the timer announces the end of the cooking mode, wait another ten minutes;
If there is liquid left, you can add the toasting mode until the water has completely evaporated.

An unusually simple recipe, let’s watch the video again on how to cook pearl barley in water without soaking:

Methods for preparing pearl barley porridge

Pearl barley can be prepared:

In a saucepan;
In a slow cooker;
In a thermos;
In a pressure cooker;
In a steamer;
In a pot in the oven;
In the microwave.

The first two are described above. Let's look at the rest.

In a thermos

You will need:

This porridge is easy to prepare. This method allows you to greatly save the cooking process.

Take a thermos and soak the cereal in boiling water, let it sit for about two hours, transfer it to a saucepan, and cook for 20 minutes. In such a porridge, every grain is visible.

In a pressure cooker

A pressure cooker is one of the best appliances in the kitchen. Food is cooked under pressure, which preserves nutrients as much as possible.

You will need:

A glass of soaked cereal;
Two glasses of water/milk;
Salt, sugar, butter to taste.

The technology is as follows:

Place the ingredients in the pressure cooker; when it boils, add salt, sugar, and butter as desired;
Close the lid and set the desired program;
After 15 minutes the porridge is ready.

In a steamer

A double boiler will cook the pearl barley very delicately: the porridge will be crumbly and retain a maximum of vitamins. The only drawback: the porridge takes a long time to prepare this way.

You will need:

One glass of cereal;
Two and a half glasses of water/milk;
Salt;
Sugar;
Nuts and fruits - to taste.

The technology is as follows:

Soak the cereal for at least five hours;
We put everything in a double boiler;
Cook for 40 minutes;
Then add salt, add sugar, if you need milk porridge, add a glass of milk and again set the program for 40 minutes;
Place the porridge into portioned bowls and add butter, nuts, and fruits as desired.

In a pot in the oven

This pearl barley is a healthy food dish. In addition, the recipe is simple and the porridge in a pot turns out very tasty.

You will need:

Half a glass of cereal;
Half a liter of broth (for one serving);
Spices as desired;
Oil;
Greenery.

The cooking technology is as follows:

Soak the cereal, rinse well, place in pots, filling the container by a third;
Pour half a liter of broth into the pot, add salt, put spices, close, put in the oven;
The dish should simmer at 190 degrees for about an hour;
Place into serving bowls, add butter and herbs.

In the microwave

With this method of preparing porridge, one part of the cereal is taken with one and a half parts of liquid, the cooking time is 35 minutes.

You will need:

One glass of soaked cereal;
Two glasses of water;
Salt, butter, sugar to taste.

The cooking technology looks like this:

Soak the cereal, place it in a saucepan, add water, cover with a lid and cook at full power for 5 minutes;
Take out the pan, stir, add salt, sugar, butter as desired and send for half an hour on medium power;
Throughout the entire process, the porridge must be stirred periodically so that it steams evenly.

We invite you to try making Sunflower salad, especially if you have never prepared it. Everyone who tries it is delighted! It’s nice to even look at it - a sunny, bright, positive salad!

Read about how to properly cook millet porridge on our website. Believe me, it can be very tasty and our chefs prove this with their recipes again and again.

Sometimes it happens that you need to weigh some cereal or other product, but there are no scales at hand. Then spoons and glasses come to the rescue. Find out how many grams are in a teaspoon, tablespoon and glass.

How to cook pearl barley in bags in a slow cooker

Cooking pearl barley porridge in bags in a slow cooker is not much different from cooking in a saucepan and proceeds in the following sequence:

Place a bag of pearl barley in the multicooker bowl and fill it with a liter of water, then add salt (a third or half a teaspoon).
Set the cooking mode to “Porridge” (or “Grains”), cooking time for 40 minutes and turn on the multicooker.
At the end of cooking, carefully remove the bag of porridge from the multicooker by the special loop on it, cut it and place the cooked cereal on a plate.

Finally, let's consider a faster cooking method - in the microwave, because many manufacturers even recommend it in their cooking instructions on packages.

Recipes for dishes made from this healthy cereal

Pilaf

Ingredients:

Cooking technology:

For two parts of cereal you will need three parts of liquid, evaporate over low heat;
Boil the pork separately, reserve the broth, it will be needed for stewing;
In a separate bowl, fry the meat, add vegetables, spices and tomatoes;
Place the boiled cereal into the broth and evaporate it over low heat until it reaches the level of the cereal;
Place the meat and vegetables in a pan with pearl barley, cover and simmer in the oven at 200 degrees for 40 minutes;
Then mix and place into portioned plates.

Stuffed cabbage rolls

Ingredients:

Medium bulb;
Oil for frying;
200 grams of boiled pearl barley;
Two spoons of raisins;
Half a glass of chicken broth;
Greenery;
Prepared cabbage leaves;
Sour cream - 30 gr.

Cooking technology:

In a deep frying pan, fry the onion in oil, add pearl barley, raisins, broth, simmer for ten minutes, add herbs, stir;
We wrap this filling in cabbage leaves, put it in a saucepan, add broth and simmer for half an hour over low heat;
Place on serving plates and serve with sour cream.

Rassolnik

Ingredients:

400 grams of meat;
Half a glass of pearl barley;
One medium onion;
One carrot;
Potatoes - 3-4 pieces;
200 grams of pickled cucumbers;
A little brine;
Several olives;
1 tbsp. l. tomato paste;
One or two cloves of garlic;
Sour cream - 20 gr;
Greenery.

And in the video below you will learn how to prepare barley casserole with mushrooms:

Cooking technology:

Pre-soak pearl barley for half an hour;
Cook the meat in a saucepan, then take it out, divide it into pieces, add the cereal and cook for another half hour;
Add potatoes;
Fry onions and carrots in a frying pan in oil;
In a separate saucepan, simmer cucumbers in broth;
We collect everything in a saucepan, add a little brine, maybe olives, tomato paste, garlic;
Pour into portioned plates, add sour cream, sprinkle with herbs.

Perlotto with mushrooms (diet dish)

Ingredients (per serving):

Cooking technology:

In a heated frying pan, fry the onion in oil, then the garlic;
Add the cereal and wine, mix, add hot broth, simmer until the cereal swells;
Add mushrooms, stirring, simmer until tender, add spices, butter;
Place on a serving plate, sprinkle with grated cheese and herbs.

Drawing conclusions

Pearl barley must be included in a child’s diet, as it helps strengthen musculoskeletal tissue.

Barley as a side dish is a good way to rejuvenate the body due to the vitamins and microelements it contains.

Barley is a unique product. At a relatively low price, it has a lot of advantages. Barley dishes are varied and nutritious.

We offer you another video that contains a lot of useful information about pearl barley and porridge made from it:

Properly prepared delicious pearl barley porridge can conquer many gourmets, even despite the not-so-popularity of porridges made from this cereal, so let’s look in more detail at how to deliciously cook barley as a side dish and for soup, and how long to cook pearl barley in water so that it is crumbly and tasty, whether it needs to be soaked and in what proportion to mix it with water when cooking.

The ratio of pearl barley and water during cooking (proportions of pearl barley and water during cooking)

Before you learn how to deliciously prepare pearl barley as a side dish, you need to know the exact proportions of liquid and cereal when preparing this porridge:

The ratio of pearl barley and water when cooking viscous porridge
= 1 cup pearl barley + 4 cups water.
The ratio of pearl barley and water when cooking crumbly porridge
= 1 cup barley + 2.5 cups water.

How long to cook pearl barley

On average, the cooking time for pearl barley ranges from 50 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on the quality of the pearl barley, the method of cooking it and the desired consistency of the pearl barley porridge in the end:

How long to cook pearl barley without soaking?
Without pre-soaking, barley is cooked for at least 60 minutes.
How long to cook pearl barley with soaking?
After soaking, pearl barley is cooked for at least 50 minutes.
How long to cook barley for pickle (how long to cook barley in soup)?
In the soup, barley should be boiled for 1 hour, while the barley should first be soaked for 2-3 hours in water. It is possible to add pre-cooked pearl barley to the soup (after adding, for example, rassolnik to the soup, it needs to be cooked for 10-15 minutes).
How long to cook pearl barley in a slow cooker?
In a slow cooker, pearl barley is cooked for 50 to 70 minutes (after 50 minutes of cooking, you should check the porridge every 5 minutes for readiness).
How many minutes to cook pearl barley in bags?
Cook pearl barley in bags for an average of 45-50 minutes until fully cooked.

How and how much to cook pearl barley in bags

The simplest way to prepare pearl barley is to use it in bags: you throw the bag of barley into boiling water and wait for as long as it cooks, as indicated in the instructions on the package of pearl barley. Before the pearl barley porridge is ready, the approximate cooking time for a bag of cereal after boiling water is 45 minutes.

How to cook pearl barley as a side dish for soup? How to cook pearl barley for fishing? Knowing the proportions of water and cereal, it is easier to cook crumbly porridge.

In addition to the proportions, you should know the cooking time in order to get a crumbly soft porridge for a side dish or barely cooked pearl barley for fishing, pickle or soup.

Advice from the Wonder Chef. In terms of time, pearl barley is boiled in water from 50 minutes to 2 hours; the cooking time depends on the type of cereal and the freshness of the grains. To cook pearl barley correctly, you need to look at the date on the package and choose the freshest barley.

Barley is cooked in pots in the oven, microwave, delicious barley is cooked in a slow cooker, a double boiler, in a saucepan on the stove, in milk, and the simplest pearl barley porridge is cooked in water. To cook pearl barley quickly, pour the grains with water, the soaking time is from 3 hours, for quick cooking the grains are soaked for 12 hours.

How to cook pearl barley porridge in water in a saucepan?

The most common way to prepare pearl barley porridge is to cook it in a saucepan on the stove, since not every housewife may have a double boiler or a slow cooker, but the methods given below are widely known and have been popular for many years.

How to quickly cook pearl barley in water without soaking it in a pan?

We measure out a glass of pearl barley and rinse the cereal with cold water, then pour it into a pan and fill it with water so that it completely covers the cereal and the water level is 1-2 cm higher
Bring the barley with water to a boil, cook for 5 minutes and drain all the water, then add the required amount of water (the proportions are higher in the article) and bring to a boil again.
Add salt to taste and cook the pearl barley over low heat, covering it with a lid (leaving a small gap for steam to escape) for at least 50 minutes, making sure that all the water has boiled away.
When the water has boiled away and the porridge is ready, if desired, you can add a piece of butter, set the pan off the heat and let the porridge sit for 10-15 minutes under the lid (you can also wrap the pan in a towel).

This method falls into the category of how to quickly cook pearl barley, since you do not need to spend a lot of time pre-soaking pearl barley.

In the same way, pearl barley is cooked in bags, which also does not need to be soaked in advance (it already comes prepared for cooking).

How to properly cook pearl barley in water with pre-soaking

We prepare pearl barley in advance by rinsing it with cold water, then pouring it with water and leaving it to steep for 3-4 hours before cooking.
We drain the water in which the pearl barley was infused and rinse it again with plain water, after which we pour it into the selected pan.
Fill the cereal with the required amount of water (the ratios of water and pearl barley for cooking crumbly and viscous porridge are described at the beginning of the article). Add salt to taste.
Bring the pearl barley to a boil, reduce the heat to a minimum and cook for 50-60 minutes (until the water boils away).
Remove the pan from the stove, add a piece of butter if desired and leave the finished pearl barley porridge to steep under the lid in the pan for 10 minutes.

Note: soaking pearl barley in water for a long time will not harm the cereal and will even be beneficial when cooking porridge, so some housewives leave the cereal to soak in water overnight, after which they cook pearl barley porridge in the morning as a side dish or for soup.

How to cook pearl barley in water in a slow cooker

Cooking pearl barley in a saucepan is a familiar and proven method over the years. But the appearance of multicookers in the kitchen has made the task easier for housewives. The process has become much easier.

pearl barley - 1 cup;
water - 2.5 cups;
sugar;
butter.

Technology:

Rinse pearl barley several times. It is better to soak it in the evening and leave it overnight. This is if you need to cook porridge quickly in the morning;
In the morning, transfer the swollen cereal to a multi-cooker bowl. Then add salt and granulated sugar;
Next, close the multicooker with the lid. Set the program to “Porridge” or “Rice” (someone has the “Buckwheat” mode). Turn on the multicooker and cook until the end of the full cycle. On multi-pressure cookers, this process takes about twenty minutes. On conventional multicookers from 40 minutes to 80 minutes. Here everything will depend on the power of the device. The higher the power, the correspondingly shorter the cooking cycle time;
At the end of the cycle, you can not turn off the multicooker, but leave the barley on the “Warming” mode or serve it immediately;
Before serving, it is recommended to add a piece of butter to each plate. If among the eaters there are lovers of sweet cereals, then you can serve liquid honey separately, in a gravy boat.

How to cook pearl barley in a slow cooker?

Before cooking pearl barley in a slow cooker, the cereal should be prepared in advance for cooking: rinse with cold water several times, then leave the barley to soak in water for at least 3 hours.
After soaking, rinse the cereal again with plain water and place it in a multicooker, which can be pre-lubricated with butter.
Add pre-salted water to the multicooker in the proportion: 3 cups of water to 1 cup of pearl barley.
Turn on the multicooker to the “Porridge” mode and leave the pearl barley to cook for 1 hour.
When the pearl barley porridge is cooked, you can additionally add a piece of butter to it and leave it in the multicooker in the “Warming” mode for 10 minutes.

Answers to popular questions that will help you cook pearl barley correctly

Do I need to soak pearl barley before cooking?
It is advisable, but not necessary, to soak pearl barley before cooking (it depends on the cooking method you choose, but it’s always better to soak pearl barley before cooking so that the porridge is tasty and crumbly).
How many times does pearl barley expand when cooked?
During the cooking process, pearl barley increases 5 times, so you need to take this into account in advance and choose a pan with a reserve.
When to salt pearl barley during cooking?
Depending on the chosen cooking method, salt is added at different times, but in most cases at the beginning of cooking (after the water boils).
How to cook friable pearl barley?
To cook crumbly pearl barley, you need to pre-soak it and also cook it with a small amount of water so that it does not have time to boil.
Do I need to rinse pearl barley after cooking?
There is no need to rinse the pearl barley after cooking.

In conclusion to the article, it can be noted that the tips listed in the article on how to cook pearl barley porridge as a side dish, as well as how to cook pearl barley in water in a slow cooker or saucepan, will be useful to all lovers of this healthy barley cereal. It is also important to know not only the entire sequence of cooking pearl barley, but also not to forget how many minutes to cook pearl barley, as well as whether it needs to be soaked and why, what proportions of water and barley to use for the best result. We leave our tips and reviews on how to cook pearl barley porridge in water so that it is tasty and crumbly in the comments to the article and share it on social networks if it was useful to you.

Barley, which is barley grains processed in a special way, is a tasty and healthy cereal. Pearl barley porridge, rassolnik and many other interesting dishes are prepared from it.

This product has only one drawback - pearl barley takes quite a long time to prepare. But if you cook the cereal without soaking, which is also acceptable, you will be able to cook it much faster.

How to cook pearl barley in water without soaking

To make pearl barley porridge tasty and cooked quickly, you can do without soaking it. This method saves a sufficient amount of time, which is never enough. Saves about two to three hours. How it's done:

Pearl barley must be thoroughly washed in several waters. When washing the grain, you need to “rub” grain against grain. This will remove the husk from the grains and the porridge will be more crumbly than usual;
Further actions to choose from: either pour boiling water over the cereal and hold for an hour, or boil for ten minutes in boiling water;
Then a liter of water is added to the pan (per glass of cereal). The pan is placed on the fire and brought to a boil;
As soon as the water boils, cook the cereal for an hour. Then leave for another half hour;
The result will be crumbly, grain-to-grain, aromatic pearl barley porridge.

Step-by-step instructions for cooking pearl barley without soaking

Sort the grains and rinse thoroughly.
Pour 3 cups of water into a saucepan and put on fire.
After boiling, pour 1 cup of pearl barley into it. Boil it over high heat for 2-3 minutes.
Drain the liquid and fill the product with fresh water (also 3 cups).
When the water boils, reduce the heat level and cook for 50 minutes. Check readiness.
Drain off excess water. Add the oil, stir and let stand for up to 10 minutes. with the lid closed.

One of the main secrets of properly prepared pearl barley porridge is thorough washing of the cereal. It is advisable to add water several times during the process. When washing, you can rub the cereals between your fingers, so the husks will come off, and the porridge will turn out crumbly.

If you want to prepare crumbly porridge, you need to take 1 full glass of cereal for 2.5-3 glasses of liquid. For those who like viscous porridge, you need to take 1 liter of water for the same amount of pearl barley.

Cooking time depends on when the grain was grown. The longer it is stored, the longer it will have to be cooked.

How to properly cook pearl barley porridge so that it turns out crumbly

To make the cereal crumbly, but at the same time tasty and tender, it must be cooked correctly. This recipe will give you just such a dish.

Ingredients:

A glass of pearl barley;
2 cups boiling water;
A liter of cold water;
Salt and pepper to taste;
Butter.

Preparation:

1.Rinse the grains until clean and transfer them to the pan in which you are going to cook the porridge.

2.Pour two glasses of boiling water over it and leave until the cereal swells. This takes several hours. You can even leave it on all night.

3.Then pour in cold water and place the saucepan on the stove. Bring to a boil, skim off foam if it appears. Let the cereal boil for 5 minutes at high temperature. After this, reduce the flame and cover loosely with the lid. Cook for about half an hour.

4.When all the water has been absorbed into the cereal and it becomes soft, you can add salt and pepper to your taste. Also add butter. Stir and simmer for another 5 minutes. Before serving, it is better to let the dish sit under the lid, without heat, for 15 minutes.

A tasty, satisfying and healthy side dish is ready! Bon appetit!

Simple recipes for dishes with barley

You can make a healthy, satisfying and tasty porridge from pearl barley. This dish goes well with vegetables, mushrooms, different types of meat, and spicy sauces. But this is not all that is usually prepared from pearl barley.

Pearl barley pilaf

To prepare pilaf you need to stock up on the following products: 500 g pearl barley, 500 g bacon, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 250 g fatty butter, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, spices.

Cooking process:

Boil the meat until done. Save the broth.
Fry chopped bacon with chopped vegetables in a thick-walled bowl (cauldron or saucepan).
Add tomato paste and spices there. Mix.
Pour in the broth.
Boil pearl barley until half cooked. Then spread the porridge in an even layer in a saucepan with the rest of the ingredients. Cook until the broth has reduced to the level of the grains.
Cover tightly, then place in preheated oven for 50 minutes.

Rassolnik with pearl barley

For this recipe you will need the following ingredients: 300 grams of beef, 50 g of pearl barley, 250 g of potatoes, 100 g of pickles, 0.5 cups of cucumber pickle, 1 onion, 150 g of carrots, bay leaf, 2 tbsp. spoons of sunflower oil, peppercorns, salt.

Cooking process:

Wash the pearl barley and boil it until half cooked.
Fill a 3-liter saucepan with water, place the meat in it and cook for an hour.
Remove the beef, cool, and divide into pieces.
Add pearl barley to the broth and cook for half an hour.
Peel and cut the potatoes into cubes. Add to soup.
Peel and chop carrots and onions. First fry the onion in oil, then add the carrots.
Cut the cucumbers into thin shavings. In a separate frying pan, simmer them with the addition of three tablespoons of broth.
Transfer the onions, carrots and cucumbers to the broth. Pour out the brine.
After boiling, add salt and spices.
Before serving, sprinkle generously with herbs and add sour cream.

Milk pearl barley porridge

This simple and at the same time nutritious and tasty dish is prepared from 1 glass of pearl barley, 600 ml of milk, 20-30 g of butter, 2 tbsp. spoons of sugar and salt.

Pearl barley porridge is obtained by grinding barley grains, as a result of which only the husk and the top layer of grain are removed. This cereal has been known since ancient times, when it was widely prepared and eaten.

Now many people have forgotten about pearl barley and practically do not cook it, because they believe that this porridge turns out to be tough and completely tasteless. But that's not true. Let's take a closer look at the basic methods and recipes for preparing pearl barley porridge so that it turns out soft, tender and crumbly.

Useful properties of pearl barley porridge

Barley rightfully belongs to healthy products, since it is a whole grain cereal, therefore it undergoes minimal processing, retaining all nutrients.

To benefit the body, pearl barley porridge must be eaten on a regular basis, since it contains the following vitamins:

group B
– has a beneficial effect on the nervous system, calming it;
vitamin A
– necessary for the normal functioning of the visual organs;
Vitamin E
– acts as an antioxidant; it is also responsible for the condition of the nail plate and hair;
group D
– promotes the growth and strengthening of bone tissue and joints;
Vitamin PP
– has a positive effect, improving the condition of the skin, preventing its premature aging.

Pearl barley porridge also contains other useful substances, microelements and macroelements, as well as amino acids.

For example, the fiber contained in pearl barley helps improve the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. Hordecin - being a natural antibacterial component, allows you to cope with pathogenic microflora.

This cereal belongs to fairly low-calorie foods

, its calorie content is 320 kcal. Therefore, such porridge is often included as food when following a diet. Due to its beneficial properties, this product is included in the menu in children's, military and medical institutions.

During cooking, this cereal can increase in volume up to 5 times. This should be taken into account when choosing a container for preparing porridge.
It can be difficult to determine in advance the exact time for cooking pearl barley porridge, since many factors influence this process. Everything will depend on the quality of the grain, the utensils used for its preparation, as well as the cooking method. On average, the cooking process for this dish ranges from 1 to 1.5 hours.
The consistency of the finished porridge will depend on the amount of water in which the cereal was cooked. If you want to make pearl barley porridge crumbly, then for 1 glass of porridge, you need to take 2 glasses of water. If you cook pearl barley in a larger amount of liquid, for example, doubling the volume of water, then it will turn out viscous and viscous.

Popular recipes

Let's look at the basic recipes for cooking crumbly pearl barley in water. Since this porridge is made from whole grains, it will take a long time to cook. Many housewives use the method of pre-soaking the cereal, leaving the pearl barley porridge in water for the whole night.

This cooking method can significantly reduce cooking time, since the soaked grain becomes softer and cooks faster.

Preparing pearl barley with pre-soaking

Rinse the cereal well under running water. Fill it with water in the ratio of 1 glass of porridge to 1 liter of water. The grain should stand soaked for about 10 hours; it is better to leave it to stand overnight. In the morning, drain the excess liquid, boil the water and pour out the porridge.

Prepare this dish from time to time, stirring from time to time and checking the degree of its readiness. This will take approximately 20 minutes.

When the porridge is cooked, remove the container from the heat and cover with a lid. It is necessary to wrap the pan in a terry towel or thick cloth and leave it in this state for another 15–30 minutes. During this time, the dish will be fully prepared.

Cooking porridge without soaking

The grains are washed well and placed in boiling water. In such a way that the water protrudes 2 centimeters above the level of the porridge. You need to wait until the pearl barley boils, and then reduce the heat to minimum. Cook the cereal over this heat for 5 minutes.

After this time, strain the pearl barley porridge through a colander. Again, pour boiling water over the cereal and boil for 5.5 minutes. This manipulation must be carried out 6 times. In this case, each time the amount of water should increase so that it protrudes 1 centimeter more than the previous time. Each time the cooking time increases by 30 seconds.

The last time, pour boiling water over the cereal, you can salt it and add a little oil. When the porridge is ready, remove it from the heat and strain.

How to cook pearl barley

How to cook pearl barley correctly

First, rinse the cereal and add water. Leave to swell for 2-3 hours.
Drain the water and place the pearl barley into a saucepan.
Pour boiled water. The ratio is 1 to 3, that is, for a glass of pearl barley we take 3 glasses of water.
Place the pan on the stove and cook the barley over low heat for 50 minutes.

To make the pearl barley soft, you can add a little sunflower oil or butter.

How to quickly cook pearl barley

First, pour 5 cups of water into 1 cup of pearl barley.
Place the pan on the stove and cook the barley over low heat after the water boils for 45 minutes.
After cooking, drain the water, put a piece of butter in the porridge, stir and leave covered for 10 minutes. Then the pearl barley will swell and become more tasty and aromatic.

How to cook pearl barley in bags

Place a bag of barley in the pan, add water so that it covers the barley with a margin of 1 centimeter.
Add salt (1 teaspoon). Place on the fire and cook the pearl barley in bags for 45 minutes.

There is no need to pre-soak the cereal from the bags, as it is processed and ready for cooking. After cooking, you can immediately add it to soups, use it as a side dish, or prepare other dishes with barley.

How to cook pearl barley in a slow cooker

Rinse the cereal in cold water, soak in water for 2-3 hours.
Place pearl barley in a multicooker bowl. We take 3 times more water than cereal (for 1 multi-glass of pearl barley – 3 water).
Set the “Buckwheat” or “Porridge” mode. Cooking time without soaking pearl barley is 1.5-2 hours, with soaking it is 1 hour. And so that the pearl barley does not run away, you should not load it into the bowl to the maximum.

How to cook pearl barley in a Rotex multi-pressure cooker

Rinse the pearl barley, pour it into a bowl, add water so that it covers the porridge by 1 centimeter with a margin.
Select the “Porridge” mode and cook the barley for 45 minutes.

How to cook pearl barley in the microwave

To cook pearl barley in the microwave, you need to take the following proportions: for 1 cup of cereal, 1.5 cups of boiled, lightly salted water. Cook covered for 25-30 minutes (power 400 W).

It is enough to cook pearl barley in a bag (processed) for 20 minutes, the power is the same.

How long to cook barley in soup (including pickle)

Cooking pearl barley in the soup is enough for 1 hour, but before cooking you need to soak it in water for several hours.

How to make delicious barley in a double boiler

Rinse the pearl barley under running water, add water, keeping the proportions 1:2, and place in a cold place to swell for at least 6 hours.
Rinse the pearl barley in a colander under running water. Place the cereal in the container of the cereal steamer, add boiling water (take 2.5 cups of water per glass of cereal). Cook for 30 minutes first.
Gently stir the cereal and cook again for 30 minutes. Readiness can be determined by the softness of the porridge at the bottom of the container.
If the pearl barley is undercooked, you can extend the cooking time by another 30 minutes. It depends on the variety and size of the grains. To finish cooking the barley, you need to drain the remaining water from the steamer and fill it with new one.

How to cook pearl barley in a rice cooker

We will need the following products:

Water – 3 glasses
Pearl barley – 1 cup
Salt – 1 teaspoon

Step-by-step recipe for cooking pearl barley in a rice cooker

Rinse the cereal, add water so that the pearl barley is completely covered with water, and leave to swell for 2 hours.
Drain the water, transfer the cereal to the rice cooker bowl, add 3 cups of water, turn on the “Cooking” mode for 1 hour. Cook with the lid closed! Without soaking, cook the pearl barley for 1.5-2 hours.
As soon as cooking is finished, set the heating mode for 20 minutes. Then the pearl barley will be crumbly. Next add salt, stir well and serve.