When I first started adding barley into my stews to act as a thickener (see my Beef and Carrot Stew Recipe), I realise how versatile barley can be in both sweet (makes a lovely accompaniment to green bean soup!) and savoury dishes.
Barley is low in GI and can be a great, healthy substitute to rice and carbs in general so that’s why I thought of using it to create this really easy to make risotto dish. It is not as heavy as the regular risotto and in terms of texture, there is a nice chewy bite to it. The perfect dish to keep you satiated for longer but not compromising on taste and quality. Give it a try! 🙂
Pumpkin Barley Risotto Recipe
Ingredients (serves 2)
150g pearl barley, rinsed & drained
200g king oyster mushrooms, thinly sliced
500ml hot vegetable stock
250g pumpkin, steamed & mashed
1 small yellow onion, peeled & diced
3 cloves garlic, peeled & finely chopped
2 tsp olive oil
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
chopped parsley as garnish
Instructions
1. Heat oil in pan over medium heat and saute the garlic and onions till fragrant and tender.
2. Add the mushrooms and briefly stir fry for 2-3 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to low. Mix in the barley and stir fry for 1 minute.
4. Add one ladle of stock at a time and stir the barley mixture till the liquid is almost all absorbed. Repeat till all the stock is used up while stirring all the time. This should take about 15 minutes.
5. Add in the pumpkin mash and stir to combine.
6. Continue to stir for another 5 minutes till the barley is al dente and creamy.
7. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley and serve.