Culinary Notes
The Thickener: As it cooks, pearl barley releases a significant amount of starch into the liquid. This makes it a natural thickening agent for soups and stews, giving the broth a silky, viscous quality without the need for flour or cornstarch.
Rinsing: Because of the polishing process, it is coated in a fine dust. Always rinse it thoroughly in a sieve under cold water until the water runs clear before cooking, otherwise, your boiling water will turn grey and scummy.
The "Orzotto": You can treat it exactly like Arborio rice to make a barley risotto ("Orzotto"). It takes longer to cook (approx. 30-40 mins) and requires more liquid, but the result is earthier and more robust than rice.
Expansion: Be warned—barley is thirsty. It will triple in volume when cooked. If you add too much to a soup, you will return an hour later to find a solid stew where the liquid used to be.
