barley It is a cereal that It is distinguished from wheat because its grains are more elongated, the leaves are more stretched and lighter in color, and the ears are very slender. and with nice long beards.

Its cultivation is widespread because it adapts to all types of temperate climates and soils, although it prefers calcareous ones. Originally from the Middle East and Ethiopia, It is one of the oldest agricultural plantswhose first references to cultivation date back to six thousand years BC. c.

The ancient Egyptians, and also the Celts, made refreshing drinks with it. of northern Europe in Roman times. It was even quoted by Homer in the Odyssey and Hippocrates I recommended it to gain health.

Today it is the fourth most consumed cereal on our planet, especially by the beer industry (beer is made with it) and as animal fodder.

However, one should not forget traditional use in cookingsince it has been a common ingredient in soups and creams, and the basic component of one of the most popular classic drinks: barley water.

barley water: step by step recipe

Barley water is a very refreshing drinkwhich remineralizes and strengthens the body and recovers from intellectual and nervous fatigue.

Ingredients (for 4 people):

• 50 g ground barley
• 1 liter of water
• 1 lemon (its juice)
• 4 tablespoons of honey

Perparation (30′ + 30′ cold):

1. Place 50 g of hulled barley and a liter of water in a saucepan, and cook the mixture for half an hour.
2. After that time, remove the mixture from the heat, strain it and season with honey and lemon juice.
3. Finally, chill the drink in the refrigerator for half an hour and it will be ready to drink.

Variant

If mixed with horchata or meringue milk It can be a very nutritious snack.

Nutritional information:

• Protein: 1 g
• Carbohydrates: 17 g
• Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Calories: 74

barley water: properties

barley It is the lightest of all cereals (a 60 g serving provides 175 calories compared to 216 for white rice or 230 for oats), although its composition contains a generous proportion of carbohydrates (58%), 11% protein and 10% fiber.

It is more protein than rice and ryeonly being surpassed by oats and buckwheat. 60 g of barley provides 6 g of protein while rice has 4 g, rye 5 g and oats 8 g.

The contribution of carbohydrates of barley is comparable to that of oats and rye. However, in this nutrient, rice is the champion (48 g compared to 35 g for barley).

Has more fat than rice and rye (2.1g for 0.6g and 1.7 respectively), but your contribution is lower than that of oats (7 g).

In a serving of 60 g of barley the contribution of vitamins is notableespecially in vitamin E (0.6 mg), and from group B: thiamine (60 g of barley covers 25% of the daily needs of this vitamin), niacin (28% satisfied) and vitamin B6 (they account for 33% of the daily requirements of an adult).

As for the minerals It is worth highlighting his great contribution of phosphorus (205mg), iron (2 mg) and magnesium (68 mg).

But, in addition, barley is the champion cereal in trace elementswith an extraordinary wealth of iodine, zinc, manganese, copper, chromium and, above all, selenium, an exceptional antioxidant, which protects the body against degenerative ailments. Thus, 50 g of barley covers the entire daily needs of selenium.

For all these reasons, this cereal is considered a remineralizing and tonic food, appropriate for growth stages.

• The cooking water It is refreshing and a good nervous system calmingin addition to diuretic, febrifugal and purifying.
• On the other hand and thanks to its enzymes, barley is digestive and cholagogue.
• It is also beneficial for the respiratory system, being a effective expectorant.
• It also has an alkaloid, hordenine, which acts in a similar way to adrenaline and which gives barley anti-diarrheal and cardiotonic virtues.

The oil of its germ contains unsaturated fatty acids -oleic and linoleic- that prevent arteriosclerosis and neutralize excess lipids in the blood.

Your flour diluted in water and used as a poultice it is useful to treat abscesses and reduce muscle inflammation and soothe bone and joint pain.

However, barley also has contraindications: the people celiac They can’t take it because it contains gluten; can also cause an allergic reaction by inhalation in bakers, and hives and dermatitis in especially sensitive people.

How to cook barley

As with rice, you can obtain two types of barleythe peeled and the pearled, depending on how its shell is extracted.

• Hulled or whole barley has only undergone a peeling of its outermost layerso it maintains the most of its nutrients and it is tastier. to consume it It needs prior soaking or 45 minutes of cooking.
• pearl barley is obtained after having extracted all the superficial layers and having rounded through repeated friction. With this process loses a good part of its nutrients, except starch, but it cooks faster that the peel.

When cooking barley, greens, vegetables and legumes are your best companions.

• Boiled, It can be included in soups and prepared croquettes. if it is crushed and mixed with a sautéed onion or a bechamel.
• Pearled barley cooked in milk, sweetened and seasoned with cinnamon constitutes a dessert very nutritious.
• Likewise the Barley flakes are often part of breakfast muesliswhile its flour thickens and enriches sauces and porridges.

The malting process

Barley, being the sweetest cereal, is ideal for the malting process, which It consists of soaking the grain so that it begins to germinate and then baking it to dry it.

Germination generates a enzyme, maltase, which facilitates digestion of starches. That is why people with difficulties digesting farinaceous foods can take malted barley flour.

If the roasting process is continued until the grain darkens, gain aroma and its flavor becomes bitter, you obtain Maltawhich is taken in infusion and is digestive and laxative.

Beer is obtained from malted barley and cooked with hops.a plant that gives it its unique aroma. Lastly, and thanks to brewer’s yeast, it is fermented againwhich gives the beer its alcoholic graduation.

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