Watercress and Barley Soup

It's easy to get stuck in the brown rice rut. Yet there are so many other great grains to eat. Recently I've been diversifying the grain in our diet, and have re-discovered the pleasure of barley.

I made barley soup last week to welcome my mother who’s visiting from Montreal.

Travelling can leave one slightly queasy, and barley is good for settling upset stomachs. I remember as a child being given barley sugar sweets to ease carsickness. And babies are traditionally fed barley water for colic.

Barley also provides long-term health benefits. A US Department of Agriculture study shows that the soluble fiber in barley reduces cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure and cholesterol (especially the bad LDL). Barley also helps balance blood sugar.

Just as you can buy brown rice or white rice, you can buy hulled or pearled barley.

Hulled barley is less processed, with only the tough outer hull removed. At my local health food store I found Health Best organic hulled barley (also called whole barley or scotch or pot barley). This has the bran intact, like brown rice. It’s more nutritious, a little chewier, and takes a little longer to cook than pearled barley.

Arrowhead Mills makes an organic pearled barley which has the bran shaved off so it has a little less fiber, but is still nutritious. (And honestly, to me it looks the same as the Health Best hulled barley.) Regular supermarket pearled barley is just the small white starchy center of the grain - don’t bother with it.

Barley takes between 45 and 60 minutes to cook. The way to know when it's done is to taste a grain.

This is the sprightly spring soup I served my mother. The watercress enhances the lemony taste, but you could substitute arugula or spinach if necessary.

A lot of the flavor comes from the vegetable stock. Chop the greens finely just before adding to the soup to conserve nutrients and keep their fresh flavor.

Watercress Barley Soup
2 tbsp olive oil
10 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cup hulled barley
4 cups water or vegetable stock (I used 2 cups stock and 2 cups water)
2 cups finely chopped watercress (leaves and stems)
1 tbsp lemon juice

Sauté garlic in olive oil until lightly browned. Add barley and stock. Simmer until the barley is tender but still a little chewy, about an hour. At this point it can wait until you’re ready to eat. Then reheat the soup, adding extra water if necessary. Stir in the watercress and lemon juice, and cook for five minutes until the greens are soft. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 3-4 as a meal.