Discussion Board

I love pearled barley and I was wondering if you could use it in place of the rice in the burger recipes? The only thing I can see is it also absorbs the liquid, like the oats do. The barley would be cooked, of course.

Barbara

Hi Barbara,

I kind of remember Jeff saying in the video that he sometimes used rolled barley instead of the oats, so I doubt the flavor would be a problem. Boiling and using the barley sounds like a really interesting idea.

Do you often eat barley that way( I mean as a starch in place of rice) ? If so, can you explain how you do that?

Thanks for the idea.

Mark

Rolled barley can be used in place of the rolled oats and works just as well.

You can try using cooked barley in place of the cooked brown rice and that should work too but I have never tried it.

In Health
Jeff

On a somewhat related note, I have noticed that pearled barley does not seem to qualify as a whole grain: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_barley

Also, here is a list of whole grain products that may also be worth considering: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_grain

Jeff, would you agree that pearled barley should not be considered a whole grain? If so, do you believe less refined barley options may be better choices for health?

I also came across a recent article by the CSPI that believes bran should be placed in the same health-promoting category as whole grains. Here is an older article from 1997 that makes the same point (http://www.cspinet.org/nah/wwheat.html):

"Think of bran cereals as whole grain. Technically, they're not (since the germ and endosperm are missing). But they are a concentrated source of the bran that's missing from the refined grains that most of us eat. Think of wheat germ as whole grain, too. It may be only part of the whole grain ... but it's a good part that we seldom eat."

Based on our emphasis on whole grains, I would think that whole grains would always be a better choice. I would love to hear Jeff's feedback, though. I do not believe that the newer version of the CSPI article kept the point about wheat germ being in the same category as whole grains, so they may be moving in a less refined direction over time.

Thank you very much for your consideration and support. I hope that you and the rest of the board community have a wonderful day.

Correct.

My recommendation above is not for pearled barley but for rolled barley, which should be 100% whole grain. However, you do have to check the label as they can be made from pearled barley. Perhaps I should have been clearer.

Bran is not a whole grain and bran cereals should not be considered whole grain.

In Health
Jeff