Barley Milk

[symbas]

Has anyone used homemade Barley Milk as a plant based milk?
Our local bulk store was out of oats, I purchased Barley flakes, made it the same as Oat milk.
Feedback welcomed.

[Mom+Me]

Has anyone used homemade Barley Milk as a plant based milk?
Our local bulk store was out of oats, I purchased Barley flakes, made it the same as Oat milk.
Feedback welcomed.

How did it turn out; how did it taste? I would imagine that it would be comparable?

Hmm...you might be on to something and you could corner the Barley Milk market as the latest "fad"(?) in the flurry of "plant-based" products out there, which 9.8 out of 10 times are not Dr. McDougall Program compliant due to oils.

[symbas]

Thanks for your response.
Actually, it's more nutty flavored than I expected(I did not expect nutty at all).
It is thinner than oatmeal with the same ratio.
The colour is tan, it's not half bad...and it heats well for cooking with.
I added a drop of vanilla for flavoring.

Making more in awhile.
Much more expensive than oats(88 cents/ 100grams)....8.80 cents pound.


Today, after rinsing the barley flakes, I soaked them in hot water, oh my , they more than quadrupled in bulk.!!
I now have a huge strainer full,of barley flakes, maybe I'll will dehydrate them, and make a flour, or add to soups....hmmm
The experiment continues.

[Mom+Me]

Very interesting about it having a nutty flavor, being slightly brown, thinner than oat milk, cooking well, and quadrupling! Maybe you could freeze the rinsed flakes in small baggies to use for milk in the future?

Do you always soak the oat (and now barley) flakes prior to making the milk? Is it to rinse off any bad stuff like germs?

I wonder if you bought oat groats or barley and soaked them overnight if you could make milk out of them? I don't see why not and it would be even less processed and probably even more economical.

Thank you for sharing your experiment, please continue to do so--thanks!

[symbas]

The reason I rinse and soak them is because they produce a slimey texture , which is gross.

I made barley pancakes out of the previously used flakes, but they were too thin, and underwhelming.
I hate wasting food, so at least they were utilized.
I also made pancakes out of the flakes, they were awesome, tasty and very satiating, so will do that again.
Decided I want a more white colour in my chicory drink, so will revert to Oat milk again.

So that's my little experiment.

[Mom+Me]

The reason I rinse and soak them is because they produce a slimey texture , which is gross.

I made barley pancakes out of the previously used flakes, but they were too thin, and underwhelming.
I hate wasting food, so at least they were utilized.
I also made pancakes out of the flakes, they were awesome, tasty and very satiating, so will do that again.
Decided I want a more white colour in my chicory drink, so will revert to Oat milk again.

So that's my little experiment.

Thank you for replying! Mmm...the pancakes sound delicious! And the underwhelming, thin ones kind of sound like crepe batter to me.
At least the oat milk is not only whiter (resembling "real" [cows] milk), but cheaper.
Again, thank you for sharing.

[Mom+Me]

P.S. It's kind of funny that we both chose the red pepper as our picture. It looks like a red pepper palooza.

[carolw]

I saw the post about barley milk and how barley gets slimy when used whole for milk. There are 2 kinds of barley that I am aware of:
1. pearl barley which is somewhat slimy and
2. the unpearled kind which is more difficult to find but I like better. I use a mix of this barley and brown rice when I batch cook.

It's kind of amazing how many varieties of any grain or legume there are in the world. You especially feel this variety when you change countries and what you knew as something as simple (say the lowly chickpea) has a different flavor, cooking time, and consistency in a different country. Here in Australia I found a new legume (new for me). I use red lentils all the time but these are whole red lentils before being split for use in dhal. They look brown and when you cut into the little bean it is indeed red. Who knew?

[Mom+Me]

I saw the post about barley milk and how barley gets slimy when used whole for milk. There are 2 kinds of barley that I am aware of:
1. pearl barley which is somewhat slimy and
2. the unpearled kind which is more difficult to find but I like better. I use a mix of this barley and brown rice when I batch cook.

It's kind of amazing how many varieties of any grain or legume there are in the world. You especially feel this variety when you change countries and what you knew as something as simple (say the lowly chickpea) has a different flavor, cooking time, and consistency in a different country. Here in Australia I found a new legume (new for me). I use red lentils all the time but these are whole red lentils before being split for use in dhal. They look brown and when you cut into the little bean it is indeed red. Who knew?

Welcome to the Discussion Board, carolw!

Yes, I agree about all the varieties of grains, legumes, etc.! Also find that here in the States, the most common type of barley is pearled. The unpearled is harder to find, though easier to find at more healthy type grocery stores in the bulk bins where the flaked barley would also be found, if they carry it.

That is fascinating how a chickpea can taste different in different countries! Maybe they are slightly different varieties and/or the soil and other growing conditions are different, thus rendering a different taste? That's neat about the whole red lentil looking like a brown lentil until broken open. As you said, "Who knew?"! Thank you for sharing!