Pearl Barley Risotto Jamie Oliver Recipes

CHICKEN & PEARL BARLEY RISOTTO

Steps:

• Heat a large saucepan over a medium-high heat and add the oil. Add the chicken and fry for 5 mins or until well-browned on all sides. Tip in the vegetables and cook for a further 5 mins until starting to soften. Add the garlic and pearl barley, then pour over 500ml water. Cover and leave to simmer for 25-30 mins, stirring occasionally.
• Meanwhile, put all the dressing ingredients in the small bowl of a food processor and blitz until very finely chopped. Transfer to a bowl and set aside until serving.
• When the pearl barley is soft, but still with a little bite, and most of the liquid has been absorbed, it's ready to serve. Season to taste and divide the risotto between two plates, adding spoonfuls of the dressing, to serve.

PEARL BARLEY RISOTTO

Steps:

• Heat oil and butter in a heavy bottomed casserole dish. Add shallots, leeks, garlic and thyme and slowly sweat until softened, about 20mins. Meanwhile, heat up the chicken stock in a saucepan.
• Add pearl barley and stir to mix together. Begin adding chicken stock a ladle at a time, stirring often. Cook until the rice has mostly absorbed liquid. Add remaining stock a ladle a time, continuing to allow the pearl barley to absorb each addition of stock before adding more. Stir often and cook until the risotto is al dente and creamy, not mushy. (You might not need all the stock.). Approximately 30minutes.
• Once fully cooked, stir in mustard, lemon juice, parsley, hack hock and salt. Serve.

ALE BARLEY LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 170ºC/325ºF/gas 3.
• Place a large casserole pan on a high heat, and fry the lamb shanks in 1 tablespoon of olive oil, while you halve, wash and roughly chop the leeks.
• Add them to the pan with the pearl barley, umami paste and a pinch of sea salt and black pepper, then stir well.
• Pour in the ale and 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar, then cover with 1.2 litres of water.
• Cook in the oven for 2 hours 30 minutes, or until tender, then dish on up. Easy!

SPINACH AND MUSHROOM PEARL BARLEY RISOTTO

Steps:

• Fry the mushrooms in a spray of oil for 3 minutes until golden. Season and scoop out the pan. Fry the onion in another spray of olive oil for 2 minutes before adding the thyme and garlic, and fry for 1 minute. Add the barley, mix with the onions and gradually add the stock, stirring frequently. Simmer for 25-30 minutes until the barley is tender, adding more stock if needed. When the stock has been absorbed, stir in the spinach, cheese and mushrooms. Season and cook for 2 more minutes until the spinach has wilted.

BARLEY RISOTTO WITH MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Heat the beef broth in a saucepan and keep warm.
• In a large, deep skillet, heat 2 Tbsp of the butter over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring, until starting to soften. Add the mushrooms and thyme leaves and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring regularly until mushrooms are tender and lightly golden, about 5-6 minutes. Add the barley and the remaining 1 Tbsp butter. Cook, stirring, for about 1 minute. Add the wine and cook until the wine is absorbed, about 3-4 minutes.
• Add one ladle of the hot beef broth and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring once or twice, until nearly all of the broth has been absorbed. *You don't want to boil the mixture too vigorously, but you do want a consistent simmer. Adjust heat to that point. Continue adding broth, one ladle at a time, allowing the it to cook until the liquid is absorbed before adding another ladle. Cook until all the broth is added. Test the barley. You want it to be al dente. If it is not quite there, add another ladle of hot water (or broth, if you have more available) and cook a bit longer. When barley is cooked, stir in grated Parmesan cheese and stir to combine.
• Season dish with salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste. Serve with additional grated Parmesan and garnish with fresh thyme sprigs or fresh thyme leaves.

PAN-FRIED PARTRIDGE WITH A DELICATE PEARL BARLEY, PEA AND LETTUCE STEW

Steps:

• Cook the pearl barley in boiling, salted water for about 50 minutes, or until tender but still with a little bite, then drain and leave to steam dry.
• Next, heat a glug of olive oil in a frying pan and add the onion and a pinch of salt. Cook slowly on a low heat for about 10 minutes, without coloring too much. Add the barley and the peas. Cover with the stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring every now and then.
• On a board, mash the flour and butter together with a fork until you have a paste. This is called a "beurre manie" and it's a great way of thickening stews or sauces without having to stir the flour in directly, which could give you lumps. Stir half of the paste into the peas and barley and continue to simmer until the liquid begins to thicken. If, after 5 minutes, it's not thick enough, add some more of your beurre manie. What you want to achieve is a silky smooth broth. Continue to simmer for another 10 minutes, adding a little extra stock if it gets too dry, while you cook your partridges.
• Put some olive oil into another frying pan. Season the partridge legs with salt and pepper and add them to the pan. (The legs go in first because they're tougher than the breasts and need longer to cook.) Shake them about and, after a few minutes, when they're lightly golden, add the bacon bits and stir gently to stop them catching on the bottom. Meanwhile, lay the partridge breasts out, sprinkle over the chopped thyme and press onto both sides with a good pinch of seasoning. When the bacon is lightly golden, push it to 1 side of the pan with the partridge legs and lay the breasts in, skin side down. Cook for 4 minutes, then turn and cook on the other side for a minute to give you crispy skin and moist meat. You can cook them for longer if you like your meat well done.
• When the breasts are done, taste the barley broth and adjust the seasoning, then stir in the lettuce and arugula - they only need a minute or so to cook. Serve the barley, peas and lettuce with the partridge breasts and legs on top and sprinkle with the bacon pieces. Spoon the broth juices over the top. Lovely homey cooking!

LAMB SHANKS WITH PEARL BARLEY RISOTTO

Steps:

• Pre-heat fan forced oven to 150 degrees celsius. Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper before browning all over in a hot pan. Take a deep oven proof dish and add to it the red wine, chopped carrots, roughly chopped red onion, bouquet garni and the browned lamb shanks. Cover tightly with foil and place in the oven, basting the lamb every hour for four hours.
• 45 minutes before you remove the lamb shanks from the oven, start preparing your risotto. Heat a good amount of olive oil in a pot and add the finely chopped onion. Stir until caramelised and add the finely chopped garlic. Stir in the chopped mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Add the pearl barley and stir well before adding enough stock to cover the mixture. Stir this through and simmer until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add more stock and continue this process until all of the stock has been used. Taste the barley and test to see if it is aldenté. If not, add more stock (if you have any) or water and cook until tender. When the barley is tender, stir through the spinach and parmesan. Season to taste.
• To serve, place a generous spoon full of risotto on each plate or bowl and top with a gorgeously tender lamb shank. Spoon over the pan juices and vegetables from the lamb dish.