Saturday, January 07, 2012

Barley Brown Rice (薏米糙米饭)


I guess I never satisfied with brown rice alone.  I have read that barley is good for us.  It is a very good source of fiber, selenium, niacin, phosphorus, magnesium, copper and manganese. The health benefits include aids regulatory, lower cholesterol, intestinal protection (the insoluble fibers feed friendly bacteria and this friendly bacteria prevent the disease causing bacteria to stay in the intestinal tract), prevent gallstones in women, lower risk of type 2 diabetes, and etc.

In Malaysia, we have barley drink.  In Korea, they have toasted barley tea (I wanted to try this, but always forgot to look for toasted barley while in the Asian/Korean market).  They have barley and beans rice in Korea too.  So, I tried to incorporate some barley into my brown rice so that I can eat it more often.  I experienced with 1/2 cup of barley with 1 1/2 cups of brown rice and it was delicious.  I think my family couldn't tell a difference if I didn't tell them.  Slowly, I want to add more barley into my brown rice and play with the ratio some more.

Make sure you buy hulled barley and not pearl barley as pearl barley is not considered whole grain as the outer hull and bran had been stripped during processing. But if you can't find hulled barley, pearl barley is still good.




Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup hulled barley or pearl barley
  • 1 1/2 cups brown rice

Method:

1. Wash and rinse barley.

2.  Wash the brown rice and add in the barley. 

3.  Put brown rice and barley in your rice cooker pot, stir to blend well.  Add water up to level 4 in the rice cooker.  (Note:  about double the white rice water amount)  Let it sit or soak in that water for 2-3 hours.  I usually set timer in my rice cooker to be cooked at certain time and let the brown rice and barley soak in there.
  
4.  Set the rice cooker to cook.  When done, mix well and serve.

14 comments:

Belinda @zomppa said...

A healthy foundation for any meal!

Smoky Wok (formerly Tastes of Home) said...

always interested in healthier versions of rice..thanks for sharing :)

Nava K said...

I tried cooking brown rice at home for a month or two but my hubby does not like it, he says that there's no taste, so now its more of Basmati rice. This seems to work for his diabetic.

I think the combination of barley and brown rice is so unique and this is the first time I am seeing one from the recipe you have shared. We only boil barley as dessert or made into drinks over here but I would like to try the combo with brown rice.

daphne said...

How did it taste?

Ching, I like your bowl!!!

Shu Han said...

There's another kind of barley, also called job's tears or china barley, that's my favourite kind, it's slightly nutty and isn't gluey like regular barley! I used to wish I could eat it instead of rice!

This is a nice idea, combining 2 grains (:

Little Corner of Mine said...

So true Belinda as rice is our staple. :)

You're welcome Smoky Wok.

Nava, I really like this barley and brown rice mix. I am out of barley, so back to brown rice for now.

Daphne, it tastes really good to me, I used pearl barley as I couldn't find hulled barley. I could taste the barley in the background.

Wow, I didn't know about job's tear, thanks for enlightening me Shu Han! I did a search, and it said it is also called pearl barley. I'm trying to look for hulled barley in the stores here, wish me luck. :)

Unknown said...

wow! you are really the queen of doable healthy food! thanks for the tips ;)

Juliana said...

Great idea to mix barley and brown rice...very healthy.
Happy New Year :-)

beti said...

I love your basic recipes!

tigerfish said...

I like mixing barley in rice or porridge. In addition to the nutrition, barley also adds interesting texture and taste to the rice mix.

Yi @ Yi Reservation said...

I adore brown rice! Not it tastes better but it also makes me feel better.

I have yet tried to mix barley with brown rice but I would definite try it when I get some barly soon. Thanks for sharing!

Little Corner of Mine said...

You're welcome Rita!

Thanks Juliana. You too!

Thanks Beti!

Tigerfish, I really liked it! But barley is more expensive than brown rice so probably 3 times a week? :P

You're welcome Yi and hope you like it.

Saviour-V said...

Just wondering, where exactly can I get hulled barley? I was told that the stuff's good for the brain, but all I've been able to find so far is just pearl barley.

I'm from Damansara, by the way.

Little Corner of Mine said...

I have no idea Saviour. The one I bought here is also pearl barley.