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Fermented Black Barley with Tomatoes, Shallots & Herbs

Home   Recipes for Pulses, Grains, Seeds, Flakes, Flour, Ferments...   Fermented Black Barley with Tomatoes, Shallots & Herbs
Black Barley Cider Vinegar Ferments Lunch Pumpkin Seeds Sarah Cotterell & Aitana Infante Summer Wholegrains

by Sarah Cotterell and Aitana Infante August 27, 2024

The salad of fermented Black Barley with seasonal tomatoes makes a perfect summer's day lunch served with a crunchy green salad and  a slice of toasted sourdough to mop up the sensational juices. Use the tastiest tomatoes you can get your hands on and try experimenting with different grains - mixed grains are delicious but note that cooking lighter grains with black barley will turn them all black!

Sarah Cotterell and Aitana Infante have written lots of excellent recipes for us including Chickpea Miso, Elderflower & Lemon Tart with a Rye Crust and Carrot Cake with Poppy Seeds, Ginger & Turmeric Yoghurt Icing. We also sell their brilliant cookbook A La Mesa.

Recently Sarah and Aitana have been experimenting with fermentation:

"We’d often heard of people soaking grains and legumes before they ate them but beyond reducing the cooking time we didn’t quite understand why. So we began to investigate. Grains and legumes contain a compound called phytic acid which binds with zinc, calcium, iron and magnesium, meaning the absorption into our bodies of these essential nutrients is blocked. By fermenting grains and legumes before you cook them, the phytic acid is broken down, making them more nutritious and easy to digest. And it couldn’t be simpler…all you need to do is soak the grains or pulses in water for a few days. The ‘pre-digestion’ process will be even faster if you add some live cultures to the soak, such as a splash of kombucha, whey or sauerkraut liquid or something acidic like vinegar or lemon juice. This process also reduces cooking time and the amount of water needed, it just requires a little forward planning.

"In the same way, you can soak nuts and seeds to make them more nutritious and easier to digestive. As above, we soak the nuts of seeds in water with a splash of live cultures for a few days. Strain well and either let dry on a clean tea towel or if you prefer, dry roast them in the heavy-bottomed pan, before storing in an airtight container. We tend to soak nuts and seeds in small batches and repeat throughout the week as they can go a little soggy in big batches."

Serves 4 to 5

Ingredients

  • 400g Black Barley
  • A splash of live cultures, such as whey, kombucha or something acidic like lemon or vinegar
  • A few handfuls of good quality Tomatoes; a selection of colours, shapes and sizes works best
  • 1 to 2 Shallots, peeled & finely sliced
  • 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar (tarragon or fig leaf infused vinegar would be very special here)
  • Sea Salt & freshly cracked Black Pepper, to taste
  • A large handful of Fresh Herbs such as tarragon, basil, yarrow & oregano
To Serve
  • Drizzle of Tahini
  • Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
  • Oregano or Type Flowers
  • Calendula Petals

Method

  1. Pop the barley into a suitably sized clean jar or plastic tub and cover with plenty of fresh water (ideally unchlorinated), along with the live culture or lemon/ vinegar. Put on a lid and pop somewhere cool and out the way.
  2. After two days, drain the grains and discarding the soaking liquid.
  3. Now cook the grains, pre-fermenting reduces the water needed and cuts the cooking time by half. Add the drained grains with an equal amount of water and a pinch of salt to the rice cooker and set to pressure-cook. Or, if you prefer, boil the grains in a saucepan with cold water until soft but still with a bite, drain and rinse the grains under cold water.
  4. Meanwhile, slice the tomatoes into wedges or quarters, depending on their size, and pop into a mixing bowl.
  5. Add the shallots, a good glug of olive oil, a splash of vinegar and a good pinch each of sea salt and black pepper. Mix well, letting the shallots soften in the juices.
  6. Add a pinch of salt and a drizzle of oil to the cooked grains, mix well and pile into the middle of a serving plate.
  7. When you’re ready to eat, gently fold two thirds of the herbs through the tomatoes and then spoon everything on top of grains, making sure you use all of the juice, as it’s full of flavour.
  8. Finish with the rest of the herbs and any or none of the toppings as you fancy.
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