Recipe: Mushroom Barley "Risotto"

Source: Kidd, Kristine.  Risotto: Collected Recipes from Williams-Sonoma.  Time Life Books, New York, 2000 p. 40

First, let me apologize (mostly) for the quotation marks.  Don't let them put you off this recipe.  I'm a little conservative in some ways, and to me a real risotto needs to involve, well, rice.  Barley is not rice.  It is a very tasty grain, with a unique flavor, and I so enjoyed this dish that I went back for seconds.  You should absolutely make this dish for yourself (and five of your friends, or family members, or strange guys you've met in your office, or whatever.)  I just feel a little funny calling it risotto. 

The original version of this recipe seemed to want to be a main dish, and honestly you could get away with serving it as a main dish as I've presented it here.  The original wanted some seared portobello mushrooms to be served with this, along with a basil chiffonade.  I always intended to serve this as a side dish, and so I omitted the seared portobellos.  I omitted the basil because my basil had already gone bad by the time I got around to making this, unleashing a stream of silent profanity.  I also used baby Bellas instead of crimini (because of price and availability), peccorino instead of Parmesan (ditto), and mushroom broth in place of vegetable broth (I thought it would give a stronger mushroom flavor, and was I ever right.) 

Mushroom Barley "Risotto" (Serves 6; approx.  $1.48/serving)

6 1/2 cup mushroom broth

1 1/2 tablespoon butter

1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil

4 shallots, coarsely chopped

1 10-oz package Baby Bella mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

2 1/4 cup pearl barley

3 ounces Peccorino Romano cheese, grated

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Equipment:

• Medium saucepan
• Large saucepan

1. Warm the broth in the medium saucepan over low heat.  Keep the broth warm throughout the recipe. 
2. Melt the butter with the oil in the large saucepan over medium-low heat. 
3. Add the shallots and saute until translucent.
4. Add the barley and stir another 30 seconds.
5. Stir in 4 1/2 cups warm broth.  Bring to a brisk simmer and keep it there. 
6. Cook the barley, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. 
7. Stir in the remaining 2 cups stock and continue to simmer, stirring frequently, until the barley is tender and creamy, another 15 minutes or so.
8. Add the cheese and stir until completely absorbed.  Remove from heat, season with kosher salt and black pepper to taste (I used a lot of pepper!), and serve. 

Technorati Tags: Recipe,vegetarian recipe,Williams-Sonoma recipe,barley,mushrooms,peccorino romano,mushroom broth

Comments

[noobcook]

risotto is something that I wanted to try for a long time. I think barley adds a nicer touch than rice which is our staple here hehe