Black barley and turmeric cauliflower salad with caramelised golden shallot, goat's cheese and smoked almonds

So happy to discover that my favourite supermarket here in Adelaide stocks black barley!

I have seen recipe for black barley floating around the internet and I have been keen to get my hands on some. So a big thank you to Pasadena Foodland for stocking it! Barley is one of my favourite grains to cook with due to its nutty chewy texture so I new I would love black barley. Not only does it look amazing, black barley offers some pretty impressive health benefits being high in fibre and protein. 

A bit of research reveals that black barley is naturally hull less making it the only cereal grain that can go straight from the field to the plate with zero processing. This means less energy is required for processing lessening the environmental impact. How cools that?!

I went down a rabbit hole looking into the origins of black barely....totally fascinating to me! It's only recently been cultivated in Australia thanks to marine biologist Roger Duggan and a small samples of seeds from a university seeds bank! The good news it is now grown here in Australia. And I am happy to report it's as good as I hoped. I can't wait to create more recipes with it, so watch this space if you like barley as much as me!

For my fist experiment with this exiting new product, I couldn't go past a good old grain salad. There are a million variations of grain salads out there and with good reason, they are filling and delicious. During my catering days I usually had to stick with quinoa or another gluten free grain as so many clients wanted their food to be gluten free friendly. So I am very excited that I no longer have to worry about that and can use as many glutenous grains as I like! Hello farro, spelt, barley and freekeh! 

If you are gluten free, you can of course swap out the black barley for quinoa or a variety of rice. Or if you can't access black barley, use normal barley or one of he grains mentioned above. Either way it will be yummy. Just make sure you make enough for leftovers the next day!

I hope you enjoy making this salad as much as I did. 

Xx Ruby

Black barley and turmeric cauliflower salad with caramelised golden shallot, goat's cheese and smoked almonds

Serves: 4 as a side salad or 2 as a main

Dietary guide: This recipe is vegan if using vegan goats cheese. To make it Gluten Free, replace the barley with a gluten free grain such as quinoa or black rice.

Ingredients

A large handful (about ¾ cup) of small golden shallots peeled

2 sprigs of thyme 

1 tablespoon of white wine

2 teaspoon of sugar

¼ cup of olive oil (approximately)

¾ cup of black or regular pearly barley

1 Massel “chicken” stock cube 

2 ½ cups of cauliflower cut in to small florets 

1 teaspoon of turmeric

1 teaspoon of curry powder 

½ a teaspoon of salt

2 tablespoons of chopped spring onion

½ a cup of smoked roasted almonds 

½ a cup of flat leaf parsley

½ a cup of other mixed herbs such as mint, fresh coriander or chervil

100g feta

For the dressing

2 teaspoons of American mustard 

2 tablespoons of lemon juice 

1 ½ tablespoon of olive oil

1 tablespoon of maple syrup 

1 large garlic clove (small if you don't love garlic)

½ a teaspoon of salt 

Pepper to taste 

Instructions

1. Bring the barley, 5 cups of cold water and the stock cube to boil in a saucepan. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the barley is al dente (about 30 minutes). Drain into a colander, place the colander back on top of the saucepan and place a lid over the top (this helps to dry out the barley). Let it sit for 15 minutes before transferring to a large mixing bowl to finish cooling.

2. Meanwhile, cook the shallots. Pre -heat the oven to 160°. Place the shallots (reserve 2) into a small baking tray along with the white wine, sugar, thyme, salt and pepper and a scant tablespoon of the olive oil. Roast for about 40 minutes stirring a few times. They are ready when all the liquid has evaporated and the shallots have started to caramelise. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool before adding to the bowl of barley. Finely slice the remaining 2 raw shallots and add to the salad. 

3. Mix the cauliflower florets, turmeric powder, curry powder and ½ a teaspoon of salt together in a mixing bowl. Pre-heat a large fry pan. Fry the cauliflower in small batches with a about a good tablespoon of olive oil per batch. Flip the cauliflower over as needed to brown both sides. When the cauliflower is nice and golden brown and crispy, transfer to a plate. Wipe down the pan and repeat until all the cauliflower is cooked. Let it cool before adding to the barley and shallots. 

4. Grind the garlic clove and ½ a teaspoon of salt up in a mortar and pestle (or a chopping board and the back of a metal spoon). When a rough paste as formed, add about ½ a tablespoon of olive oil and grind further into a smooth paste. Add the remaining salad dressing ingredients and mix well. Transfer to the mixing bowl with the salad ingredients.

5. Add the spring onions and fresh herbs and give the salad a really good mix. Taste and adjust for seasoning if needed. Just before serving, mix through the smoked almonds and feta (reserve a little for garnish). Transfer to a salad bowl/platter and scatter with the remaining almonds and feta and a little extra fresh herbs if desired.