Corn and Barley Salad

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...If you're looking for something new to serve at your next picnic or barbecue, you might want to give this corn and barley salad a try. Barley is an underutilized grain in most of our diets. It's been cultivated for over 10,000 years, but was, for much of that time, considered to be animal fodder or the grain of the poor. It was brought to North America by English and Dutch settlers who used it to make their bread and, perhaps more importantly, their beer. The grain has a rich nutlike flavor with a texture that is similar to pasta and it can be purchased in pearled, hulled and flaked form. Pearled barley, the form we most use, is polished or pearled to make it faster cooking. In this recipe, it is combined with corn and other vegetables to give it sweetness, color and a bit of additional texture. This salad works really well with Southwestern-style meals and is a nice change from standard picnic fare. I used quick-cooking barley to make the salad I served last night, but if you are concerned with nutrient loss, and time is not an issue, other forms of barley can be used. This makes a really nice salad. Here's the recipe.

Corn and Barley Salad...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:

Salad

1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth

1/2 cup quick-cooking barley

1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped

3/4 cup frozen corn, thawed

1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper

1/4 cup chopped seeded peeled cucumber

2 green onions, thinly sliced

Dressing

2 tablespoons canola oil

4 teaspoons cider vinegar

1 garlic clove, minced

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon chili powder

Directions:

1) Bring broth to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in barley. Reduce heat, cover pot and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes , or until tender. Cool.

2) Combine tomato, corn, red pepper, cucumber, onions and barley in a large bowl.

3) Whisk dressing ingredients together in a small bowl. Pour over barley mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Yield: 5 servings.