Home
Premium
Mushroom barley ‘risotto’

Two bowls of mushroom barley ‘risotto’

Mushroom barley ‘risotto’

Name: Mushroom barley ‘risotto’
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 20g dried porcini mushrooms; 3 tbsp flavourless oil such as sunflower or vegetable; 300g chestnut mushrooms sliced; 1 large onion finely chopped; 4 garlic cloves crushed; 4 thyme sprigs; 2 tbsp butter; 250g pearl barley; 120ml white wine; 800ml vegetable or beef stock; 3 tbsp crème fraîche; 40g parmesan or vegetarian alternative, finely grated; ½ lemon juiced

Ailsa Burt

Save recipe

Serves 4

Easy

Prep: 20 mins

Cook: 1 hr and 30 mins

A star rating of 4.5 out of 5.4 ratingsRate

loading...

Swap rice for pearl barley to make risotto - you’ll have great texture and flavour without the effort. Add mushrooms for deep umami notes

Vegetarian

Skip to ingredients

Alternatives

Complete the dish

Showing items 1 to 3 of 3

Waste-nothing loaded potato wedges

A star rating of 3.4 out of 5.6 ratings

Pear & yogurt spelt cake

A star rating of 4.8 out of 5.8 ratings

Tahini miso noodles with crispy broccoli & sausages

A star rating of 4 out of 5.22 ratings

Ingredients

Nutrition

Units:

MetricUS

20g dried porcini mushrooms
3 tbsp flavourless oil

such as sunflower or vegetable
300g chestnut mushrooms

sliced
1 large onion

finely chopped
4 garlic cloves

crushed
4 thyme sprigs
2 tbsp butter
250g pearl barley
120ml white wine
800ml vegetable or beef stock
3 tbsp crème fraîche
40g parmesan

or vegetarian alternative, finely grated
½ lemon

juiced

Keep the screen awake with cook mode on the Good Food app.

Nutrition: Per serving

kcal543
fat24g
saturates10g
carbs57g
sugars6g
fibre4g
protein17g
salt0.6g

Method

step 1

Put the dried mushrooms in a heatproof bowl, cover with 500ml boiled water and set aside to soak. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large, wide pan over a high heat and cook the chestnut mushrooms until deeply browned, about 10 mins. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. Turn the heat down to medium and pour the rest of the oil into the pan, then stir in the onion with a pinch of salt. Cook for 6-8 mins until the onion is softened but not coloured.
step 2

Mix in the garlic and thyme, and cook for 2 mins more until fragrant. Turn the heat up to medium-high and tip in the butter and pearl barley. Stir to coat the barley in the butter, then pour in the wine. Let it bubble for a minute, and once it has almost evaporated, pour in the rehydrated porcini along with most of their soaking liquid. (Leave the last 50-100ml behind, as this will contain grit.) Pour in the stock and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 hr until the pearl barley is tender with a little bite.
step 3

Stir through the fried chestnut mushrooms, crème fraîche and most of the cheese. Season well with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Remove and discard the thyme sprigs, and serve with the remaining cheese scattered over the top.

Comments, questions and tips

Rate this recipe

What is your star rating out of 5?1 star out of 52 stars out of 53 stars out of 54 stars out of 55 stars out of 5

Choose the type of message you'd like to post

CommentQuestionTip

Overall rating

A star rating of 4.5 out of 5.4 ratings

Get 3 months of Good Food All Access

Get 3 months of Good Food All Access for just £6. Find triple-tested recipes that take the stress out of deciding what to cook, spend less time planning, and more time enjoying the season.

Subscribe now