Barley and Herb Salad (Printer-Friendly)

Nutty pearl barley tossed with fresh herbs and zesty lemon vinaigrette for a light, refreshing dish.

# What You Need:

→ Grains

01 - 1 cup pearl barley, rinsed
02 - 3 cups water
03 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

→ Herbs & Vegetables

04 - 1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
05 - 1/4 cup fresh mint, finely chopped
06 - 1/4 cup fresh dill, finely chopped
07 - 1/2 small red onion, finely diced
08 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
09 - 1 small cucumber, diced

→ Dressing

10 - 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
11 - 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
12 - 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
13 - 1 garlic clove, minced
14 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
15 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

# How-To Steps:

01 - In a medium saucepan, bring water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil. Add barley, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 25-30 minutes until tender. Drain excess water and allow to cool to room temperature.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, combine cooled barley, parsley, mint, dill, red onion, cherry tomatoes, and cucumber.
03 - In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, salt, and black pepper until emulsified.
04 - Pour the dressing over the barley mixture and toss gently to thoroughly combine all ingredients.
05 - Taste the salad and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

# Helpful Hints:

01 -
  • It gets better as it sits, so you can prep it ahead and actually relax when guests arrive.
  • The barley gives you real substance without weighing you down, and the herbs make it feel fresh instead of heavy.
  • Every bite tastes different depending on what you get—sometimes you hit herb-forward, sometimes tomatoey, which keeps eating it interesting.
02 -
  • Don't dress this until right before serving if you're making it ahead, because the barley will keep absorbing liquid and it gets soggy; keep the components separate and toss just before people eat.
  • The dressing needs to sit on the barley for at least five minutes to actually flavor it, so patience matters more than speed here.
03 -
  • Make the dressing in a mason jar and shake it hard; you'll get a better emulsion than whisking by hand, and you can save the jar for later.
  • If you can't find fresh dill, don't substitute dried—just use extra parsley and mint instead, because dried dill tastes like nothing and will disappoint you.
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