Barley Mushroom Salad

We love this Barley Mushroom Salad in the summer time. Being able to make this wonderfully healthy salad in my instant pot has saved so much time!!

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One of the most difficult parts of my Trim Healthy Mama journey has been finding healthy carbs that don’t cause a spike in my blood sugar. I seem to be sensitive to brown rice and have to limit how often and my portions sizes when utilizing it for an energizing meal.

How Barley Mushroom Salad Fits Into My Journey to Trim and Healthy

 I can enjoy this salad warm from my Instant Pot Duo60 6 qt or chill it and eat it cold with salad greens and a light dressing. Fueling my body with healthy carbs ensures that I don’t get brain fog, tax my adrenals or mess with my thyroid.

I personally love that I can incorporate good for you budget friendly healthy carbs into my life without worry. You can find barley at your local grocery store or on Amazon. when I was shopping for it I started reading the labels and found that hull less barley is an ancient grain that has a great nutritional profile, better than hulled or pearled. So if you can find it, that’s the kind I would buy.

You can also make barley as the Creamy Grains recipe in the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook or this awesome Barley, Beans and Greens  from The Healthy Milestone which is also a great E!! 

Check out this “Poddy” podcast from the Trim Healthy Mama Authors to see why healthy grains as so important in your journey to trim and healthy.

 Cooking Barley and Other Grains In Your Instant Pot 

 
When cooking barley and other grains in your instant pot you want to make sure that you do NOT fill your liner more than 1/2 full. This is important for your safety and so that you don’t end up with a clogged vent or valve.

Grains swell and foam, you can minimize this by soaking them for 6-24 hours before cooking which also makes them on plan for THM’s like me. 

 
If you have questions about the capacity of your pot and why you should only fill it 1/2 full with these types of ingredients, this is a great article that explains it in depth.

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The Barley Mushroom Salad Recipe 

5 from 1 reviews

Barley & Mushroom Salad

 

Author: Judy

Nutrition Information

• Serves: 6

• Serving size: ½ cup
• Calories: 190

• Fat: 1g
• Carbohydrates: 37g
• Sodium: 141mg
• Fiber: 7g
• Protein: 9g
• Cholesterol: 0mg

Recipe type: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Prep time:  6 hours 5 mins

Cook time:  30 mins

Total time:  6 hours 35 mins

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Ingredients

How to Soak Your Barley

• ¾ cup Barley (I used Hull less)
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups water

How to Make the Barley Mushroom Salad

• 1½ cups Barley (that has been soaked for a mnimum of 6 hours)
• 1½ cups water
• 1½ cups low sodium chicken broth (or bone broth)
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms (I used baby bellas)
• ¼ cup onion (sliced)
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic

Instructions

How to Soak your Barley:

1. Place Barley in a colander and rinse well.
2. Put rinsed barley into a bowl or container with water to cover until 1" above. Allow Barley to soak for 6 to 24 hours before cooking.

Cooking Barley in the Instant Pot:

1. Rinse soaked barley and drain.
2. Place 1½ cups of grains into the inner liner of your instant pot. (DO NOT fill More than ½ full to allow room for grain expansion and possible foaming)
3. Add Chicken broth, water, mushrooms, onion and thyme.
4. Close and lock lid into place.
5. Put valve into the sealing postion.
6. Process on Manual high pressure for 25-30 mintes.
7. Allow to Natural Pressure Release. Do not Quick Release the preasure for grains due to safety concerns.

Cooking Barley on the Stove Top:

1. Cook Barley in a pot of salted water/broth for aprox 50-60 minutes until tender. Add mushrooms onion thyme and garlic during the last 5 minutes of cooking time. Strain and Reserve broth after cooking.

Notes

You can increase your broth by another 1-2 cups and this makes a wonderful soup.

3.5.3226