Chef Thomas
A Ploughman's Salad
The old pub ploughman's, shaken loose from its board and laid across butter lettuce with a sharp mustard dressing, for the kind of lunch that feels like you've given yourself the afternoon off.
Culinary Explorer
A cooking platform built around craft, culture, and the stories behind what we eat.
Pearl Barley Salad with Roasted Roots and Goat's Cheese
Created by Chef Thomas
Warm pearl barley tossed with sticky roasted carrots and parsnips, crumbled goat's cheese, and a sharp mustard dressing, the kind of bowl that makes an October evening feel like it's doing exactly what it should.
Salads
British
Weeknight
Make Ahead
15 min
Active Time
45 min cook•1 hr total
Yield4 servings
October. The clocks have gone back and the kitchen window is dark by five. The carrots at the market on Saturday were the size of my thumb, deep orange, the soil still on them. The parsnips were pale and solid, the first good ones of the season. I bought too many of both, which is always the right amount.
Pearl barley doesn't get the attention it deserves. It's a quietly splendid grain, nutty and substantial, with a chew that holds its own against roasted vegetables and sharp cheese. It cooks in the time it takes to roast the roots, and it soaks up a dressing without turning to paste the way couscous does. This is not a delicate salad. It's a bowl of food for a cold evening, the kind you eat with a fork and a glass of something red, leaning against the kitchen counter because the table hasn't been cleared yet.
The goat's cheese does the work you might expect cream to do, softening and melting slightly against the warm barley, catching on the sticky edges of the roasted parsnips. The mustard dressing is sharp enough to keep everything honest. Walnuts for crunch. Watercress for bite. We're only making dinner.
I wrote it down in the notebook last week. Barley, roots, cheese. Tuesday. Dark by five. That was enough to remember it by.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
pearl barley
Quantity
200g
carrots
Quantity
4 medium
peeled and cut into chunky batons
parsnips
Quantity
3 medium
peeled and cut into chunky batons
good olive oil
Quantity
3 tablespoons, plus extra for dressing
thyme
Quantity
a few sprigs
soft goat's cheese
Quantity
150g
flat-leaf parsley
Quantity
generous handful
roughly chopped
walnuts
Quantity
50g
lightly toasted and roughly broken
watercress or rocket
Quantity
2 handfuls
fine sea salt
Quantity
to taste
black pepper
Quantity
to taste
Dijon mustard
Quantity
1 tablespoon
cider vinegar
Quantity
1 tablespoon
runny honey
Quantity
1 teaspoon
lemon
Quantity
1 small
juiced
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| pearl barley | 200g |
| carrotspeeled and cut into chunky batons | 4 medium |
| parsnipspeeled and cut into chunky batons | 3 medium |
| good olive oil | 3 tablespoons, plus extra for dressing |
| thyme | a few sprigs |
| soft goat's cheese | 150g |
| flat-leaf parsleyroughly chopped | generous handful |
| walnutslightly toasted and roughly broken | 50g |
| watercress or rocket | 2 handfuls |
| fine sea salt | to taste |
| black pepper | to taste |
| Dijon mustard | 1 tablespoon |
| cider vinegar | 1 tablespoon |
| runny honey | 1 teaspoon |
| lemonjuiced | 1 small |
Equipment Needed
- •Large roasting tin (or two, to avoid crowding)
- •Medium saucepan for the barley
- •Wide serving bowl
Instructions
- 1
Cook the pearl barley
Rinse the pearl barley under cold water, then tip it into a pan of well-salted water. Bring to a simmer and cook for thirty to thirty-five minutes, until the grains are tender but still have a bit of bite to them. Not mushy. You want each grain distinct, with that pleasant chew that makes barley worth the trouble. Drain well and tip into a wide bowl while it's still warm.
Pearl barley swells to roughly three times its dry volume. Don't be shy with the water. Treat it like pasta, with plenty of room to move. - 2
Roast the roots
While the barley simmers, set the oven to 200C/180C fan. Scatter the carrots and parsnips across a large roasting tin in a single layer. They need space, so use two tins if you have to. Crowded vegetables steam; spaced-out vegetables caramelize. Pour over the olive oil, strip the thyme leaves from their stalks and scatter them in, then season well with salt and pepper. Toss everything together with your hands. Roast for thirty-five to forty minutes, turning once halfway through, until the edges have gone golden and sticky and the kitchen smells sweet and roasted.
Cut the roots into similar-sized pieces so they cook at the same pace. Parsnips roast faster than carrots, so make the parsnip batons slightly larger. - 3
Make the dressing
Whisk the mustard, cider vinegar, honey, and lemon juice together in a small bowl or jar. Add a good pour of olive oil, roughly twice the volume of the vinegar, and whisk again until it comes together. Season with salt and pepper. Taste it. It should be sharp enough to cut through the sweetness of the roots and the richness of the cheese. Adjust as you see fit. A recipe is a conversation, not a contract.
- 4
Bring it together
While the roots are still warm from the oven, tumble them into the bowl with the barley. Pour over the dressing and toss gently. Add the watercress or rocket and most of the parsley, folding them through so the leaves start to wilt just slightly against the warmth of the grain and the roots. Scatter the broken walnuts over the top. Crumble the goat's cheese in generous pieces, not too small, you want proper mouthfuls of it against the nutty barley. Finish with the last of the parsley. Serve while it's still warm, or let it come to room temperature. It's good either way.
Chef Tips
- •This is a salad that improves with a few minutes of sitting. Toss it together while everything is warm, then leave it for five or ten minutes before serving. The barley absorbs the dressing, the cheese softens, the flavours settle into each other. Patience costs nothing here.
- •Toast the walnuts in a dry pan over a medium heat, shaking them now and then, until they smell warm and nutty and have darkened a shade. It takes three or four minutes. Raw walnuts are bitter and dusty. Toasted walnuts are a different ingredient entirely.
- •If you can find it, a young, chalky goat's cheese works better than the aged sort. You want something that crumbles and melts into the warm barley, not something that holds its shape and fights back.
- •Beetroot, if you have some, roasts beautifully alongside the carrots and parsnips. It will stain everything it touches a magnificent pink. Some evenings, that's exactly what you want.
Advance Preparation
- •The barley can be cooked up to two days ahead and kept refrigerated. Bring it to room temperature or warm it gently before assembling.
- •The roots can be roasted a few hours ahead and left to cool. The salad comes together in minutes once the components are ready, which makes it a good thing to have in mind for a busy weeknight.
- •Dress the salad just before serving. The watercress wilts and the barley drinks up the dressing if left too long, which isn't a disaster, but it's better fresh.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 400g)
Calories
625 calories
Total Fat
34 g
Saturated Fat
9 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
22 g
Cholesterol
17 mg
Sodium
660 mg
Total Carbohydrates
68 g
Dietary Fiber
16 g
Sugars
11 g
Protein
17 g
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