Cookbook:Barley

Barley is a cereal grain used as a staple food.

Characteristics
When cooked, barley has a somewhat springy or chewy texture and a "nutty" flavor.

Barley is not considered gluten-free. Whilst it does not have the same form of gluten as wheat does, it has a protein called hordein that is equally harmful to people sensitive to gluten, including those with coeliac disease.

Varieties
Hulled barley has had the inedible hull removed, leaving the bran behind —this is typically considered a whole grain. Pearl barley has had the bran removed, and it is somewhat analogous to white rice. Barley groats can also be flattened like rolled oats.

Selection and storage
Barley will keep for a long time in an airtight container. Hulled barley may have a slightly shorter shelf life due to its bran, whose higher oil content can go rancid.

Uses
It is often used in soups, stews, and pilafs as in its hulled or peal forms. It can be malted and crushed for making beer and other malt products. It can also be ground to flour in its raw and malted forms for use in baking, where it primarily contributes flavor—barley breads tend to be flat and dense, and they stale faster.