Pearl Barley Meatballs

Pearl barley is actually barley grains that have been polished ('pearled') to remove the tough outer bran, and not, as it sounds, the name of the brassy landlady of your local pub. After tiny pasta stars, pearl barley is my absolute favourite starchy non-essential addition to soups and stews. The reason tiny pasta stars won out is because they only take about ten minutes to cook, whereas pearl barley will set you back at least 45 minutes.

But since I like it so much I've started cooking it in big batches, then adding the pre-cooked grains to anything that takes my fancy. So far I've sprinkled it on salads, mixed it into chilli, and had it on its own with some chicken stock for a very quick and easy lunch. Really you can use it anywhere you might use other starchy staples, like rice or potatoes.

Extreme Close-up: Whooooooa!!

Potatoes, you say? Potatoes, exactly. So, if I would usually use something starchy like breadcrumbs or grated potato to bind something, like, oh I don't know, meatballs, I could use pearl barley instead? I don't know, Creepy Inner Voice, but let's find out!

To make about 20 meatballs, you will need:

400g lean minced lamb or beef (the pictures below are with beef, but lamb is tastier in my opinion)
150g cooked and rinsed pearl barley
1 small onion, finely diced
Salt, pepper, any other seasoning

Mix everything together using your hands. It's messy but thorough. Form the mix into balls using your hands or a spoon, or one spoon and one hand.

Shallow fry in batches in a large frying pan until browned all over. Don't move them around too much to start off with or they'll stick and fall apart.

Serve any way you see fit. Tomato sauce works well. I had mine in pitta bread with salad and tziki.

The pearl barley here gives a really interesting textural dimension to meatballs, and they soak up a lot of juice so they don't go too dry. Thanks, Creepy Inner Voice, you've saved the day again!