Barley's been feeding humans for millennia, a favourite grain of the ancient Egyptians, the Roman gladiators, and the seafaring Vikings. Christopher Columbus brought barley to North America from Europe in 1493 and it has been cultivated here ever since.

It's most often used in soups and stews, where it serves as both a puffy grain and a thickener, but it also makes a nice side dish or salad.

Hulled barley
It is the most nutritious, since only the tough outer hulls are polished off.

Pearl barley
This is the most common form of barley, but not the most nutritious. While hulled barley loses only the thick outer hull in the milling process, pearl barley is stripped of the nutritious bran layer as well, leaving just the "pearl" inside. Despite this, it's still fairly nutritious and more popular since it's not as chewy as hulled barley. It takes just about an hour to cook.

Black barley
Ethiopian black barley is similar to pearl barley, only it has a black exterior.

Did you know...
A bushel of barley yields a bushel of malt, which in turn yields a barrel of beer, which is 333 bottles!

Nutritional Facts
Barley is an emerging health food, as it is an excellent source of dietary fibre, B-vitamins such as thiamin, riboflavin and niacin and protein. Barley also has a high concentration of total tocals - these are the compounds that reduce the production of LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol). They are also natural antioxidants that help to neutralize free radicals, which may reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease. The soluble fibre in barley flour may help regulate blood glucose levels in Type 2 diabetics.