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Salad

Barley Salad with Corn and Peas

A barley salad with corn, peas, tomatoes, celery, scallions, dill, olive oil, lemon juice, and optional feta cheese.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Tomato and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Barley Salad with Corn and Peas

Time40 to 45 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the barley

  1. Bring 2 1/2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan.

  2. Add barley, reduce heat, and simmer covered until barley is tender and water is absorbed, 40 to 45 minutes.

  3. Remove pan from heat and let barley cool to room temperature.

Assemble and serve

  1. In a large bowl, combine barley with remaining ingredients except feta cheese, and mix well.

  2. Serve at room temperature or chilled, with feta on the side for garnish if desired.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

682Calories
22 gProtein
26 gFat
101 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 11 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Barley1 cup cooked (157g)193
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Feta Cheese1 oz (28g) cheddar113
Corn1/2 cup kernels (82g)77
Pea1/2 cup (72g)62
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Plum1 medium (66g)30
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Celery1 stalk (40g)6
Dill5 sprigs fresh (1g) / 1 tsp dried4

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Tomato + olivetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Celery + dilltop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together382 recipes

    Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

  3. Tomato + celerytop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,377 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  4. Barley + corntop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together128 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  5. Corn + tomatotop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,099 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Pearl barley
Provides chewy, bulky body that holds its texture when cooled.
Fresh corn
Adds sweetness and juicy texture to the salad.
Plum tomatoes
Contribute moisture and acidity that brighten the salad.
Olive oil
Adds fat that carries flavor and coats the grains.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity that balances the sweetness of the corn and peas.

The step that matters

Simmering the barley. Barley must simmer covered until tender and all water is absorbed. Lifting the lid or removing the pan early leaves the grains firm and wet, and the salad then tastes gritty and watery.

Swap the plum

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (barley, corn, peas, tomato, celery, dill, olive):

  1. Avocadofits better
  2. Limefits better
  3. Lemonfits better
  4. Plumthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against barley, corn, peas, tomato, celery, dill, olive. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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