Spring Grain Salad

Spring Grain Salad

Cooked whole hulless malted grains are a delicious source of fiber and nutrients, and a refreshing alternative to rice or pasta for hot or cold dishes. Order them in bags of 1.5#, 27.5# or 55#. Experiment by combining smoked and unsmoked grains. Meanwhile, support your local market by sourcing produce from Rineer Family Farm at Rittenhouse Farmers Market, B & H Organic Produce at Malvern Farmers Market, or Bleiler’s Produce Patch at West Reading Market.

Yield: about 14 individual servings, or 3 1/2 batches per bag

serves 4 as a lunch main course or dinner side

Ingredients:

• 1 c/200g whole pale triticale malt (substitute pale wheat, spelt, or rye malt)
• 2c cut fresh spring vegetables (e.g. radish, hakurei turnip, asparagus, spring onions), briefly grilled before cutting if desired
• 1/2 c chopped or torn herbs (dill, basil, oregano)
• 1/4 c sunflower or pumpkin seeds
• 1/3 c Susquehanna Mills sunflower or canola oil (sub any high quality cold-pressed oil)
• 1/8 c Keepwell Vinegar (e.g. malt or sorghum molasses)
• Salt, pepper to taste

Instructions:

Cook the grains: cover grains in a pot with 2x their depth in water. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, cook for about 40 minutes, and taste for texture. The grain should just barely pop in your mouth. Once cooked, remove from the heat and carefully pour contents into a colander or through a strainer over a sink, and rinse with cold water.

Alternatively, cook in a rice cooker following measurements and time for brown rice. Once cooked, turn out into single layer and chill while preparing the rest of your ingredients.

Coat seeds with a small amount of oil and salt and briefly toast. Meanwhile, prepare a simple vinaigrette with the oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Toss both with the  cooled grains, vegetables, and herbs, and taste for seasoning.