You don’t need a silver fork to eat good food … Check This Amazing Recipe: Asparagus with pearl barley and bacon

How to Make Asparagus with pearl barley and bacon

Preparation time:

less than 30 mins

Cooking time:

30 mins to 1 hour

Serves:

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the sauce

• 300ml/10fl oz chicken stock
• 100ml/3½fl oz single cream
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the pearl barley

• 30g/1oz butter
• 1 shallot
• 225g/8oz pearl barley
• 50ml/2fl oz white wine
• 800ml/1 pint 8fl oz chicken stock
• 2 bunches English asparagus
• 60g/2¼oz bacon lardons
• 85g/3oz cooked and shelled broad beans
• 3 tomatoes

Method

1. For the sauce, add the woody ends of the asparagus stems to the chicken stock and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for another five minutes. Blend the mixture and pass through a sieve into a clean saucepan. Add the cream and season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

2. For the pearl barley, melt the butter in a saucepan and fry the shallot for one minute without colouring. Add the pearly barley and cook for a further minute.

3. Add the wine to the mixture and bring to the boil, then add 325ml/11fl oz of the stock and return to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until all of the stock has been absorbed. Add another 325ml/11fl oz of stock and cook for a further 20-25 minutes, or until the barley is tender. (You may need to add a little more stock.)

4. Meanwhile, cut 4cm/1½in of the tips from the asparagus and set aside. Slice the remaining stems at an angle.

5. Cook the asparagus tips in boiling salted water for 2-3 minutes, drain and refresh in salted ice water then drain again.

6. Fry the bacon lardons in a frying pan for one minute, or until golden-brown

7. Stir the sliced asparagus stems into the barley and cook for a further 3-4 minutes. Stir in the bacon, broad beans, asparagus tips and tomatoes.

8. To serve, froth the sauce with a hand blender. Spoon the barley into deep serving bowls and pour over the sauce.