This barley salad with herb vinaigrette is a great way to use up left over veggies and grains. Add some meat and it becomes a great lunch or dinner option.
1cupCooked Pearl Barleyor brown rice, white rice, wild rice, quinoa
¾cupChopped Vegetablessweet corn, bell peppers, cucumber, onions
1cupChopped Lettuce
Instructions
Rub chilli powder, pepper and salt on both sides of the chicken breast and let it sit for 10 minutes. Heat olive oil in a pan and cook the chicken breast on medium high heat for 4 minutes on each side or till the internal temperature registers 165F. Once cooked, let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
For the vinaigrette, pulse all the ingredients together in a food processor or mixer grinder till almost smooth. You should be able to see small speckles of the green goodness.
Toss the barley, chopped vegetables and lettuce with two tablespoons vinaigrette. Then add the sliced chicken and pour more vinaigrette on top. You may be left with some vinaigrette which can be stored in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Serve cold or warm.
Notes
Cooking Barley: To cook Barley, combine water and barley in a 3:1 ratio in a pot. Season with salt. Bring this to a boil and then reduce the flame. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes approx. Add more water in between if necessary. Drain any excess water once its cooked.
Make this vegetarian: To make this salad vegetarian, swap out the chicken for paneer, roasted potatoes, portobello mushrooms, cauliflower steaks or tofu.