Barley Mushroom Bake

By karenstl

This is a great "instead of potatoes" sidedish that I've served for years.Use beef broth and serve with steaks or pork tenderloin or use chicken broth to serve with grilled or roasted chicken.

Ingredients

• 1 cup medium pearl barley
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 large yellow onion, minced
• 1 cup coarsely chopped mushroom
• 3 cups beef broth (depending on what meat is served with this) or 3 cups chicken broth (depending on what meat is served with this)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Preparation

Step 1

1 Preheat oven to 350°. 2 Stir-fry barley in 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat for about 2 minutes, or until lightly browned. 3 Transfer to an ungreased 1 1/2-quart casserole. 4 Sauté onions in remaining butter until pale golden; add mushrooms and sauté 3-5 minutes longer; add to casserole. 5 Mix into casserole all other ingredients. 6 Cover and bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes until barley is tender, stirring every now and then. 7 Fluff with a fork before serving.

Note:
Use only 2 tbsp butter to toast barley. Cooked onions dry, then poured into casserole dish, then sauteed mushrooms with 1 tsp olive oil. Used beef broth granules and approx 1/2 tsp kosher salt. About 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper and went heavy on oregano and thyme.