Lamb and Pea Barley Salad

This bright and vibrant dish celebrates the pure flavor of its ingredients like no other. Our tasty Lamb and Pea Barley Salad is loaded with tasty fresh flavors that compliment each other so well. The classic pairing of Lamb with Peas and Mint is at the forefront of flavors in this dish. We also add some amazing, blanched Asparagus and Pearl Barley to the dish, giving even more wonderful flavors and body to the dish. It’s a tasty meal that’s hearty enough to feed a hungry family, yet ridiculously healthy for you too

How to make Lamb and Pea Barley Salad

There are a few components to this dish and almost all of them fall into the preparation of the Salad. So, that’s where we’ll start with the recipe. The good news is the Salad is best served cold or at room temperature, so you can prepare it in advance and simply cook up the Lamb right before it’s time to eat

The ingredients in the Salad are Peas, Mint, Pearl Barley, and Asparagus. We also add some tasty seasonings and dressing to give the dish a luscious and vibrant flavor. What’s important about preparing this Salad is we want the ingredients to taste as bright and fresh as they can be, which requires a cooking technique known as Blanching

Blanching the Peas and Asparagus

Blanching is a cooking technique that requires you to place the ingredients in boiling water for a very brief period so that they begin to release all their flavors and turn a luscious bright green color. They are then removed from the hot water and immediately cooled, which helps to retain that amazing color and texture that you expect from fresh produce

For our Lamb and Pea Barley Salad you want to first cut up the Asparagus Spears into small pieces. Remove the very end of the Asparagus Stalks and then cut them on a 45-degree angle into small pieces. Then, bring a pot of water to the boil and season it with about 1 tsp. of Salt

Cooking the Asparagus and Peas

Place the Asparagus into the boiling water along with your Peas (frozen are more than fine, in fact they are the preferred way to prepare Peas these days) and cover, placing the pot straight back over a high heat

The water may not come back to the boil due to the cold vegetables being added (especially those frozen Peas). So, simply give them about 1 minute in the water and then immediately strain them using a large sieve then place the Vegetables straight into a large bowl of ice water

Ice water is best, but if you don’t have any ice then I find that a large bowl of cold water sitting in the sink will work fine. I like to run cold water over the bowl continuously to allow the temperature in the water to stay cool once the hot Vegetables have been placed in there

You’ll notice the Peas and Asparagus will have the more beautiful bright green color. This is a technique that so many fancy restaurants use to get the best visual presentation out of these humble ingredients

You can simply leave the Vegetables in the cold water while you prepare the Barley. Alternatively, you can make the Barley first to give it time to cool while you make the Veggies

Cooking the Barley

Making Barley is very easy, and most packs you can get from the grocery store will outline on the back how to cook it. It’s basically 1 cup of Barley to 3 cups of Water. Bring the Water to a boil in a saucepan then place the Barley (which you should wash and strain prior)

Then, drop the heat down to low and allow the Barley to simmer, uncovered, for 35 minutes until completely cooked. You will need to stir it every 5 – 10 minutes to keep everything cooking evenly, but that’s about it

Another popular ingredient to use instead of Barley is Farro. They both have amazing texture and flavor, and work perfectly in this Lamb and Pea Barley Salad. Some recipes call for the use of Stock instead of Water, which usually we’d advocate for. However, for this dish I find that Water works fine, and allows the flavor of the other Vegetables in the dish to shine

Finishing the Salad

With the Veggies done all you now need to do is chop up some Mint (about 1 ½ cups worth, just give it a rough chop) and add it to a large bowl with the Asparagus, Peas, and Barley. Then we make a classic and simple dressing of Olvie Oil and Lemon Juice with some Salt

Whisk the Salad dressing ingredients through in a separate bowl then set it aside / refrigerate until you are ready to serve. Then, just drizzle over as much as you like and mix it through the Salad. I recommend doing this right before serving to keep the ingredients as fresh as possible

What type of Lamb should you use for this recipe?

With the Salad done it’s time to move onto the Lamb to finalize this amazing Lamb and Pea Barley Salad. Lamb is a great protein to use as it pairs so well with Peas and Mint. You could however replace the Lamb with Beef, Pork, or Chicken and it’s still going to be a tasty and hearty dish

For the Lamb we recommend using a lean and tender cut, as it will be a lot easier to prepare and eat in the Salad. We use a Lamb Backstrap which is a wonderful Lamb cut. It’s hearty and flavorful, but has the tenderness and leanness to it that you’d expect from a Filet

Other cuts of Lamb you can use for this dish is Rump or Tenderloin. I recommend avoiding Lamb Leg or Shoulder as these are much better cuts for roasting, not pan-searing which we’re doing in this dish

Cooking the Lamb

To cook the Lamb just treat it like a Steak. Season it generously with Salt and then place it in a large frying pan over medium high heat with some Neutral Oil. Fry it for about 4 minutes on one side. Flip, drop the heat to medium and fry for 3 – 4 minutes until the internal temperature is around 110F

I like to serve Lamb medium rare, so once it’s at temperature (use a meat thermometer to be sure), set it aside for 10 minutes to rest before slicing. Cut the Lamb with diagonal cuts then place it straight on the top of a big bowl of the Salad and serve

Lamb and Pea Barley Salad Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 cups of Water
• 1 cup of Pearl Barley, washed and strained
• 1 ½ cups of Frozen Peas
• 8 Large Asparagus Spears, cut into small pieces
• 1 ½ cups of fresh Mint, roughly chopped
• 3 tbsp. Lemon Juice
• 3 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 14 oz / 400g Lamb Backstrap, Rump, or Tenderloin
• 1 tbsp. Neutral Frying Oil (Vegetable / Canola Oil)
• Salt
  
  

Instructions

1. Bring the Water to a Boil in a Saucepan then add the Barley and 1 tsp. of Salt. Drop heat to low and simmer for 35 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once cooked, set aside to cool
2. Place a large bowl of ice water in the sink then fill a large Saucepan with water, enough to allow the Peas and Asparagus to fully submerge
3. Add 2 tsp. of Salt to the Pot then bring it to the boil over high heat. Add the Asparagus and Peas, cover, and cook for 1 minute
4. Immediately strain the Vegetables then place them in the ice water to stop the cooking process
5. Once the Barley is cooled, place it into a Salad Bowl along with the Peas, Asparagus, and Mint
6. Place Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, and ½ tsp. of Salt in a small bowl and whisk well. Pour about half of the mixture over the Salad and mix everything through, adding more dressing if needed
7. Season the Lamb well with Salt on all sides then heat a large frying pan with the Oil. Once hot, place the Lamb in the pan and fry for 4 minutes on one side
8. Flip and reduce the heat to medium and cook for a further 3 – 4 minutes until the internal temperature of the Lamb is 110F. Allow Lamb to rest before slicing and serving over the Salad
   
   

Recipe Notes

• You can replace the Water with Vegetable Stock when cooking the Barley
• Add as much or as little Barley to the Salad as you like. More Barley will produce a heartier Salad, less will allow the other ingredients to have a stronger flavor
• Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the Lamb to ensure optimal doneness when cooking
  
  

This amazing Lamb and Pea Barley Salad is packed with fresh, vibrant flavors that work so well together. It’s a hearty dish that will feed a hungry family yet is also so healthy and delicious. It’s a recipe that is a great one to add to your rotation of home cooked meals for its simplicity and tastiness

For more tasty family meals just like this one, check out these delicious recipes:

• Ginger and Scallion Poached Chicken
• Thai Basil Beef (Gai Pad Krapow)
• Grilled Steak with Zhoug Sauce
• Halal Cart Chicken
  
  

Happy Cooking!