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Barley and black-eyed pea salad
Sunday, October 11th 2026

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Barley and black-eyed pea salad

This photo provided by Fine Cooking magazine shows Barley and Black-Eyed Pea Salad, which has an herby lime vinaigrette to drizzle over a layered salad ofbarley, tomatoes, corn, scallions, roasted yellow peppers and black-eyed peas.The earthy flavors and textures of grains make delicious ingredients in salads, recipe developer John Ash says, and they're also nutritious _ and ideal for vegetarians. The recipe is from the June-July issue of "Fine Cooking" magazine.
This photo provided by Fine Cooking magazine shows Barley and Black-Eyed Pea Salad, which has an herby lime vinaigrette to drizzle over a layered salad ofbarley, tomatoes, corn, scallions, roasted yellow peppers and black-eyed peas.The earthy flavors and textures of grains make delicious ingredients in salads, recipe developer John Ash says, and they’re also nutritious _ and ideal for vegetarians. The recipe is from the June-July issue of “Fine Cooking” magazine.
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The earthy flavors and textures of grains make them star ingredients in salads, food writer and recipe developer John Ash says. Plus, they’re delicious, to say nothing of nutritious – and ideal for vegetarians.

Look no further than Ash’s barley and black-eyed pea salad that’s among the offerings in the June-July issue of “Fine Cooking” magazine.

The recipe includes an herby lime vinaigrette to drizzle over a layered salad of barley, tomatoes, corn, scallions, roasted yellow peppers and black-eyed peas.

“I like the flavor and texture of frozen black-eyed peas,” Ash writes, “but you can also use canned (rinse them well and don’t cook them). Be sure to buy pearled barley, which has been hulled and polished. Barley that isn’t pearled never really softens when cooked.

This recipe makes 6 to 8 servings as a side dish. It could also serve as a main dish, doubling serving size for three or four diners, if desired.

Barley and Black-Eyed Pea Salad

INGREDIENTS

For the vinaigrette:

  • 1/4 cup fresh lime or lemon juice

  • 1/2 teaspoon grated lime or lemon zest

  • 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

  • 2 teaspoons finely minced cilantro

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1/4 teaspoon honey

  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper

    For the salad:

  • 1/2 cup pearled barley

  • 1 1/2 cups rich vegetable stock

  • 1 cup frozen or canned black-eyed peas

  • 1 large yellow bell pepper, roasted, peeled and diced

  • 1 cup seeded and diced ripe tomato

  • 3/4 to 1 cup diagonally sliced scallions (white and green parts)

  • 1 cup cooked fresh (or thawed, frozen) corn kernels

  • Green- and red-leaf lettuce leaves (optional)

    DIRECTIONS

    To make the vinaigrette: In a small bowl, whisk together the lime (or lemon) juice, zest, garlic, cumin, cilantro, oil and honey; add salt and pepper to taste.

    To make the salad: In a dry saucepan, lightly toast the barley over moderate heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes, stirring to prevent burning. Add the stock, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer gently until the liquid is absorbed and the barley is tender, about 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, partially uncovered, until cooled to room temperature before stirring.

    Meanwhile, cook the peas in lightly salted boiling water until just tender but not mushy, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool, and set aside. (If using canned peas, don’t cook them, just rinse them well.)

    In a large (preferably glass) bowl, layer the barley, peas, roasted pepper, tomato, scallions and corn. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad and toss before serving. If you like, arrange the greens (if using) on serving plates and top with the salad.

    Makes 6 to 8 servings as a side dish.

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