Bean Barley Salad -- The Soup That Rides Shotgun

June. Tyler turns fourteen tomorrow — June 1, 2021. My boy is fourteen, and fourteen looks like Dave at fourteen must have looked, which I can only imagine because I did not know Dave at fourteen, but I know Dave at forty-six, and Tyler at fourteen is Dave at forty-six reversed — the same face, the same hands, the same quiet confidence, the same smile that transforms the whole person. Tyler is growing into Dave. Tyler has been growing into Dave since the day he was born, and the growing-into is not imitation, it is inheritance, and the inheritance is in the bones and the grease and the smile.

Birthday dinner: Tyler's choice. He chose hamburgers, which is Tyler — not fancy, not complicated, just the thing he likes, done the way he likes it, without negotiation. Dave grilled. I made the fixings. Gayle brought the twenty-dollar card. The chocolate sheet cake was consumed in quantities that defy physics — fourteen-year-old boys and twelve-year-old girls and eight-year-old brothers eat cake in amounts that cannot be explained by stomach capacity alone. There must be an auxiliary stomach. A cake stomach. A Novak stomach, bred through generations of sheet cake consumption.

I hauled to Lincoln mid-week, an easy run. The slow cooker had beef and barley soup, which is a spring soup when the spring is cold and a summer soup when the summer is slow to arrive, and this June is slow, forty-five degrees on Monday, which is Nebraska's way of saying: do not get comfortable, do not assume warmth, do not trust June. I do not trust June. But I eat the soup and I drive the truck and the trust builds itself, meal by meal, mile by mile.

The beef and barley soup I had simmering that week in the slow cooker is the kind of meal that asks nothing of you — you start it in the morning, you drive your route, and it’s there when you come back, warm and unchanged, which is more than you can say for a Nebraska June. If you want something that carries that same barley backbone but works just as well cold or at room temperature — for a birthday spread, for a potluck, for a Tuesday that needs anchoring — this Bean Barley Salad is the recipe I keep coming back to. It’s the kind of dish Tyler would accept without complaint, which in our house is the highest possible praise.

Bean Barley Salad

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 cup pearl barley
• 3 cups water or low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 medium cucumber, diced
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

1. Cook the barley. Combine pearl barley and water or broth in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 40–45 minutes until barley is tender and liquid is absorbed. Spread on a baking sheet to cool completely.
2. Make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, salt, and pepper until well combined.
3. Combine the salad. In a large bowl, add the cooled barley, kidney beans, chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion. Pour the dressing over the top and toss gently to coat.
4. Finish and chill. Fold in the fresh parsley. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. For best results, refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld.
5. Serve. Serve cold or at room temperature as a side dish or light main. Keeps well refrigerated for up to 4 days.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 245 | Protein: 9g | Fat: 6g | Carbs: 40g | Fiber: 9g | Sodium: 290mg