Reviewed: Jan. 23, 2011

What caught my attention for this recipe were the ingredients. I love barley. But I thought that it was a bit bland. I was disappointed that the meat seemed overdone. My brother-in-law who is a wonderful cook, said that the cooking time should of been less or cooked on a lower heat for a longer time. I wish I would of done this and added more seasonings. I did make the leftovers into a wonderful soup the next day. The meat tasted so much more tender.

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Reviewer:

barbarapott

Reviewed: Nov. 29, 2009

FAMILY LOVED IT. My husband quickly went back for seconds. I used Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream only because I had it on hand.

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Reviewer:

Kopo

Reviewed: Nov. 20, 2009

Very good. Pretty much stayed w/the recipe. Just added a touch of wine.

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Reviewer:

jude

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Punta Gorda, Florida, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 4, 2009

This was just OK.

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Reviewer:

MISTICAT57

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: West Palm Beach, Florida, USA

Reviewed: Feb. 20, 2009

I made this recipe for the first time today and we all loved it. My 22 month old ate her entire portion and asked for more. And, I hate barley and cannot believe I finally found a recipe using it that I will eat! I made one change, I added a can of cream of mushroom soup to it. That really helped with the flavor and consistency of the gravy.

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Reviewer:

CSTorma

Reviewed: Feb. 14, 2009

this was my first time using pearl barley, so i was quite interested to see how this turned out and if my b/f would actually like the barley bit. (he can be fussy.) :) chuck roast isn't so common in the netherlands, so i used chuck roast steaks (better known as sukadelapjes in .nl). worked fantastically. i used chestnut mushrooms instead of white, 4 toes of garlic, 400ml beef stock plus 100ml red wine, and just 1 tsp of salt. no problems with the barley being undercooked or not enough gravy. everything was perfect. served with crispy roasted potatoes, and the b/f gave it 5 stars. a winner. :)

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Reviewer:

rua

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Kilkenny, County Kilkenny, Ireland

Living In: Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Reviewed: Oct. 17, 2008

Excellent meal, all in one pot - I love dishes like this. I did alter it somewhat, used extra garlic & sprinkled the top of the roast with steak seasoning, also added more broth because of earlier comments. I simmered the roast for an hour, then added the barley for the 2nd hour. Consistency was perfect. I found that I didn't have peas, so I sliced up a little zucchini in the sauce after the roast was done & simmered 10 minutes - oh, and didn't add the sour cream as I don't think it was needed. Good stuff! Thank you.

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Reviewer:

love2cook

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Pierre, South Dakota, USA

Reviewed: Aug. 28, 2008

Very tasty! I made some minor adjustments given the reviews and ingredients I had. I used 2 6 oz cans of sliced mushrooms instead of fresh and I used 24 oz. of beef boullion instead of canned broth. Next time I will only use 1 can of mushrooms or use fresh. I also don't think you need 2 cans of broth. After 45 mins, the barley was done but there was way too much liquid so I had to turn up the heat, and cook without the lid for about another 20 mins or so to reduce the liquid. I also didn't add the peas, just steamed some green beans on the side.

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Reviewer:

mommy2

Cooking Level: Expert

Reviewed: Feb. 25, 2008

I have to agree with the previous reviewer - my barley cooked WAY longer and soaked up all the liquid. Unfortunately, the barley and veggies burned a little bit because of that. I was so disappointed because I was really looking forward to a fantastic meal. By the time I tasted the gravy and meat, I knew I didn't want to add peas or sour cream. I steamed some asparagus instead and thickened the gravy with some cornstarch and water and served over mashed potatoes. The meat itself was absolutely wonderful - tender but not "soupy" and that's why it gets 3 stars. I will make this again but with more broth and start the barley earlier.

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Reviewer:

Endiqua

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: Sep. 16, 2007

I gave this 4 stars because the taste was GOOD and I will be making it again ... with changes. First of all, the barley did NOT cook for just 45 minutes... it took at least double that time and by then all the liquid was cooked out of it (or sopped up by the barley?)so I had absolutely no gravy to put on the roast. Next time I'll use 2 cans of broth and just plan for longer cooking time. The other thing I will do differently is NOT put the peas in at the end. Serve peas as a side, but do NOT put it in. It just "cheapened" the otherwise delicious meal. Like I said, with my changes I will be making this again!

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