Egg Barley - Tarhonya

by Daniel Rogov

For the Egg Barley:
10 heaping Tbsp. flour
1 egg
1 tsp. oil
1/2 tsp. salt

For cooking:
1 cup butter*
1 tsp. paprika
chicken stock as required
salt and pepper to taste

Put the flour on a large pastry board and make a well in the center of the pile.

Lightly beat together the egg, salt, oil, and 1 Tbsp. water. Drop this mixture into the well and work the mixture with the hands, folding the four over the egg mixture until the dough can be rolled into a ball. Knead this mixture by folding the dough over towards the body. Press with the heel of the hand and give a slight turn. Fold, press and turn again and continue this process until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Divide the dough into 2 balls and let stand, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Then grate the balls on the coarse side of a grater, letting the gratings fall on a clean towel. Continue to move the grater so that the dough spreads to one thin layer over the entire cloth. Let stand and dry for 6-8 hours.

Melt 3/4 cup of the butter in a large skillet. When thoroughly hot, add the grains, stirring with a wooden spoon to brown evenly. The finished grains should be barely browned. Add the paprika, saute for 2 minutes longer and then just cover with stock. Cover and simmer until the grains are soft (30-40 minutes). Drain whatever liquids remain. Add the remaining butter, toss, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve at once.

Serves 4-6.

* Note: If serving the egg barley with a meat-based meal, substitute parve margarine for the butter.

Daniel Rogov is the restaurant and wine critic for the daily newspaper Ha'aretz. He is also the senior writer for Wine and Gourmet Magazine and contributes culinary and wine articles to newspapers in Europe and the United States.