Freekah gives this salad a hint of smoky flavour which I really like, but pearl barley is great here too.
Salad
| 1 cup | Pearl barley, or freekah |
| 1 | Lemon, finely grated zest, plus 1 Tbsp juice |
| 4 Tbsp | Olive oil |
| 1 dash | Runny honey, to sweeten |
| 4 handfuls | Salad greens, washed and dried |
| 2 | Lebanese cucumber, finely sliced |
| 1 | Spanish onion, or small red onion, very finely sliced |
| 1 handful | Flat leaf (Italian) parsley |
| 1 handful | Mint leaves, torn if large |
| 500 g | Lamb, left over from a roast, sliced (Main) |
| 1 drizzle | Pomegranate molasses |
Yoghurt sauce
| 1 cup | Mint leaves, finely shredded |
| 1 | Lemon, zested and juiced |
| 1 clove | Garlic, small, very finely chopped |
| 200 g | Plain unsweetened yoghurt |
Directions
To make the salad
- Place the pearl barley or freekah in a heavy-based saucepan and cover with water. Place over medium-high heat and bring to the boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.
- In a bowl whisk together the lemon juice and oil. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and sweeten with a little runny honey.
- Using a large platter or four individual serving plates, make a salad using the salad leaves, Lebanese cucumber, onion and herbs. Spoon on the pearl barley or freekah and drizzle salad with the lemon dressing. Place on the lamb and drizzle with a little pomegranate molasses. Scatter over the lemon zest.
- Serve with the yoghurt sauce (see below). Or you could finely shred the lemon rind and quickly blanch before scattering over the salad.
To make the yoghurt sauce
Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl, cover and keep in the fridge until ready