Pearl barley has one of the lowest glycemic responses of any grain thanks to its beta-glucan fibre, making it a far kinder risotto base than arborio rice.
45 min
Serves 4
Low-GI
Vegetarian
low GI
Nutrition per serving
390kcal
15gprotein
52gcarbs
12gfat
11gfibre
Ingredients
1 cup pearl barley
400g mixed mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 cups vegetable stock
1/3 cup grated parmesan
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
Black pepper
Method
Warm 1 tbsp oil in a wide pan and fry the mushrooms hard until deeply golden, then set aside.
Add the remaining oil and soften the onion and garlic for 5 minutes.
Stir in the barley and thyme, then add the stock a ladle at a time, stirring, for about 30 minutes until tender.
Return the mushrooms, stir through the parmesan, and season generously with black pepper.
Tips & swaps
Barley stays pleasantly chewy — do not wait for it to go as soft as rice.
A splash of the mushroom soaking liquid from dried porcini deepens it enormously.
Keeping it
Keeps 3 days. Loosen with stock when reheating.
Track what it does for you
Whether a meal helps is personal. PCOS Ai logs what you eat alongside your symptoms and cycle, then shows which foods line up with how you actually feel — from your own data, not a generic list.
General wellness information, not medical or dietetic advice. Nothing here diagnoses, treats or cures PCOS. Nutrition figures are per-serving estimates. Check with your doctor or a registered dietitian before making significant changes — especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, diabetic or managing a food allergy.