Barley bread is a type of
bread
Bread is a staple food prepared from a dough of flour (usually wheat) and water, usually by baking. Throughout recorded history and around the world, it has been an important part of many cultures' diet. It is one of the oldest human-made f ...
made from
barley flour
Barley flour is a flour prepared from dried and ground barley. Barley flour is used to prepare barley bread and other breads, such as flat bread and yeast breads.
There are two general types of barley flour: coarse and fine. Barley groats are ...
derived from the grain of the
barley
Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...
plant. In the
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isl ...
it is a bread which dates back to the
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...
.
Today, barley flour is commonly blended (in a smaller proportion) with wheat flour to make conventional breadmaking flour.
Religious references
A loaf of barley bread features in a dream mentioned in : a
Midian
Midian (; he, מִדְיָן ''Mīḏyān'' ; ar, مَدْيَن, Madyan; grc-gre, Μαδιάμ, ''Madiam'') is a geographical place mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and Quran. William G. Dever states that biblical Midian was in the "northwest Ar ...
ite man
dreamt that "a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed"; Israelite leader
Gideon
Gideon (; ) also named Jerubbaal and Jerubbesheth, was a military leader, judge and prophet whose calling and victory over the Midianites are recounted in of the Book of Judges in the Hebrew Bible.
Gideon was the son of Joash, from the Ab ...
overheard an account of the dream and concluded that he was assured of victory over the Midianites.
Loaves made of barley feature in the story of the
feeding of the 5000 in
John's Gospel
The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "si ...
in the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...
().
It is often mentioned in
Islamic
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ma ...
sources as a commoner's food in comparison with wheat bread, perceived as a sort of luxury item. In the
Muwatta Imam Malik
The ''Muwaṭṭaʾ'' ( ar, الموطأ, "well-trodden path") or ''Muwatta Imam Malik'' ( ar, موطأ الإمام مالك) of Imam Malik (711–795) written in the 8th-century, is one of the earliest collections of hadith texts comprising the ...
(hadith 1700) it is narrated that Jesus the son of Mary used to say, "O Bani Israil! You must drink pure water and the green things of the land and barley bread. Beware of wheat bread, for you will not be grateful enough for it." Another narration from
Sahih Bukhari
Sahih al-Bukhari ( ar, صحيح البخاري, translit=Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī), group=note is a '' hadith'' collection and a book of '' sunnah'' compiled by the Persian scholar Muḥammad ibn Ismā‘īl al-Bukhārī (810–870) around 846. ...
(5413) gives a detailed comparison between sifted, fine flour and unsifted flour for making barley bread: I asked Sahl bin Sa`d, "Did Allah's Messenger ever eat white flour?" Sahl said, "Allah's Messenger never saw white flour since Allah sent him as an Apostle till He took him unto Him." I asked, "Did the people have (use) sieves during the lifetime of Allah's Messenger?" Sahl said, "Allah's Messenger never saw (used) a sieve since Allah sent him as a prophet until He took him unto Him," I said, "How could you eat barley unsifted?" he said, "We used to grind it and then blow off its husk, and after the husk flew away, we used to prepare the dough (bake) and eat it."
See also
*
Balep korkun
Balep korkun is a type of bread that is consumed mainly in central Tibet. It is round, flat and relatively easy to make. The ingredients are tsampa (barley flour), water and baking powder. It is cooked in a frying pan. It has been described as s ...
*
Bannock
*
Chalboribbang, a Korean barley pancake or "sticky barley bread"
*
Gyabrag, a Tibetan barley pancake
*
Malt loaf
Malt loaf is a type of sweet leavened bread made with malt extract as a primary ingredient. It has a chewy texture and often contains raisins. It is usually eaten sliced and spread with butter for tea. Malt flour is sometimes used to supplemen ...
*
Rye bread
Rye bread is a type of bread made with various proportions of flour from rye grain. It can be light or dark in color, depending on the type of flour used and the addition of coloring agents, and is typically denser than bread made from wheat ...
References
External links
Ancient barley bread
Barley
Barley-based dishes
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