Barley with Candied winter melon drink recipe

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When you've eaten too much fried food or you have a sore throat, this barley drink will help cool down your body. Chinese has a lot of old fashion drinks that will help something with our body. Whether this is true or not, it’s still a tasty drink to have everyday.
Chinese culture has a lot of food and drink remedy and I'm thankful I can try so many different things. When I'm feeling  "heaty" I like to eat grass jelly. I wish I knew how to make it, but I buy the can instead.

A lot of people will eat the barley and winter melon. Once cooked, the barley will become soft and fluffy. Depending on the barley you buy, it can affect the colour of your barley drink. There’s a big and small shape barley. Over time, I now prefer to cook with the smaller barley as it takes less cooking time and the water is more white. When I use the bigger barley the water is more brown, like the picture in this post.

Once cooked and cooled down, you can bottle the barley water which keeps chilled in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Over time I’ve tried different barley. There’s big and small ones and so many brands. I’ve settled on Ayam Pearl Barley. It’s nice and small, and once cooked, the barley grows only a little big. I find that the big barley grows too big once cooked. You can buy the Ayam Pearl Barley from Asian grocer or from Amazon.

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Barley with Candied Winter Melon Drink Recipe

SERVINGS: 1.8 litres
PREP TIME: 2 mins | COOK TIME: 30 mins | TOTAL TIME: 32 mins

Ingredients

• 200 grams Barley Pearls
• 100 grams Candied winter melon
• 2 Litres of water
Below items are optional. It depends on your taste.
• 50 grams Rock sugar (or can use white/brown sugar), to taste
• 2 Pandan leaves, to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
2. Rinse and soak barley for 30mins, then drain. This is optional: Can put the barley straight in the cooking pot instead of rinsing.
3. In a medium pot, boil the water.
4. Once the water is boiling, add all the ingredients. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until barley pearl has soften.
5. Turn off heat. It can be served hot, at room temperature or chilled. Scoop the barley water into a jug or cups and throw away the remaining ingredients.

NOTES

1. You can add more water if you want a thinner drink.
2. If barley isn't soft, continue to boil longer until soft.
3. You can add the winter melon in the last 5 mins, once barley is cooked.
4. Can store in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Have fun making the recipe?

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