According to what I find on the internet (I have not confirmed any of those other than the internet) the glycemic index for steel cut oats is 53 while the glycemic index for whole barley is about 25, depending on which chart you look at but, according to Livestrong:
Processed Barley
Livestrong
Pearled barley, which is not a whole grain since much of the outer bran layer has been removed, has a GI rating of 22 to 29. After boiling it for an hour, you’ll lose some more of the fibrous husk, and the GI goes up a bit to 35. Rolled barley flakes made from pearled barley, which are similar to rolled oats, can have a GI rating as high as 66.
Barley Kernels
Hulling barley only removes the rigid, inedible part of the husk, leaving the bran intact so that it is still a whole grain. The kernels that remain have a GI rating of 20 to 22, even after cooking. Additionally, once barley kernels are cracked in half, they’re no longer considered a whole-grain food. Cracked barley has an average GI score of 50, prepared or raw, which is still on the low end of the spectrum.
It appears that the GI for cracked barley is way more than that of whole cooked barley. You’re going to have to decide if you want to buy whole barley, crack it and use it instead of steel cut oats. I can say that for Vince, the barley does not spike his blood sugar the same as oats do.
Here’s how I cook it: I crack the barley on a very coarse setting on the grain mill. It seems to crumble a bit more than oats do and I end up with some of it being more like coarse corn meal so I sift that out and save it to use in cookies, brownies, add to cornbread, etc. I start with about 2 cups of water per half cup of cracked barley, add a bit of salt and simmer it until the water is almost all cooked out. Then I taste it and if it needs more water, I add a bit more, depending on whether it tastes like it needs a little or a bit more. Right at the end, I sometimes but not always add a bit of cream. That’s it. We add blueberries or backberries, sometimes apples.
Ming says
Hi Judy – I’m finding this information about barely quite interesting. I was wondering if you have ever thought of cooking the barley in the instant pot? I do it with steel cut oats and it’s great to not have to worry about them boiling over on the stove. 1 cup of oats, 2 cups of water on high pressure for about 4 minutes. I bet the barley could be done in a similar fashion.