Despite what you might think, preparing whole grains is easy. Here are some of our tips.

We suggest you buy them in bulk – it’s cheap and you can usually find an interesting selection at your local health food store.

2. Pick Your Cooking Liquid

Sure, you can just use plain water. But for extra flavour, you can also try:

• Vegetable, beef, or chicken broth

• Canned or homemade soups (water them down a bit)

• Tomato juice

• Low-sugar fruit juice (e.g. apple juice for cooking barley)

• A little almond milk or coconut milk (nice with oats or brown rice)

• Fresh herbs or spices

• Salt and pepper to taste

3. Get Your Ratio Right

Most whole grains need more cooking liquid than processed grains such as white rice. Shoot for at least 2 parts liquid to 1 part grain. Often you will need 3 parts liquid. Check the grains part way through cooking and add more liquid if needed.

4. Soak ‘Em If Ya Got ‘Em

Soaking grains for a few hours or overnight will dramatically speed up their cooking time. It also makes the grains more digestible.

Pour the dry grains into a bowl, then cover with lots of water. Just before cooking, drain the grains and use fresh liquid.

This step is optional, but really helpful.

5. Boil, Then Simmer

Pour your dry grains (or soaked, drained grains) and cooking liquid into a pot with a lid. (Be sure to allow lots of extra space at the top – the liquid may bubble up a bit.)

Stir, then cover the pot and bring the liquid to a boil over medium heat.

Reduce heat to low and let the pot simmer until the grains have absorbed the liquid. (Check it periodically – you don’t want the grains to burn!) Each type of grain cooks at different speeds, so keep an eye on the pot if you’re trying a new type of grain.

If you’ve put in a little too much liquid, simply drain off the excess.

6. Serve and Enjoy

At this stage, you can also stir in flavourings such as:

• Fresh herbs or spices

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Hot sauce or salsa

• Curry paste

• Fruit and nuts

Use your imagination!

7. Save For Later

Cooked grains keep well in the fridge for a few days. Make extra, so you have quick and convenient additional portions for later.