Barley water is a traditional drink consumed in various parts of the world. It is made by boiling

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

grains in water, then (usually) straining to remove the grains, and possibly adding other ingredients, for example sugar.

Variations

* Kykeon (Gr. κυκεών - kykeōn, from κυκάω, "to stir, to mix") was an

ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

drink made mainly of water, barley and naturally occurring substances. It was used at the climax of the

Eleusinian Mysteries The Eleusinian Mysteries () were initiations held every year for the Cult (religious practice), cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Eleusis in ancient Greece. They are considered the "most famous of the secret rel ...

to break a sacred fast, but it was also a favourite drink of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

peasants. *Agua de cebada, in Spanish speaking countries, is made with malted barley, sugar and lemon. In

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

, however, this name is used to refer to a different drink that is bright pink and is now made with wheat or rice instead of the original barley. *The British version is made by boiling washed

pearl barley Pearl barley, or pearled barley, is barley that has been processed to remove its fibrous outer hull and polished to remove some or all of the bran Bran, also known as miller's bran, is the component of a Cereal, cereal grain consisting o ...

, straining, and adding fruit juice and sugar to taste, typically using

lemon The lemon (''Citrus'' × ''limon'') is a species of small evergreen tree in the ''Citrus'' genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae. A true lemon is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Its origins are uncertain, but some ...

. The fruit rind may also be boiled with the barley. The Robinsons' brand of the drink has been an official supplier to the Wimbledon tennis tournament and sponsored the event for over 80 years until 2022. *

East Asian East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

and

Southeast Asian Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia is ...

versions are typically not strained and may be consumed hot or cold, with or without lime. These kinds of barley water generally include the strained grain within the drink. Hot barley water is often served with a

spoon A spoon (, ) is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl (also known as a head), oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery (sometimes called flatware in the United States), especially as part of a table setting, place setting, it ...

and cold barley water with a

straw Straw is an agricultural byproduct consisting of the dry wikt:stalk, stalks of cereal plants after the grain and chaff have been removed. It makes up about half of the crop yield, yield by weight of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rice, ry ...

so that the soft-boiled grains can be eaten. * Roasted barley tea is also a popular East Asian drink. The roasted barley is strained and removed before drinking. *It is also a popular drink in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It is called jau ka sattu in Punjabi. Barley water has been used as a first baby food, before feeding with barley mush. It is also used as a home treatment that allegedly cures

cystitis A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection that affects a part of the urinary tract. Lower urinary tract infections may involve the bladder (cystitis) or urethra ( urethritis) while upper urinary tract infections affect the kidney (py ...

Nutrition facts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barley Water Barley-based drinks Non-alcoholic drinks English drinks

Variations

Nutrition facts

See also

References