Nomina cereal porridge. That is the name of each one of our Nominal porridges. The word “cereal” might sound completely trivial to some, but others might get lost in the forrest of various cereal cereals. We have had a number of our customers asking for the cereal porridge. When we explained that all of them were cereal, both sides could have a laugh about it. Without further ado, cereal is a synonym for grain. And there is a large variety of grains available.

Botanically speaking, grains belong into the poaceae family. They are grasses. Their fruits are beads of various shapes and sizes ranging from the large corn grain to the tiny grain of Williams lovegrass or teff. Certain grains can be processed in their wholegrain form using their husk layers and sprouts for consumption, some cannot (millet for instance). Some grain husks are simply not edible. 

If you want to get to know some of the grains used in our porridges, read our article series.

We will start with barley.

Barley is an ancient grain crop which has been used in human diets for a long time. And when I say ancient, I mean it, because barley is one of the first grains cultivated for human consumption. We cannot be surprised by findings as old as ancient Egypt and other ancient cultures around the globe. It is a well documented fact that barley was the food of gladiators and soldiers. Barley porridge was a standard part of diets providing strength. And not only porridge. Barley decoctions served as formulas for infants, for strengthening the sick and those in recovery. The fact is that wheat has pushed barley into the position of animal feeding grain and into beer and whisky production (barley malt). However, as many other of our ancestors’ grain crops, barley is going through a period of renaissance nowadays. You will not find it only as pearls in black pudding or stewed vegetable dishes, but also baked products with barley content have been gaining in popularity. It remains one of the world’s most consumed grains. A testament to the prominence of barley in ancient cultures was the use of its grain as a unit of weight measurement or payment.

Barley fibre, potassium, folate, vitamin B content and the absence of cholesterol - these are the factors contributing to our cardiovascular health. The barley fibre has both soluble and insoluble content. Barley has a unique feature with its fibre being contained in the entire grain and not only in the husk layers. Dietary intake of insoluble fibre, of course, promotes the digestive tract function, helps prevent constipation and reduces the risk of developing intestinal cancer. Soluble fibre helps lower the blood cholesterol levels and contributes to glucose absorption ofter eating making it significant in preventing the type II diabetes. There is a significant carbohydrate part of the insoluble fibre called the beta-glucans. These are not completely unknown to the general public nowadays with many people consuming them in the form of pearl oyster mushroom extract        used for strengthening the immune system. Beta-glucans are now being subjected to various studies researching their beneficial effects on human health.

No food can be considered a remedy by itself, but you can do a lot for yourselves by organising you diet carefully. Barley should definitely be a part of a balanced diet (as long as other health factors do not prevent it). You can eat for example černý Kuba (a traditional Czech dish) or porridges with barley content for breakfast (Nomina cereal porridge - barley, multigrain and outdoor). 

Source: Renesance ječmene www.socr.cz