Uncooked Barley Water

A steeped rather than boiled barley water, from the era when such drinks were carried to the sickroom by the jugful. It is simple, but a few details in the original assume a kitchen that no longer exists.

• Pearl barleyStill sold under the same name and unchanged: barley with the hull and bran polished off. Pot barley and hulled barley retain more of the bran, and quick-cooking barley is pre-steamed; all will behave differently from what the original assumes, which is pearl barley.
• Washing matters hereThe grain is not cooked and the steeping liquid is what you drink, so rinse the barley in a sieve under cold running water until the water runs clear, as the original directs.
• The quart jugAn American quart is 32 fl oz, near enough a litre. A quart of water over two tablespoons of barley is a very light infusion by modern standards; the result is faintly starchy and barely sweet, closer to flavoured water than to the thick boiled barley waters of British nursery cookery.
• Lemon peel"A thin piece" means peel pared with a knife or vegetable peeler, coloured zest only and no white pith, which turns bitter over a long steep. One strip two or three inches long is enough for a quart. Use an unwaxed or well-scrubbed lemon.
• Cork and shakeA modern equivalent is a lidded jar or a bottle with a swing top. The shaking disperses the sugar and salt.
• Overnight standingSteep it in the refrigerator rather than on the counter. A starchy grain slurry held at room temperature for eight or ten hours is exactly the conditions cereal spoilage organisms like, and cold steeping costs nothing in flavour.
• Strain and keepThe original does not say so, but strain the liquid off the barley through a fine sieve before serving. Drink within two days, refrigerated. Yield is about four 8 oz glasses.