Hulled barley won't sprout. Hulled barley means the hull has been taken off. Hulled barley does not mean the hull is still on the barley. The barley must be unhulled to sprout. To the left is what hulled barley looks like.
I guess that is not a real well known fact. Because not only did the local grain supplier not know that hulled barley means hull removed not hull intact and that it therefore won't sprout, but neither did the barley grain suppliers in California. And surely, neither did I. I am sure many have experienced this barley not sprouting problem.
To the left is what unhulled, whole barley seed that is perfectly equipped to sprout looks like - with embryo completely intact ready to burst out and sprout.
OK, so just why won't hulled barley sprout? Well according to the very helpful barley expert who holds his PhD in Cereal Science...
Only Unhulled Barley Will Sprout
When barley is pearled or hulled, an abrasive mill (pearler) is used to remove the outer coverings of the grain (seed).
With hulled barley, the "husk" is removed. Hulled barley is also sometimes called "blocked barley". Barley retains the husk at harvest, whereas with wheat the husk would thresh free at harvest.
The husk is very high in silica (as in sand) and it makes the whole barley seed somewhat gritty and abrasive...not real palatable.
To the left is a picture of pearled barley. With pearled barley, both the husk and portions of the bran are removed. This leaves mainly the endosperm (starch and protein).
Hulled barley would be higher in insoluble fiber because there is still some bran. Pearled barley is lower in insoluble fiber because the bran is removed.
Both pearled and hulled barley are a pretty good food source of soluble fiber. The soluble fiber in barley comes from beta-glucans, and these are found in the endosperm along with starch and protein. Barley actually has a "heart healthy" claim or endorsement from the FDA...just like oats. This is because of the beta-glucans.
But going back to the barley to answer the "Why is my barley not sprouting?" question. The hulled barley will not sprout or germinate because it has no embryo (germ). The embryo is broken off in the milling process. This is true of both the hulled and the pearled barley. That's right, hulled barley and pearled barley will not sprout.
To be able to germinate or sprout the barley, you must use the whole barley seed. It cannot be pearled barley or hulled barley. Since the seed has been altered and its embryo removed, no sprouting will occur.
This is an easy mistake to make. The consumer never actually sees barley seed. Again, this is because the husk is removed to make it edible. I think if you asked the average person what barley grain looked like, they would pick pearled barley. That's because they see it in soup or in the box of Quaker barley one finds in the supermarket.
Now that I solved my barley not sprouting problem, looks like I will be making lots of barley soup with my 10 gallon bucket of hulled barley grains!
OK now, to solve your barley not sprouting situation, just buy the whole, organic, unhulled, complete in its entirety, barley seed.
Well played Dr. you win this time...
