This tomato, barley and bean stew is thrifty, hearty and flexible

My friend Jordan Smith is a jack of all trades at Edy s Grocer in Brooklyn. He works catered events, develops and bakes many of the pastries that are...

My friend Jordan Smith is a jack of all trades at Edy’s Grocer in Brooklyn. He works catered events, develops and bakes many of the pastries that are sold every day, makes the focaccia for the dinner menu, keeps the sourdough starter going and also bakes things for big catering orders, including wedding cakes.

Jordan’s busy schedule means that, when he gets home from work, he is, like many of us, tired, pressed for time and eager to make a meal that is affordable and hearty, and that won’t take forever to cook. When I asked him whether he would share one of his dinner go-tos for this column, I was so pleased when he sent over this recipe for Barley Stew With Tomatoes, White Beans and Cabbage. He told me that "lately I’ve been making a lot of quick braises using whatever ingredients I have around,” but added that the base of the braises is always the same: olive oil, garlic, cherry tomatoes. From there, he adds various types of beans, vegetables and grains, making the whole thing the ultimate mix-and-match meal.

Slightly spicy, this substantial one-pot vegan dish is made with garlic, harissa, tomatoes, cabbage, beans and barley. Everything stews together to become a rich sum of its parts. What’s more, it’s a framework you can use to create your own version of the dish. Switch up the grains and use rice or quinoa instead of barley (adjust the cooking time accordingly) or serve the cabbage and bean stew over pasta (regular or gluten-free). Don’t have cabbage but have a bunch of kale that’s past its prime? Use that instead. Love spice? Add more harissa. Prefer things milder? Dial back the harissa or skip it. Want a different bean? Go for it. Have a can of diced tomatoes you want to get rid of? Use those instead of the fresh cherry tomatoes. This is a recipe that invites creativity.

This is flexible cooking - comforting, inexpensive, nourishing cooking. The kind of thing we all yearn for at the end of a long day, whether, like Jordan, you had to make hundreds of brownies, or you had a similarly large task to complete. And, of course, you did.

Barley Stew With Tomatoes, White Beans and Cabbage