Czech Christmas barley with mushrooms (Kuba)

1. Soak the dried porcini in 200 ml of lukewarm water (taken from the 700 ml) for 30 minutes. Rinse the pearl barley well in a sieve.

2. Bring the rest of the water to the boil in a pan, add the barley and salt and simmer covered over low heat for 30-35 minutes until tender and the water is almost all absorbed.

3. Lift out the mushrooms and chop finely; strain the soaking water through a sieve or kitchen paper (to catch any grit) and pour it over the barley.

4. Fry the finely chopped onion in half the butter for 8 minutes until golden, add the mushrooms and crushed garlic and fry for 2 minutes. Stir into the barley with the marjoram, caraway and pepper.

5. Preheat the oven to 180 °C. Spread the mixture in a buttered ovenproof dish, dot the top with the remaining butter and bake for 25-30 minutes until it has a crisp, golden crust.

6. Serve warm, on its own or with pickles; at Christmas it's a meat-free main dish.

Tip: Kuba is an old, humble festive dish of the Czech Christmas Eve, served on the fasting days before the fried carp – the mushrooms and garlic give it a "meaty" flavour, and the crust from the oven is the most coveted part.