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Some sources seem to suggest that they are not, some suggest that they are but they are treated/processed differently.

I want to know if they are fundamentally the same grain, because they are very similar when prepared.

For reference:

Whole bulgur:

enter image description here

Whole (pearled) barley:

enter image description here

turnip
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    Where did your picture fit "whole bulgur" come from? Bulge by definition isn't whole – Chris H Jul 17 '18 at 09:20
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    Please, supply sources. And no, they are not the same. – roetnig Jul 17 '18 at 09:34
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    @ChrisH: The picture appears to be from a California grain distributor, sold as ["whole-kernel organic bulgur."](http://sunnylandmills.com/portfolio-items/whole-kernel-organic-bulgur/) – Michael Seifert Jul 17 '18 at 14:09
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    @MichaelSeifert I'm not familiar witht he US, but in the bits of Europe, I know "whole kernel bulgur" is a contradiction. The usage at Wikipedia (link in my answer) matches what I'm familiar with, so I wonder if the question has a hint of "what's this strange bulgur?" about it – Chris H Jul 17 '18 at 14:15
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    There are very high quality a wikipedia pages on barley and bulgur. What kind of research have you done to answer your question? – user2705196 Jul 17 '18 at 14:16
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    @ChrisH: I'm from the US, and I had never heard of "whole-kernel bulgur" before reading this question either. – Michael Seifert Jul 17 '18 at 14:34
  • Yeah, your first photo isn't bulgur, no matter how the merchant labelled it. – FuzzyChef Jul 17 '18 at 17:51
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    There's some flour mills here on the West Coast with the irritating practice of labeling cracked wheat as "bulgur". Bob's Red Mill does this as well. – FuzzyChef Jul 17 '18 at 17:52

1 Answers1

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No. Bulgur is (almost always) made from wheat while barley is a different species.

Bulgur is cracked and parboiled before sale, while pearl barley has had the outer layers of the barley grain removed but is otherwise intact.

Chris H
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    Pedantic nitpick: Bulgar is parboiled and then cracked. If cracked first it would have enough liberated starch to make a porridge when parboiled instead. I only mention this in case someone wants to make it at home. – Sobachatina Jul 17 '18 at 16:31
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    Bulgur is wheat, genus *Triticum*. There are several other forms of the same plant, such as Farro, Kamut. Spelt is also a cultivar of wheat. Barley is genus *Hordeum*. Note that Buckwheat is not wheat either: it is genus *Fagopyrum*. – Lee Daniel Crocker Jul 17 '18 at 19:41