Mushroom Beef Barley Soup

It’s very cold here.  Soup is once again required.  I made a batch of  Mushroom Beef  Barley Soup and let it cook in the slow cooker overnight a couple of days ago and then made the trip to Chapel Hill where my daughter goes to school and made a soup delivery.   She says she like to eat it for breakfast!  It’s warm and fills her up till she gets back from her classes.  Whatever works!

I usually will make a large roast beef and save the extras in the freezer to make this soup.  You could also buy some beef stew meat and brown it to add to this recipe as well. 

Here’s the recipe:

Mushroom Beef Barley Soup

1 medium onion, diced

1/2 cup carrots, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

1 package (8 oz.) mushrooms, sliced

1 pound of beef stew meat or use some leftover roast beef

2 cartons of Beef Broth (32 oz.)  I used 1 carton of Beef Broth and 1 carton of Vegetable broth. 

1/2 cup barley

1 Bay Leaf

1/4 tsp dried Thyme

salt and pepper to taste  

 

Saute the onions, celery, and carrots in a large pan over medium high heat with a little olive oil.   Stir till soft and the onions begin to caramelize.   Move mixture to the crock pot.

Add the mushrooms to the pan with a little bit more olive oil and a little bit of salt and pepper and cook till they soften and brown.  Move the mushrooms to the  slow cooker.  If  you are using fresh beef stew meat, brown the meat in the pan with a little bit of olive oil.  Move the browned meat to the slow cooker. 

Deglaze your pan with a little bit of the broth or use some leftover white wine.  Pour that mixture into crock pot.  Add both cartons of broth.  Add the barley, bay leaf and thyme.  Add just a little salt.  You can always add more later. It all depends on how salty your broth is.  Add black pepper.  Stir and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for approximately four hours. 

  

This can be done on the stovetop as well.   It’s the barley that thickens this soup up so nicely.  And it’s good for you too!