Beef and Barley Soup
This hearty beef and barley soup is an easy one-pot meal loaded with tender beef, wholesome veggies, and tender barley. It's a classic cold-weather favorite that improves in flavor as it rests in the fridge, making it a perfect prep-ahead dinner for a busy weeknight.
Ingredients
- 3 pounds beef stew meat trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons olive oil + 3 tablespoons for the vegetables
- 8 cups beef stock
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 medium carrots chopped
- 3 celery ribs sliced
- 2 medium parsnips peeled, halved, and cut into 1/4inch thick slices
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 russet potato peeled and diced
- 1 cup pearl barley
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Pat the beef dry with paper towels so it browns well. Add the olive oil to a large pot over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the beef in batches and brown on all sides, about 4 - 5 minutes. Do not overcrowd the pot or the beef will boil rather than brown. Repeat as needed, transfering the browned meat to a clean plate lined with paper towels to drain.
- Remove the pot from the heat and wipe out any excess oil with a paper towel. Return the pot to the burner and drizzle in some of the beef stock. You can use it to deglaze the pan, lifting up the browned bits with the back of a spoon as it simmers.
- Return the beef to the pot and then pour in the remaining stock. Add the Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Stir and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
- While the meat is cooking, add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, parsnips, and onion. Stir and cook until just softened, about 5 minutes. Season the veggies with salt, pepper, and thyme. Remove the skillet from the heat and wait for the soup to finish its first simmer. Then scrape all the vegetables from the skillet plus the cubed potato and barley to the pot.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer. Cover it again and cook until the barley and meat are tender, another 45 - 60 minutes. If the soup starts to become too thick during this last simmer session, you can add more water or stock to loosen it up. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed.
- Serve the soup with a sprinkle of parsley and chunks of fresh bread.
- This soup improves as it rests overnight. Be sure to cool it before storing in the refrigerator. It will thicken up with time so have some additional beef stock or use a splash of water to thin out the broth when you reheat it.
Recipe Notes
Crockpot Cooking Variation
To get the most flavor from the beef and vegetables, you would still want to brown the beef and saute the veggies but you can build the soup in a slowcooker. Brown the beef as instructed and add it to the bowl of a 6 - 8 quart slowcooker. Then saute the veggies as instructed and add them on top of the beef. Add the beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, salt, and thyme. Stir everything together. Then add the potato and barley and stir. Cook on LOW for 7 - 8 hours or on HIGH for 4 - 5 hours or until the beef is fork tender and the barley is fully cooked.