Beef Barley Soup by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan
October 4, 2022
As soon as I start closing the windows, but before the heat goes on, I think of soup. Not the aromatic fish chowders of summer, nor the elegant cream soups of the fast-approaching holiday season. No, for me it’s the chunky, hearty Campbells soups of mychildhood.... except now I know that they taste so much better when I make them myself.
- Prep: 40 mins
- Cook: 30 mins
- Yields: about 6
Ingredients
1⁄2 cup pearl barley, rinsed
12-16 ounces beef top, flank, or sirloin steak
3⁄4 cup onions, finely diced
1⁄2 cup celery, finely diced
3⁄4 cup carrots, peeled and diced, 1⁄4” (from 3-4 whole carrots)
1⁄2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1-pound white button or cremini mushrooms
5-6 tablespoons canola or grapeseed oil, divided, plus more as needed
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (save juices for making a marinara)
1 quart (32 ounces) low sodium beef stock or beef bone broth
2 bay leaves
Kosher salt & fresh ground black pepper to taste
Garnish: oyster crackers (optional)
Directions
Mise-en-Place: Gathering and Prepping all your ingredients Rinse the barley and cover it with 2 cups of cold water in a pot. Add a pinch of kosher salt. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes to partially cook. Drain, rinse and set aside. (We have partially cooked the barley so it won’t take longer to cook than the soup itself and to control the amount of liquid it absorbs during cooking.) Cut the beef into 1⁄4-inch cubes. Season lightly with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper. Set aside. Dice the onions, celery, and carrots. Set aside. Rinse the mushrooms in a colander under cold running water and shake off excess water. Cut the stems flush with the caps and either cut the mushrooms in half or quarter them, depending on size. Set aside.
Build the soup
Grab a heavy soup or casserole pot and heat it gently over medium heat. Add 2-3 tablespoons canola or grapeseed oil and heat the pan with the oil until oil is ‘shimmering’ (NOT smoking!). Add 1⁄2 the diced beef and stir quickly to brown. Remove browned meat to a plate and finish cooking the remainder of the meat. Add more oil to the pot if you need to, to prevent sticking.
Add the mushrooms to the pot and sear to brown a bit. Season with salt and pepper. Scoop the cooked mushrooms out of the pot and set them aside.
Add the diced onions, carrots, and celery to the pot. Add a bit more oil if necessary to prevent sticking. Add a pinch of kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper. Stir to combine. Turn the heat to low and cover the pot. Allow the vegetables to cook for 8-10 minutes until softened and translucent. Add the dried thyme leaves. Stir to combine. Add the drained diced tomatoes. Stir to combine and cook for 5-10 minutes.
Add the rest of the prepared ingredients to the pot. Add the mushrooms, the beef, the par-cooked barley and the quart of beef stock. Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer. Add the bay leaves. Simmer the soup for 30-40 minutes or until it tastes good and the texture is neither too thick nor too thin!! Add more water or beef stock (or the reserved tomato water from the can of diced tomatoes) if needed.
Serve with lots of fresh cracked black pepper and crunchy oyster crackers.
