This delicious beef and barley soup is warm, satisfying and surprisingly light. It’s a perfect winter soup as we head into the new year.
The soup is loaded with veggies, flavorful beef chunks and tender, plump barley.
It’s absolutely delicious!
There’s a nice boost of fiber from the pearl barley in this beef and barley soup, but I have a surprisingly hard time finding pearl barley (or any barley) in the grocery stores around here. It’s weird! If you have trouble finding it too, you can always get some at Amazon.
What is pearl barley?
Pearl barley (or pearled barley) is barley that has been processed to remove some or all of the outer bran layer and hull. This enables it to cook much faster and it tends to be more tender and less chewy than hulled barley.
To ensure my stew beef is fork-tender, I cook the beef in the instant pot for about 30 minutes.
While the beef is cooking, I chop and cook the veggies and add the remaining ingredients to my stockpot. Then when the beef is ready, I add it along with the remaining liquid to the stockpot, bring it all to a boil and let it simmer covered for an hour or so.
If you don’t want to use stew beef, you could absolutely make this with ground beef as well. Just brown it and set aside before cooking the veggies.
Pin this beef barley soup recipe to Pinterest!
BEEF AND BARLEY SOUP
Beef and Barley Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean beef stew meat
- 7 cups water
- 7 teaspoons beef bouillon divided
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 carrots chopped
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- ½ green pepper chopped
- ½ sweet onion, chopped
- 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup pearled barley uncooked
- ¾ cup spicy tomato juice may substitute regular tomato juice
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Add 2 cups water and 2 teaspoons beef bouillon to Instant Pot. Stir together, then stir in beef stew meat. Cook on high 30 minutes. Release pressure. Set aside. Do not drain beef.
- Heat olive oil in frying pan. Add carrots, celery and green pepper. Saute 3 minutes. Add onions. Saute another 2 minutes or until veggies are softening.
- Add cooked veggies, barley, remaining 5 cups of water, 5 teaspoons beef bouillon, tomatoes, tomato juice, garlic powder, thyme, paprika and bay leaf to a large stockpot. Add cooked beef and drippings to the pot. Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered about 1 hour.
Nutrition
Enjoy!
Serve the beef and barley soup with warm bread, hot biscuits or crackers. It would also be delicious served with these homemade dipping sticks.
You may also like some of my other hot and tasty soup recipes.
Creamy Vegan Cauliflower and Rice Soup
Slow Cooker Spaghetti Noodle Soup
Cheers to a hot bowl of soup!
