# Crockpot Beef and Barley Soup

A pound of cubed chuck cooks 8 hours on LOW with pearl barley, carrot, celery and onion in a soup that holds six portions.

 

 

 

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## Crockpot Beef and Barley Soup

Recipe by Iren Pavlenko

 

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0.0 from 0 votes ** 

Course: Main CourseDifficulty: Easy

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

8

hours 

A pound of cubed chuck cooks 8 hours on LOW with pearl barley, carrot, celery and onion in a soup that holds six portions.

### Ingredients

- 1 lb beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 3 celery stalks, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3/4 cup pearl barley, rinsed
- 6 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp dried thyme

### Directions

- Season the beef with the salt and pepper.
- Brown the beef in the oil in a skillet for 5 minutes and move it to the slow cooker.
- Cook the onion for 2 minutes in the same skillet and add the garlic.
- Add the vegetables and barley to the slow cooker.
- Whisk the tomato paste into the broth and pour it in.
- Add the bay leaves and thyme.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours, until the beef is tender.
- Remove the bay leaves.
- Mash a spoon of barley against the side to thicken the soup.
- Taste for salt and portion into six bowls.

 

### Notes

 

Barley keeps absorbing liquid in the refrigerator, so thin leftovers with broth. Keeps 5 days and freezes for 3 months.

 

  

## Why the barley behaves

 

Pearl barley softens over eight hours and thickens the broth itself, so there is no need for flour. Mashing a spoonful against the pot wall gives a bit more body.

 

The beef is browned briefly first, which gives the broth a deep base.

 

## Crockpot Beef and Barley Soup: swaps

 

Mushrooms or parsnips can join the carrots. Beef stew meat works in place of chuck. Quick-cooking barley does not work here, since it turns to paste over this long a cook.

 

Hulled barley needs more time.

 

## Leftovers

 

Barley keeps absorbing liquid, so leftover soup turns thick like stew. Thin it with a splash of broth when you reheat. Serve with crusty bread. Freeze in portions, and add extra broth when warming.

 

## One mistake with barley

 

Using too little liquid in the leftovers. Barley keeps swelling in the refrigerator, and the soup turns into a thick stew. Add a splash of broth when you reheat, and taste for salt again, since the added liquid dilutes the seasoning.