Wednesday, February 26, 2025

Barley-Veggie Soup

 On a cold fall or winter day, my Dad used to make two soups fairly regularly. One was the grand Oxtail Soup (yes there's his recipe on Memaws Cookbook) a warming oxtail soup that contained barley but was rather expensive (even more now since meat has gone up so!) And the other was a hearty, healthy variety using the less expensive ground beef. I prefer the latter, to be honest. Mostly because it cooks much faster. But every time I make it, I remember those days growing up.

  • 1/2 lb lean ground beef
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup sliced celery
  • 1/2 cup sliced carrots
  • 1 clove minced garlic
  • 5 cups water or beef broth (you can go with no salt added)
  • 2 beef bouillon cubes OR 2 packs sodium-free beef Herbox
  • 1 14oz can cut up whole tomatoes (you can go with no salt added) drained
  • 3/4 cup quick-cooking barley (you want to keep this on hand in the pantry!)
  • 1/2 tsp dried basil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 small bag of frozen mixed vegetables (note: you can opt for frozen green beans or fresh, I cannot eat whole kernel corn so that's my option.)

  1. In a large pot, brown the meat, do not drain
  2. Add the onion and garlic and cook slightly until the onion is tender (just the onion) and drain off excess water and grease if any.
  3. Stir in everything else BUT your frozen veggies.
  4. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Bring the heat up a little.
  6. Add in the frozen veggies and cook another 10 minutes or until done.
  7. If the soup gets too thick, just add more water/beef broth.

You can make this ahead but I wouldn't thin the soup until right before serving. Just add more broth/water and heat up to temp.

Alternative recipe:

When I was a kid my dad made beef and barley soup. I have the original recipe but it isn't exactly diabetic friendly so I healthified it AND made it a little easier and more affordable to make.

  • 6 cups, Chicken Broth, Unsalted
  • 3 stalks Celery Rib, chopper or thinly sliced
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 8 baby carrots sliced
  • 0.75 cup, Quick Barley (3/4 cup)
  • 14.50 wt. oz, No Salt Added Diced Tomatoes
  • 1/2 lb 93% ground beef

  1. Brown the burger and drain off the excess fat, leaving a little bit of the fat in the pot, removing the burger
  2. Add in the carrots, celery and onion and sautee on medium until the carrots are barely fork-tender
  3. Add in your seasonings (your choice but I used pepper, Italian dry seasonings and a little bit of Hungarian paprika for kick)
  4. Stir and cook on low until fragrant
  5. Add in your broth and the tomatoes with the juice
  6. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer
  7. Add in your barley and the hamburger and simmer until the barley plumps (it just takes a few minutes!)
  8. Serve hot




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