Beef Barley Soup

One of my favorite grains is barley.  Fairly versatile, I can use it for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Eating sparingly and not overdoing it, barley can provide a tasty addition to any meal.  In the case of the recipe below, the Beef Barley Soup is an old world recipe.  If you do not care for the taste of turnips and parsnips, feel free to substitute other vegetables.  I’ve heard green beans and peas make a wonderful addition.  The dish is perfect for the cold weather of winter.

1 1/2 lbs of beef stew meat
2 lbs of beef soup bones and beef shoulder bones
2 large onion, sliced
3-4 carrots
1-2 white turnips
2-3 celery stalks
1 large or 2 medium leeks, sliced
1/4 cup of pearl barley
1/4 split green peas
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Freshly chopped parsley to garnish

Served 6-8

Put the bones and 1/2 of one of the onions, largely sliced, into a large pan.  Cover with cold water, season and bring to a boil; skim if necessary and let simmer covered for 1 1/2 – 2 hours or until needed.  Peel and chop finely remaining onions, peel and chop carrots and turnips, chop celery; and wash the leeks thoroughly and slice thinly.

Drain the stock from the bones and add enough water to broth to make 7 cups and return it to the pan with meat, onions, barley and split peas.  Season with Salt and pepper and bring to a boil, skim if necessary.   Reduce the heat, cover and let simmer for about half an hour.  Add the rest of the vegetables and simmer gently for an hour or so, until the meat is tender.  Check the seasoning and then serve is large bowls topped with chopped parsley.

About anj68

Alice uses cast iron pots and wooden utensils and keeps the recipes as close to the traditional recipe as possible. She even utilizes a fire pit located outside her home to test authentic recipes. For more information about Alice the Cook, visit her website at http://www.alicethecook.com In future blogs, I will offer recipes, kitchen hints, and historical cooking lessons.
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4 Responses to Beef Barley Soup

  1. Pingback: Grilled Grouse and Recipe Roundup | The Heavy Table - Minneapolis-St. Paul and Upper Midwest Food Magazine and Blog

  2. Addie says:

    When I searched for gluten free recipes this popped up tagged for it. Barely is not safe for a person with celiacs or an intolerance. Though it does sound wonderful.

  3. anj68 says:

    Thank you for letting me know. That has been corrected. A large majority of my recipes are GF (rice, rice flour, potato starch, etc.) and I am in the process of tagging them appropriately. I was misinformed. If you do find errors, please let me know and I will be more than happy to correct the oversight.

  4. Excellent write up and will be back one day. I’m apologizing for the long review but it’s my passion which makes me write educational reviews. Iron cookware like Iron Dutch Ovens has a lot of health benefits manily for people with iron deficiency. Iron is important for good health because it carries oxygen from the lungs, through the bloodstream, to the rest of the body. When people has low iron, oxygen is not circulating through their blood efficiently, and can cause the man to feel tired or can cause headaches. When a man has very low levels of iron in their blood, they are anemic. Females are more apt to have low levels of iron in their blood, as is athletes and those that drink a lot of coffee and tea.

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