Ground Beef & Barley Soup

We had our first frost of the season this morning. It is officially soup and stew season!  Hip Hip Hooray!  I love soups and stews, especially when they are as hearty as this Ground Beef and Barley Soup recipe is!

I had taken some ground beef out of the freezer last night before I went to bed. I was supposed to make a meal to take over to someone from my church who was feeling poorly today.  It ended up they were not there and so I had some beef that needed using.

 

 

I didn't really feel like making Chili or any kind of a casserole and so I went looking for recipes that I could use it in. I found this delicious sounding  Ground Beef & Barley Soup recipe on Closet Cooking.

I have known Kevin for years now. He makes the most delicious food. I knew that the recipe had to be a good one. I did not need a large batch of soup however and so I cut it down to make only 3 servings, knowing that I could eat one today and then freeze the rest in two (one serving) lots to enjoy another time.

 

What appealed to me as well was the fact that (other than the prep) this soup could be on the table in about half an hour!  Normally beef and barley soup requires much longer as you are using stewing beef in it which takes a long time to cook and tenderize.

The use of ground beef in this shortens the cook time considerably.  And if you use a really quality lean ground beef you won't even notice the difference between this and stewing beef.  Its delicious!

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE GROUND BEEF & BARLEY SOUP

Very simple store cupboard ingredients. I am thinking you probably have all of this in your kitchen right now!

• 1/2 pound ground beef (230g)
• 1/2 cup (26g) onion, diced
• 1/2 cup (25g) carrot, diced
• 1/2 cup (50g) celery, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/8 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 TBS tomato paste
• 3 cups (720ml) beef stock
• 1/2 (14.5 ounce/400g) tin of diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 cup (100g) pearl barley
• 1 bay leaf, broken
• 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 tablespoon parsley, chopped

 

My sister and I buy our ground beef locally at the farm market.  It is locally produced and sourced and is organic and grass fed.   It is exceptionally lean and good tasting. 

I would never go back to super market beef now. We are really spoiled with this. It is comparable to the ground steak that I used to buy at the local butcher's shop in the U.K.

Don't worry about using up the other half tin of tomatoes. You can freeze them in a small container and they will be ready for you to use in another recipe.

Feel free to use other vegetables as well as the carrots, onion and celery. Potatoes, cabbage, bell peppers and celeriac all go very well.

 

You can use the beef stock that comes in a carton, or you can use the beef stock that needs to be reconstituted with water. It is condensed, or you can use the stock that comes as a stock cube.  

I like the Better Than Bouillon stock bases. They are made with actual roasted meats.  I usually have the chicken one and the beef one to hand.  Like all soup/gravy bases, they can be salty and so do judge your seasoning accordingly.

 

Pearl Barley, or "Pearled" barley is something I always have in my cupboard.  It is barley which has been processed and polished to remove the outer hull as well as most of the bran. This makes it quicker to cook and is quite safe for people to eat.

If you don't like barley you could use rice or brown rice.  Both would work well. Personally I prefer the texture of barley over rice in soups.

 

HOW TO MAKE GROUND BEEF & BARLEY SOUP

Nothing could be simpler, faster or tastier!  This soup spells winner to me!

If your beef is really lean add 1/2 TBS of light olive oil to a large saucepan. Add the ground beef and cook, stirring until it is no longer pink and is beginning to brown. If your meat is fatty, drain off the fat, leaving about 1/2 TBS in the pan.

Add the onions, carrots and celery to the pan. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes until tender. Add the garlic and the herbs and cook for 1 minute longer. It should be very fragrant by now.

 

Add the beef stock, tomatoes, barley, bay leaf balsamic vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer.

Simmer, covered, over medium low heat until the vegetables and barley are tender. Remove bay leaf and season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Serve hot with crackers or crusty bread.

 

This was hearty and super delicious. I really enjoyed it. With lots of lovely chunks of vegetables and loads of chewy barley it went down really well.

  

I was quite full up after eating a bowl of this and I am really pleased that I will have two more servings of it in the freezer for me to enjoy at a later date!  Yippee!!

 

Some other soups in The English Kitchen that you might enjoy are:

ROAST CHICKEN SOUP, WITH BARLEY, PARSNIPS & CABBAGE -  This is one of my favorite chicken soups.  It contains all the things I love. Chicken, some of my favorite vegetables and hearty barley. For this delicious soup I combined my own homemade stock, pearl barley, grated parsnips, and cabbage with perfectly delicious results.  You can use ready made stock as well if you want.  Prepare to fall in love!

ROOT VEGETABLE SOUP - A really enjoyable vegetable soup made with simple root vegetables.  Celeriac, carrots, potatoes, onions and rutabaga/swede.  All in a delicious stock. You could also add parsnips if you wanted to. This soup is proof positive that it is the simple things in life that bring us the most pleasure!

Yield: 3 servings

Author: Marie Rayner

Ground Beef and Barley Soup

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 40 Min

A quick and easy version of a delicious and hearty soup. No need to wait hours for this one to cook!

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound ground beef (230g)
• 1/2 cup (26g) onion, diced
• 1/2 cup (25g) carrot, diced
• 1/2 cup (50g) celery, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/8 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 TBS tomato paste
• 3 cups (720ml) beef stock
• 1/2 (14.5 ounce/400g) tin of diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 cup (100g) pearl barley
• 1 bay leaf, broken
• 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 tablespoon parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. If your beef is really lean add 1/2 TBS of light olive oil to a large saucepan. Add the ground beef and cook, stirring until it is no longer pink and is beginning to brown. If your meat is fatty, drain off the fat, leaving about 1/2 TBS in the pan.
2. Add the onions, carrots and celery to the pan. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes until tender. Add the garlic and the herbs and cook for 1 minute longer. It should be very fragrant by now.
3. Add the beef stock, tomatoes, barley, bay leaf balsamic vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer.
4. Simmer, covered, over medium low heat until the vegetables and barley are tender. Remove bay leaf and season to taste with salt and black pepper.
5. Serve hot with crackers or crusty bread.

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