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    Home » Beef » Better than Canned Homemade Beef Barley Vegetable Soup

    Better than Canned Homemade Beef Barley Vegetable Soup

    Published: Dec 3, 2015 · Modified: Oct 26, 2022 by Linda Baker · This post may contain affiliate links

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    This recipe for Better than Canned Homemade Beef Barley Vegetable soup is a cinch to put together and is a great use for leftover roast beef. You can also make it with fresh diced roast beef if no leftovers are available.

    Fresh Hearty Beef Barley Vegetable Soup

    The making of Beef Barley Vegetable Soup

    So we finally went on a vacation.

    A true and for real vacation. No work, no business dinners (well, in Puerto Rica we kind of had those, but not really).

    Yes, I got BB to actually take 2 weeks off in a row - the first time in about 3 years - and by week 2, I think I can safely say, he got relaxed as we toured our way through the Caribbean and Key West to enjoy the sun, sand, and surf.

    I can tell you it was a bit of a shock to come home from our 85º days / 82º nights to our current 62º days and 32º nights. In the Dominican Republic if it gets 75º they are putting on their parkas, so I think even they would appreciate this warming delicious Beef Barley Vegetable Soup recipe next time they get into their "chilly" days.

    After two weeks of eating a lot of fresh fish, conch, baby eels and crab, BB and I were ready for some meat. So our first Sunday home I made a roast beef; simple roast in the oven with some garlic stuck into it. It was really good, but as always, there is a lot of leftover meat. A 3 ½ pound roast goes a long way when there are just two of us. I do love a good Beef Dip sandwich, and my recipe for California Chile Roast Beef Sandwich is always a good use of leftover beef, but I wanted to make something more warming and different. I often make soups from what I have around the house, and this soup is no different. Using leftover roast and a bit of gravy to make a rich broth, adding fresh veggies, some cooked pearl barley, and a few simple herbs, turned this into a rich comforting soup.

    close view of a bowl of Beef Barley Vegetable Soup
    Deep rich broth, barley, roast, and hearty vegetables warm to warm you up and fill you up.

    The Broth

    As with all soups, I think the broth is the most important component. BB and I like our broth to be rich, and slightly thick. Because I was using leftover roast, and therefore had leftover roast gravy, I combined it with a quart of boxed beef broth to bring out a richer flavor. If you don't have leftover gravy, you could enrich your broth in a couple of ways:

    1. Add a can of consommé to the box of broth.
    2. Simmer a meaty beef bone-in with the broth for about an hour or until the bone has infused the broth with meaty flavor.
    3. Get a can of beef gravy and add it to the broth.

    Or, if you don't mind a thinner broth, leave it be.

    To thicken the broth, once the vegetables have been sweated in a bit of oil, I add about ¼ cup of flour to them and stir and cook that in. After that has been lightly browned, I add the stock. This makes for a nice rich broth.

    Beef Barley Vegetable Soup
    Perfect for lunch or dinner

    Sit down with a warming bowl of Beef Barley Vegetable Soup for lunch, or dinner

    The Veggies Fresh or Frozen

    You can, of course, use whatever vegetables ring your bells, but I use carrot, celery, peas, corn, green beans (if I have them, I did not this time), potatoes, and of course, diced onion.

    Not being a big fan of frozen carrots (they just aren't the right texture), I always use fresh.

    Celery, fresh as well.

    Peas and corn? Frozen is fine.

    Green beans? I only use fresh. The same goes for the potatoes and onions - fresh.

    Barley

    Barley is a member of the grass family so yes, it does contain 5-8% gluten. Therefore if you are gluten intolerant, you might want to choose a different grain, Quinoa would be a good choice. Barely is low on the glycemic scale, making it a good wholesome grain that also helps keep blood sugars in check.

    Barley is a nutritional powerhouse - packed with fiber, important vitamins and minerals while being slim in fat and cholesterol-free. Barley beats Quinoa and brown rice as being rich in both soluble and non-soluble fiber with a whopping 3 grams over Quinoa's 2.6 and brown rice's 1.75.

    And we all need more fiber in our diets!

    I always pre-cook my barley as it is very starchy and while I want the fiber in my soup, I don't want the additional starch. I cook my barley the same way as I cook my pasta and rice, in a large pot of boiling salted water. Once the water comes to a boil I add the barley and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 50 minutes (for standard pearl barley) or until it is just al dente. Drain into a colander, rinse well, and add however much you want to your soup. For my soup, I cooked ½ cup barley which yielded about 1 ½ cups cooked. If you think about it in the morning and don't want to spend 50 minutes cooking the barley, put it in a bowl and cover it with water in the morning, drain and cook it with the same method. Pre-soaked it will only take about 15 minutes to be done.

    Or of course, there's always the pressure cooker ...

    Beef Barley Vegetable Soup
    LindySez: We served the soup with some homemade Polenta Corn muffins; the perfect addition. 

    A Hearty Bowl of Beef Barley Vegetable Soup 

    If you want a hearty, yet lighter soup, try High Five Veggie Soup, for a vegetarian alternative. Or hearty Smokey Kielbasa Cabbage Soup.

    Better than Canned Homemade Beef Barley Vegetable Soup

    LindySez
    Using left-over roast beef made this recipe for Beef Barley Vegetable Soup delicious, easy and economical. Full flavor, high in fiber, low in fat. Perfect on a cold afternoon or evening.
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 15 mins
    Cook Time 1 hr
    Total Time 1 hr 15 mins
    Course Main Course, Soups, Stews & Chili
    Cuisine American
    Servings 6
    Calories 461 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 tablespoons olive or grapeseed oil
    • 1 cup diced onion
    • 1 cup diced peeled carrot I cut it into quarters then slice into a dice
    • ½ cup diced celery about 2 large stalks or to taste
    • ⅛ to ¼ cup flour depending on how thick you want your soup
    • 1 quart beef stock low-sodium preferred
    • 1 cup left-over beef gravy or beef consommé, homemade stock or ready made beef gravy
    • 1 cup water
    • 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes with juice (I like to chop my tomatoes into smaller pieces)
    • 8 ounces cooked roast beast cut into cubes
    • 1 ½ - 2 cups diced semi-waxy potato I used Yukon gold, red potatoes or white rose work well here too, russet? not so much
    • 1 - 1 ½ cups cooked pearl barley
    • 2 fresh thyme sprigs or 1 teaspoon dried
    • 2 - 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
    • 1 - 2 bay leaves torn
    • ½ cup frozen peas
    • ½ cup frozen corn
    • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
    • I suppose if you were a mushroom lover, they might be good in this as well. I would add them with the peas and corn if you were to add them

    Instructions
     

    • In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions, carrot, and celery along with a pinch of salt, cover the pot and allow the vegetables to sweat for 5 - 10 minutes over fairly low heat. 
    • Increase heat to medium and add the flour, cook, stirring for about 5 minutes, or until the raw flour flavor is gone. Add the broth, stir well, add the gravy, water, and tomatoes, stir well. Stir in the meat, potatoes, and cooked barley, along with the herbs; cover and simmer, uncovered, for 15 - 20 minutes; add the peas and corn (and green beans if using); stir and simmer for 20 minutes more, or until everything is tender. Taste and adjust for salt and pepper. Serve in deep warmed bowls.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1gSodium: 867mgFiber: 7gCholesterol: 38mgCalories: 461kcalPolyunsaturated Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 5gFat: 18gProtein: 30gCarbohydrates: 47g
    Keyword gluten-free alternative, leftover roast beef, main course soup, soup, vegetable soup
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Brian Jones

      December 10, 2015 at 11:57 pm

      Left over gravy, hang your head in shame 😉 Just kidding what a wonderfully warming sounding bowl of soup 😀

      Reply
      • LindySez

        December 11, 2015 at 10:46 am

        Well, it doesn't happen all that often as I LOVE gravy, but when it does...also why I give some "alternatives" ... enjoy and thanks for stopping by Cheers~Lindy

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Lindy.

    I am a home-trained chef who loves to cook and eat delicious food. As I like to say, "Life is too short to eat mediocre food". And I find too much food out there is mediocre. I don't think good food needs to be fussy, or difficult to prepare. Most of my recipes are fresh, quick, easy, and tasty while keeping both calories and fats in check. 

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