Healthy Beef and Barley Soup
Packed with nutrients and full of delicious flavor, this healthy beef and barley soup is a family-favorite and perfect for cozy season.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 ½ lbs ground beef thawed
- 1 large onion
- 1 head celery finely diced (or 3 cups chopped)
- 2 10 oz bags frozen mixed veggies
- 1 29 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 3 8 oz cans tomato sauce
- 4 cups broth
- 3 cups water
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp bay leaves
- 1 dried parsley flakes
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- 1 cup hulled barley
- fresh parsley for garnishing
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in the cooking pot over medium heat. Then add the ground beef and finely diced onion and cook until browned. Drain any excess grease.
- Add the chopped celery, frozen mixed veggies, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, water, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, dried parsley flakes, and bay leaves, and combine. Over medium heat, bring the soup to a gentle boil, stirring frequently. Once at a gentle boil, cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the barley and stir to combine. Continue cooking over medium-low heat for about 40-50 more minutes, or until barley is tender and swollen.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.
Notes
- Broth – I typically use whatever type of broth I have on hand. This is a great way to include more bone broth in your diet!
- Worcestershire sauce – Look for one that doesn’t have high-fructose corn syrup in it. I use this one!
- Fresh parsley – Garnishing the soup with fresh parsley is optional, but I highly recommend it. It adds extra flavor, plus a lovely pop of color!
- Salt – I use pink Himalayan salt, but you can use whatever salt you prefer.
- Barley – Use hulled barley for this recipe; it still has the bran and germ intact, containing more nutrients than pearl barley.
- Olive oil – I use regular olive oil, but you can substitute for extra-virgin, or even avocado oil.