Chicken and Barley Vegetable Soup

We are deep into soup territory here, and we’re still several days from the official start of winter! Freezing rain, slush, and snow greeted us this morning – as if it being Monday wasn’t bad enough. After slipping and sliding into work, I broke the photocopier. Then I noticed a funky smell in my office.

Chicken and barley vegetable soup would sure hit the spot right now.

I love my job, no doubt. The commute, however, I could do without. During my ride home, the rainy roadways slopped up my windshield and obliterated the white landscape of the morning. Whoever envisioned a picturesque white New England winter has never commuted to Boston in December. BAH HUMBUG.

Oh I am just messing with you 🙂 Life is grand! It would be practically perfect if I’d come home to this awesome chicken and barley vegetable soup after that commute. Alas, we ate up the last of it yesterday.

It’s not a hard sell for my family to love a simple soup packed with chicken, barley, carrots, and celery. This is probably my umpteenth variation on basic chicken soup. I mixed it up a little by adding tomato paste to the broth, and barley instead of pasta or rice. The tomato added some color and a little richer flavor — the vitamin C and lycopene were just a bonus 🙂

That the kids didn’t even blink at the barley, which tells me I’ve done well in the whole grain department.

HINTS: This is a great weeknight supper when you’ve got cooked chicken hanging around in the fridge. To simplify prep further, use quick-cooking barley, which cuts the barley cooking time from about 40 minutes to just 10 minutes. Feel free to mix it up with different vegetables (i.e. corn, okra, tomatoes, lima beans, spinach). Finally, this soup seriously thickens up overnight, so if you prefer “stoup” to soup, make it a day ahead!

Six ingredients are all that stands between you and mankind’s oldest and surest method for defrosting. Chicken soup cures all, no matter what ails you.

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Chicken and Barley Vegetable Soup

Servings 6 servings

Author Julia Robarts

Ingredients

• 8 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
• 3-4 cups cooked barley *see Recipe Notes
• 2 cups chopped, cooked chicken
• 3 medium carrots, diced about 1 cup
• 2 large celery stalks, diced about 1 cup
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

1. In a large (4-quart) saucepan, add the broth. Cover and heat over medium/high heat until it comes to a boil. 
   

2. Add the prepared barley, cooked chicken, carrots, celery, and tomato paste, and simmer until the vegetables are soft (about 10 minutes). Add salt and pepper - taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

3. Serve hot, with a side salad. For thicker soup, cool to room temperature and refrigerate over night. Reheat the following day over low heat before serving.

Recipe Notes

I always cook the barley separately and add it to the soup already cooked. However, if you want to cook the barley directly in the soup, be sure to increase the broth (or water) according to the barley package cooking instructions, since the barley will absorb it's cooking liquid during the process.

If you want to use hulled barley or pearled barley, you'll just need to account for their longer cooking times. TheKitchn website has a great how-to on cooking barley.

Chicken & Barley Vegetable Soup
Serves 6-8

Cook time: 20 minutes     Prep time: 15 if using quick-cooking barley, 45 minutes if using traditional barley

8 cups reduced-sodium, fat free chicken broth
3-4 cups cooked barley (about 1 cup uncooked)
2 cups cooked chicken
1 cup diced carrots (3-4 medium carrots)
1 cup diced celery (2-3 large stalks)
3 tablespoons tomato paste
salt and pepper to taste

Heat broth in large (4-quart) saucepan until it comes to a boil. Add chicken,vegetables, barley, and tomato paste, and simmer until carrots are soft (about 10 minutes). Serve hot, or cool to room temperature and refrigerate over night to allow the soup to thicken and the flavors to meld together.