A quick and easy ground beef version of beef and barley soup with a tasty broth!
Beef and barley soup is one of my favourites an although I usually make it with cubed beef, it’s also great with ground beef, and it takes much less time to make! The recipe starts out with ground beef, followed by onions, carrots, celery, beef broth, and barley. I like to season it with thyme, rosemary, paprika, tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and fish sauce which makes for a super tasty broth! Cubed beef require slow braising to get tender but this version only requires as much time to cook as it takes to cook the barley, which is about 25 minutes! I like to make a large batch when I make it and it keeps well in the fridge and the freezer for quick meals later!
Ground Beef and Barley Soup
Prep Time:10 minutes Cook Time:40 minutes Total Time:50 minutes Servings: 6
A quick and easy ground beef version of beef and barley soup with a tasty broth!
ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 1 cup carrot, diced
- 1 cup celery, diced
- 2 tablespoons garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon thyme, chopped (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
- 1/2 teaspoon rosemary, chopped (or 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary)
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 6 cups beef broth
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup pearl barley
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce (or soy sauce)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
directions
- Cook the beef in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, breaking it apart as it cooks, before setting it aside and reserving 1 tablespoon of grease in the pan to cook the veggies in.
- Add the onions, carrots, and celery, and cook until tender, about 7-10 minutes.
- Add the garlic, thyme, rosemary, paprika and tomato paste and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
- Add the broth, tomatoes, beef, barley, bay leaves, balsamic vinegar, worcestershire sauce and fish sauce, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the barley is tender, about 20-30 minutes.
- Remove the bay leaves, season with salt and pepper to taste, add the parsley and enjoy!
Option: Add 8 ounces mushrooms, quartered or sliced, along with the veggies.
Option: Add 1 ounce reconstituted and chopped dried mushrooms.
Option: Add potatoes, celery root, cabbage, bell pepper, etc.
Option: Season with steak seasoning of choice.
Option: Add parmesan cheese!
