Beef Barley Soup is incredibly easy and so delicious!
Loaded with nutritious veggies, tender beef and plump barley, it’s a complete meal in a bowl!
This homemade beef barley soup can be made ahead of time and freezes well making it the perfect family dinner!
All of my favorite soups are fully loaded with goodies including veggies and grains, this Beef Barley Soup definitely fits the bill!
It is a rich and hearty barley soup that leaves you completely satisfied and warms every inch of your body!
It screams comfort food, like mom used to make and is perfect served up with a side of buttermilk biscuits and a side salad!
How to Make Beef Barley Soup
While the list of ingredients may seem long, this Beef and Barley soup is really easy to make.
I start out by cooking garlic and onions just until softened.
All of the remaining ingredients are simply added to the pot and simmered until tender.
I use homemade stock whenever possible for the best flavor.
What is the Best Beef for soup?
This recipe calls for cooked beef. You can use any kind of leftover beef for this beef barley soup including pot roast, leftover steak or roast beef.
If you don’t have cooked beef, you can cook your own. I use either flank steak (sliced against the grain) or cubed chuck.
If you’d prefer, you can most certainly substitute cooked hamburger in this barley soup recipe. If making a ground beef barley soup, you’ll want to brown the beef with the onions and drain any fat.
One of the main components in this recipe is barley. Barley is a grain that is very similar in size and texture of brown rice. There are several different types of barley but the most common is pearl barley which is used in this recipe.
I use it frequently in place of rice and pasta in many soup recipes, perfect in my Chicken Barley Soup!
With its slightly nutty flavor and interesting texture, it will sure to be a hit in your next homemade soup!
Try adding it to my Easy Hamburger Soup or in place of the noodles in my Turkey Noodle Soup! Your family will love the change!
Cooking the same things all of the time can leave any home chef in a bit of a meal-making rut. The addition of vegetables makes this a great and healthy choice and keeps is relatively low in calories.
Incorporating new ideas, flavors and textures helps to keep things interesting in the kitchen!
This Old Fashioned Beef Barley Soup is traditional soup that has not lost it’s lustre! We serve this alongside our favorite biscuits or 30 Minute Dinner Rolls with a fresh garden salad for a perfect meal!
Make a large pot and freeze smaller portions to enjoy later – it freezes amazing and you will love how convenient it is to microwave or reheat on the stove!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 2 carrots sliced
- 1 rib celery sliced
- 2 cups cooked beef
- 6 cups reduced sodium beef broth
- 14.5 ounces canned petite diced tomatoes with juices, 1 can
- ½ green bell pepper diced
- ⅔ cup pearl barley
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1 packet beef gravy mix
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons red wine optional
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or 2 teaspoons dried
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook onions and garlic in oil over medium heat until softened.
- Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer covered about 40-50 minutes or until barley is cooked.
- Remove bay leaf and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Soup
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This is a very good soup. I used a leftover outside round roast that we had done on the Traeger. The only things I did different is add 1 qt of tomatoes that i canned and added 1 heaping tbsp of gravy mix ( didn’t have a packet, just the big bag you buy from Costco.) No wine either.
That sounds delicious, EB! Thanks for sharing!
Can you use this recipe and toss it all in the slow cooker??
Hi Hanna, I have never personally tried this recipe in the crockpot, but other readers have had great success. One reader cooked everything (except barley) for a few hours in the crockpot then added cooked barley at the end. Hope that helps!
I have never ever made beef barley soup and made this recipe the other day. It certainly is worth the 5 star rating!! It was so delicious and simple to make and contained ingredients I often have on hand. I left out the green pepper as I couldn’t get one at the grocery store & I used canned fire roasted diced tomatoes. The only issue I had was that the gravy packet clumped once I added it to the soup. So next time I would pre mix it & then add it to the soup. Otherwise, this recipe was perfect as is! Thanks so very much for posting it!
So happy you enjoyed this recipe, Jennifer!
Can we evenly sub quinoa for barley (same cook time) and sub ground bison?
Quinoa is a great substitute for barley but it doesn’t take quite as long to cook. It should only take about 30-35 minutes to fully cook. We add cooked beef into this recipe, so if subbing it for ground bison just be sure to precook it before adding it in. We would love to hear how it turns out for you, Sara!
This is my third time making this. So delicious and satisfying. I don’t have barley but I do have pasta. Should that be cooked right in the soup as well or should I add cooked pasta when serving?
Hi Michelle, if adding the pasta to the soup to cook I would wait until the last 10 minutes or so, as the pasta will cook much faster than the barley. You could also cook it separately and add it before serving. Both would work well, enjoy!
I made this exact to recipe. Hearty soup, great flavor! I’ve always loved barley. Freezes perfectly too.
My all time favourite soup recipe! I use raw stewing beef and cut it up in little pieces and add it right after the onions and garlic. By the time I have chopped the veggies and added everything else it cooks for 45 minutes and the beef is fully cooked and tender.
Made this yesterday and I loved it. I used a quart of my canned tomatoes that had onion and peppers in already. I also put in a cup of Barley because I love Barley. Came out great. I had two helpings. Thanks for a great recipe.
Amazing! Making it for the second time in a week!
This always a hit every time I make it. Sometimes add green beans. Made same a recipe. Today I added a cup of beef gravy I have left over from last nights dinner. Best hearty soup.
This is my go-to recipe. It’s perfect the way it is written. Sometimes I add additional vegetables, like peas.
Liquid Aminos and/or Maggi Seasoning. Use Maggi Seasoning sparingly. It magically make beef taste BEEFY.
Sounds delicious, thanks for sharing!
Looking for a budget friendly version…what type of meat can I use? I was hoping to use hamburger but what can I use to add more beefy flavor?
It should still have a decent beefy flavor with the beef gravy and broth. But you can add some extra beef bullion powder to taste to increase the flavor if you would like.
Liquid Aminos and/or Maggi Seasoning. Use Maggi Seasoning sparingly. It magically make beef taste BEEFY.
What is a “serving size”? The soup was delicious. I left out the green pepper and added 8oz of sliced baby portabella mushrooms. I used leftover cooked London broil for my meat.
Your substitutions sound delicious, Irene. The serving size is approximately one cup.
Review should have been 5 star not one absolutely delicious soup!
Followed recipe to the “T” didn’t have green pepper wasn’t missed at all. Wanted to use slow cooker. Put on high for a couple of hours then on low for about four hours. This soup was extra special. Barley had enough for the next day. All four kids chowed down and everyone commented on how good it was. This is a keeper for sure. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve not made Beef Barley Soup before but given the number of great ratings I gave this recipe a go! So happy that I did. It was perfect for a very cold day on a Saturday with lots of football games. Very delicious!!
I’ve just made this for the 3rd time. It’s a good recipe that allows room for you to tweak it to your taste. I have HBP, so I use no salt added broth. I’ve found ½T of Mrs Dash works well. A whole packet of gravy mix was a bit much. I find 1T is fine. This is a great recipe for using what’s left of a London broil. My tip: wait till after the soup is simmering to add already cooked beef. It remains tender if you wait.
Killer, killer and killer…….would not change one single thing. Thank you so much for this great recipe.
I got lucky with the beef. Tri tip was “buy one, get one free”. I made very few changes to recipe. I did add two TBS flour to the beef after browning. I only used half of the gravy packet. I assume it’s purpose was thickening and spice. The flour took care of the first, and I’d rather balance the spices myself. The other difference was that I cooked all the veg together 5 minutes in olive oil adding the white parts of one leek. Then added the garlic for one more minute. Then added rest of ingredients.I did some skimming. Also, added another 1/4 cu of barley – it didn’t seem like enough. Near the end I added some cayenne pepper. I think it’s a great basic recipe. Next time I will forego the gravy packet. Don’t like using processed foods.