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Mushroom Barley Soup is an easy favorite, and a bowl full of goodness & flavor!
Perfect for meatless Monday or as a vegetarian entrée, but feel free to add beef, chicken, or turkey. If you can find wild mushrooms, use them, otherwise fresh from the market or canned mushrooms will work!
Quick and Yummy!
This is one of our all-time favorites because it’s easy to make. One pot and three easy steps are all it takes to create this wonderfully heartwarming soup that everyone will love!
Mushroom Barley Soup is easy on the wallet because it’s made without meat but is still hearty. It’s perfect for a crowd!
Ingredients & Variations
Just a few fresh veggies, some herbs, some broth and barley, and, of course, all the mushrooms!
MUSHROOMS Wild, from the supermarket, or even canned! They’ll all taste great in this soup.
BARLEY Pearl barley is used in this soup, but use any kind you have. No barley? Use rice instead!
VEGGIES Onion, celery & carrot are diced up and simmered with the mushrooms and broth. Feel free to add any extra veggies you have in your fridge or garden!
BROTH Beef broth is added to this soup, but for a vegetarian version, use mushroom broth instead (or vegetable broth)!
VARIATIONS Toss in any leftover beef or chicken you want to use up! Try adding a can of great northern beans or even corn to your soup for some extra protein and color!
How to Make Mushroom Barley Soup
Mushroom barley soup is hearty and healthy and comes together in no time flat!
- Saute the onions, carrots, and celery in butter until the onion is tender.
- Add remaining ingredients (per recipe below) and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer until the barley is tender.
Serve with a dollop of sour cream, croutons, and a hot basket of steaming 30-minute dinner rolls.
Add some leftover roast beef for a flavorful version of beef barley soup.
Tips for the Perfect Soup
- Chop the onions, carrot, and celery in uniform sizes so they cook at the same rate.
- If using fresh mushrooms, brush any debris off of them with a paper towel. To make a fancier soup, try using different kinds of mushrooms instead of the regular button white variety. Why not try Criminis, porcini, shiitakes, or oyster mushrooms?
- To store mushroom barley soup leftovers, place in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
- To freeze mushroom soup, ladle it into zippered bags, label with the date and they should keep about two months.
Other Delicious Soups
- Fresh Tomato Soup – creamy & savory
- White Bean Soup – hearty & filling
- Cream of Mushroom Soup – flavorful
- Crockpot Potato and Sausage Soup – set it & forget it
- Philly Cheesesteak Soup – a family favorite
- Chicken Tortellini Soup – comfort food
- Sausage & Kale Soup – budget-friendly
Did your family love this Mushroom Barley Soup? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Mushroom Barley Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 onion diced
- 1 carrot diced
- 1 rib celery chopped
- 8 ounces mushrooms sliced or 1 can mushrooms
- 6 cups beef broth or vegetable broth
- ⅔ cup pearl barley
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 ½ teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
Instructions
- Cook onion, carrot and celery in butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until onion is tender. Add mushrooms and cook 5 minutes more.
- Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer 30-35 minutes or until barley is tender.
- Discard bay leaf and serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Dinner, Entree, Lunch, Main Course, Soup
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Sounds delicious and I’m definitely going to make it. Just wondering since I don’t have barley I read that you can use rice instead, but would you cook the rice in
the broth or separately since it may soak up too much broth? Thanks for answering.
Hi Patricia, you should be able to swap rice directly into this recipe. I would love to hear how it turns out for you!
Great easy recipe! I added 2 tbsp Marsala wine to add a little something. Also really good with a bit of grated Gruyère cheese on top.
Yes, this is an excellent recipe and the soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce should not be omitted. I made the following small changes added extra broth since I was also adding extra barley.
Instead of carrots, I used butternut squash. One thing that was not mentioned in the recipe was whether you use the quick barley or the regular barley, which would take extra time to cook and soften. I never use quick barley. This will be my go to recipe.
This soup is very good. I would add a bit more pearly barley, like maybe 3/4 c. Just a preference. Otherwise, really delicious and very easy.
lovely
can I do this in the crock pot?
I haven’t tried this recipe in the slow cooker however, I do think it would work.
Your site is go-to. I’m mostly vegetarian and your recipes are spot on. Thank you.
We are happy to hear that, Erik!
Delicious flavor due to the small addition of soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Hearty, healthy and wholesome!
That sounds delicious, PK! Thanks for sharing.
I’ve been looking for this soup recipe for ages – utterly delicious. Then I got the bright idea to adapt it to a soup I used to have in a now closed Hungarian restaurant. I used cremini mushrooms and 4 cups of mushroom broth plus 2 cups of homemade vegetable stock (unsalted). To make it Hungarian, I added 1-1/2 t. smoked paprika and 1 oz of dried mushrooms, reconstituted in 1/2 c. boiling water. I finely strained and added the soaking liquid. Served with a dollop of sour cream. If memory serves this is a serious contender for what I enjoyed at that restaurant. Really recommend the mushroom broth if you can find it.
I just made this soup today on a cold rainy day. I made a few minor changes and it was delicious!! I used fresh herbs- thyme and parsley and fresh mushrooms. This was a winner and I will make it again and again. Thanks for the recipe!!
You’re very welcome Marjorie!
Very good but a little salty even with reduced sodium broth. I used chicken broth & threw in a leftover chicken breast. Very flavorful & even better the second day!
Made this a few days ago, it was a huge hit! I will be making it again.
looks Great I’m going to scale x 5. is serving SIZE 8 oz?
Thanks much!
A serving of this recipe is approximately 1.25 cups. Enjoy!