Beef and Barley Soup

I had picked up some sirloin when it was on sale a couple of weeks ago. It's the dead of winter in these parts and soups are still high on my priority list. Sunday was Conference Championship day for the NFL. When I'm watching football I want something either in a pot or in the oven, ready to go. I didn't intend to blog about this because it was just plain old beef and barley soup but it had such a fantastic flavour it ended up being totally bloggable!

When you make soup with barley it will continue to thicken as it sits. So if you are going to freeze it, when you defrost it you will have a gloopy soup. Add water when reheating. Simple. However, if you don't want to dilute the flavour add some of the flavour essentials once the soup has cooled down before you put the leftovers in the freezer. Then when you add the water you will still have the great flavour you had the first time around. I put a little dab of Dijon, a squirt of Worcestershire sauce and a sprinkle of Emeril's Essence in each single serving container before I popped them in the freezer. I keep one out in the fridge and treated it the same. It too will need water added when I reheat it.

Beef and Barley Soup


Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 2 large carrots, chopped
• 13/4 - 1 lb beef, diced
• 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 40 shots/shakes Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tbsp Emeril's Essence
• 2 cloves garlic, fresh or roasted, minced
• 2 tsp Montreal Steak spice
• 2 tsp fresh Rosemary, chopped
• 9 oz can of tomatoes
• 3 1/2 cups beef broth
• 2 cups water
• Salt and Pepper
• 2/3 cup pearl barley
• 3/4 cup turnip, small diced (I used frozen)
• 1 1/5 cup butternut squash, small diced (I used frozen)

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium high heat
2. Saute the onion, celery and carrots until soft, about 5 minutes
3. Add the beef and brown a bit, 3 - 5 minutes
4. Add the next 9 ingredients from Dijon mustard to water and let simmer for 30 - 60 minutes
5. Check for taste and add salt and pepper as necessary
6. Add the barley and simmer 30 minutes.
7. Add in the turnip and butternut squash and simmer 10 minutes, if using frozen. Cook until tender if using fresh, about 20 minutes

Enjoy!