Lentil Beef Barley Soup
You must know by now that I love cooking with lentils. All dried legumes are good for the heart and soul. Today I crave some beef because we don’t eat a lot of it. I want to make sure the lentils are the main ingredient in this dish. The beef enhances the flavour; and so, I go to my local butcher for the best lean beef cubes. Lentil Beef Barley Soup is thick and delicious.
Nonna always had lentils in the pantry; in those days all the beans were dried. I remember her big pasta bowl filled with water overnight with the beans soaking. It was like magic that in the morning they were soft. Now my Calabrese Nonno didn’t add sugar to sauces or soups, but my Sicilian Nonna Marietta did. The sugar helps to release the natural sugars of the tomatoes. I decided to use brown sugar because it adds to the colour of the sauce and is a bit healthier.
I love this soup because sometimes I make chicken barley soup. Switch the beef for chicken and the broth for vegetable and you have a Lentil Chicken Barley Soup. I have also done it with fish. Sear the fish and put it in after all the vegetables cook. Use a firmer fish like basa, halibut or cod. You can also use shrimp.
If you like this soup you might also like: https://recipesatmytable.com/lentil-vegetable-soup-with-couscous/ or https://recipesatmytable.com/savoy-cabbage-soup-with-lentils/
The diced vegetables
You can see how lean this beef is.
A few of the products I use, and I am not endorsed by these companies.
The beef floured and browning.
When I remove the beef and brown the onions, the brown bits develop more flavour for the soup.
Then the carrots and celery stalks go in. Try to keep all the vegetable the same size.
Now the beef goes in.
Splash of colour with the cherry tomatoes.
Everything comes to a boil.
The finished product plated.
Lentil Beef Barley Soup: Recipes at My Table
When you are craving a little red meat, but want to keep it healthy.
Ingredients
- 1/2 kg boneless lean stewing beef I used round steak
- 4 tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 large onion sliced
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 2 carrots small cubes
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 cup cold water
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 2 celery stalks thinly sliced
- 1 large can lentils 540 ml
- 900 ml beef stock
- 1/3 cup barley
- 1 can cherry tomatoes 400 ml
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- salt and pepper
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- 2 dried bay leaves remove before serving.
Instructions
-
Cut the beef in cubes and coat in flour.
Place the 1 tbsp of canola oil in a large pan and sear beef.
Remove the beef from the pan.
In the same pan add the Italian seasoning with the onions and garlic.
Soften for a minute.
Now add the carrots and celery and the 1/4 cup cold water.
Put on the lid and soften everything.
After a few minutes, remove the lid and add the beef.
Stir and simmer for another few minutes.
Now add the tomatoes, stock, sugar, barley, and bay leaves.
Bring to a boil.
Cover and reduce heat to medium/low.
Cook for 40 minutes and stir occasionally.
Add canned lentils and cook for another 10minutes.
Remove bay leaves.
Add 1/2 the parsley.
Ladle into bowls and add more parsley overtop.
Recipe Notes
Sugar added to any tomato sauce or soup helps to release the natural sugars of the tomatoes. It's a Southern Italian tradition.
You can substitute chicken for this recipe. If you do, use chicken or vegetable broth.
If using fish, dredge in the flour, brown and set aside. Reintroduce it once all the vegetables cook.