Ingredients
Units
- 8 cups water or vegetable stock (I use a combination of half stock and half water)
- 1 cup pearl barley
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 4-6 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter (optional)
- 2 medium carrots, diced fine
- 2 celery ribs, diced fine
- 1 medium onion, diced fine
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a medium-large pot, heat the 8 cups of liquid (I use 4 cups of water and 4 cups of boxed vegetable stock) over low-medium flame. Once liquid has heated to a low simmer, add barley, the dried bay leaf and cover.
- Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp olive oil + 2 Tbsp butter (if using) in a medium-large saute pan or skillet. Cook carrots, celery and onion until soft and translucent, around 7-10 minutes.
- Add garlic and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add all the vegetables into broth and barley.
- Add another Tbsp olive oil to the pan and cook one third of the mushrooms until slightly caramelized on each side, around 3 minutes each side. Season with salt and pepper. Add mushrooms to the broth.
- Repeat with remaining mushrooms in two additional batches.
- Add all the mushrooms and soy sauce to the soup, and allow to simmer for 30 minutes, or until the soup has thickened to your liking. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- Anyone who has watched “Julie & Julia” knows you don’t want to crowd your pan when cooking mushrooms. I cook this quantity of mushrooms in three batches to allow them enough space to caramelize slightly on each side.
- I chose to make this recipe with a combination of white mushrooms and baby bella mushrooms. You can absolutely mix different types of mushrooms based on your taste (or what you have on hand), as long as the total quantity is around 1 lb.
- If you want to turn the mushroom flavor up even more, you could add some rehydrated porcini mushrooms as you sauté the mushrooms. You can also add some of the hydrating mushroom liquid into the both for extra umami.
- To make this soup pareve (non-dairy), just omit the butter.
- This soup keeps well in the fridge for 3-5 days and can be frozen; you may just need to add some additional water or broth when reheating.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Ashkenazi