Beef and Barley Soup

I recently ordered a sandwich in a restaurant in Burnstown, Ontario, and a small bowl of soup came with it.

The soup of the day was homemade beef and barley. It's not something I would normally order... (Though my parents probably would have!)

But it was surprisingly good - and filling. I wondered how hard it is to make...

I looked the recipe up online and discovered this simple one - that used ingredients I usually had on hand.



So I tried it. The soup was very thick - and the recipe made a large quantity. In future I could use half a package of the barley (about 1 cup), less than the amount called for in the recipe.

It does make a lot. I froze half a dozen small containers of it. (Good to have on hand!)

I added a bit of water to the soup when I re-heated it, and the flavor wasn't affected. (If it does taste bland, a spoon of salsa could add spice and flavor.)

I think it's a good soup to add to my repertoire! (The other I often make is the garden vegetable soup of weight watcher fame.)


For those who think about glycemic index (how quickly food raises blood sugar), barley is apparently low on the GI, according to this barley web site, so barley is a good grain for type 2 diabetics.