Beef Barley Soup pt.1

Quick Look_______________

Vegetable beef barley soup is easy to make and great for a filling, hearty snack/meal. It's perfect for a post bible study snack or a camping/snow trip. We served this at the a2f snow trip last year. Here's an easy, classic recipe. This soup cooks for about 2-3 hours; the next post will feature a recipe that takes 1 hour with similar results.

• Prep time: 10-15 minutes
• Cook time: 2-3 hrs
• Difficulty: Easy.
• Labor Intensity: You can do on your own very easily!
• 30 servings, adjust by 1.5x if your group tends to eat multiple servings.

Ingredients_______________

• 8 pounds beef (brisket, chuck, cross rib)
• 2 cup barley
• 4 bay leaves
• 12 carrots, chopped
• 12 stalks celery, chopped
• 4 large onion, chopped
• 4 (16 ounce) package frozen mixed vegetables
• 2 gallons water
• 16 cubes beef bouillon cube(enough for 1 gallon broth) -- add more to taste if necessary
  
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 (28) ounces cans chopped stewed tomatoes

Directions_______________

• Cut meat into 1/2 cubes (if necessary)
• Add water, beef bullion cubes, sugar, pepper, chopped stewed tomatoes and bay leaves
• Boil the meat until very tender (usually 2.5 hours on high).
• - - - -
  
• Add barley, carrots, celery, onion, and frozen mixed vegetables during the last hour of cooking.
• Discard bay leaves.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• (Pearl barley will absorb the liquid and expand a lot, so don’t add more than you need.)

Tom's Tips and Tricks_______________

This is as simple as it gets. Just toss everything into a stockpot, get it boiling (this takes the longest), reduce heat to a simmer --watch out so it doesn't flow over and burn, and let it simmer for about 1.5 hours. Toss in the rest of the ingredients.

You could substitute beef broth, but bullion tends to be cheaper.

[Possible side dish] Serve with french bread slices