Slow Cooker Beef and Barley Soup is an easy dinner packed with tasty flavor and meaty goodness. It’s just the recipe you need when the temperature drops.
Using paper towels, pat beef dry (you need the meat dry to get a nice sear) and season with salt and pepper.
Heat a large pan over medium-high heat with one tablespoon of oil until just smoking.
Brown half of the meat, about 6-8 minutes.
Transfer meat and juices to the slow cooker insert, and repeat with one tablespoon of oil and the rest of the meat.
COOK VEGETABLES:
Keep heat at medium-high. Add one tablespoon of oil to the pan, onions, fennel, mushrooms, and carrots.
Cook, often stirring, until mushrooms have released their moisture and vegetables are softened, about 7-8 minutes.
Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer vegetables to slow cooker insert.
SLOW COOK:
Add wine, broth, tomatoes, barley, tomato paste, and thyme to slow cooker insert.
Cover the slow cooker and cook until meat is tender. Cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours.
Ten minutes before serving, ladle off fat from the surface, and stir in Worcestershire sauce and parsley.
Cover and cook for ten more minutes.
TO FINISH:
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Ladle soup into bowls, and garnish with parsley. Serve.
Notes
Before you sauté the meat, you need to make sure that the pan is super-hot (when you see little wisps of smoke, it’s ready), and you need to pat the meat dry on all sides. These things will help get a nice sear on the meat. Sear=flavor, and we want a lot of flavor in this beef and barley soup!
You will need to use a slow cooker with a capacity of at least 7.5 quarts to make this soup.