Beef & Barley Stew
This mouth-watering comfort stew will be loved by everyone! Hearty and filling and freezes well.
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 1-1.5 pounds stew meat
- 64 ounces beef broth (or 8 cups of water + 8 beef bouillon cubes)
- 1 large 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 bay leaves
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 can diced tomatoes (about 14.5 ounces)
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 2 cups chopped carrots
- 8 ounces sliced baby bella mushrooms optional - I often leave out
- 1/2 cup wild rice optional
- 1/2 cup barley optional, but delicious
Instructions
- To a large stock pot, add stew meat, broth, onion, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, oregano, bay leafs, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
- (Optional) Remove meat from pot; cut into smaller size pieces, if desired. Return to the pot.
- Add tomatoes, celery, carrots, mushrooms, barley and wild rice. Return to boiling. Reduce heat, cover and simmer an hour or until vegetables are tender. Can let simmer longer - the flavor is amazing!
- To serve, remove bay leaves and spoon into bowls!
- To freeze: Cool soup. Put into freezer safe container (such as freezer bags or freezer containers). To serve, thaw in refrigerator, then re-heat. Reheat in a stock pot or Dutch oven until heated through.
Notes
- For an easier to eat experience, I cut the stew meat into smaller pieces about 1/2 way through cooking, but that's optional. It's just easiest to cut then.
- The longer it simmers, the better. The flavors really come together well that way. I’ll make it early on a Sunday afternoon and either serve it that night or serve it the next night.
- While the wild rice and barley are optional, please try it with it! It really increases the heartiness of this dish.
- This makes wonderful leftovers and freezes well, so if you have a pot big enough, double it!