It was Rachel Ray who first coined the phrase stoup, and this is a perfect example of what it is: thicker than a soup but thinner than a stew. It’s surprising that I’m posting a hearty dish like this when the weather is finally starting to warm up, but when I made this on a cold and chilly day earlier in the week, my Facepage page went gaga over it. I don’t know if it’s the whole slow cooker thing, but I definitely wasn’t expecting this soup to go viral. Not that it’s not delicious. Because, my, is it ever. With fall-off-the-bone flanken, two types of mushrooms and hearty root vegetables simmered in a thyme-scented chicken broth, this is good enough to make purely for the smell that will waft through your house for hours.
Serve with crusty bread for a whole meal in one bowl!
Crockpot Mushroom Barley Stoup
2 pieces flanken (short ribs)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 parsnips, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 container button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 container baby bella mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
5 sprigs thyme
1 tbsp soy sauce
10 cups beef or chicken broth
3/4 cup barley
salt and pepper, to taste
Method:
In a hot pan, sear the flanken, browning it on all sides. Add it to the crockpot. To the same pan, add oil and saute the onion, garlic, celery, parsnip and carrots, scraping up the bits of the flanken as you go. Add to the crock pot. Saute the mushrooms (add more oil, if needed) and add to the crockpot. Add remaining ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
VARIATION: To make this soup pareve, omit the flanken and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
SUBSTITUTIONS: If you don’t like thyme, you may use 2 bay leaves instead.
SHABBAT OPTION: to make this for Shabbat lunch, just add 2 cups of water or stock and cook on low overnight.
Note: If you don’t have a slow cooker, you may cook the soup in a pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for approximately 2 hours, until barley and flanken are tender.
Related Recipes:
fire roasted tomato rice stoup
wild mushroom barley soup
Do you think this would work in the slow cooker as a shabbat lunch dish? Huge fan of any soup with mushrooms!
Definitely, I would probably just add an extra 2 cups of stock.
This was SO perfect for Shabbat day, added 2 cups of stock like you suggested and it was lovely and soupy, not too thick and not mushy at all! Thanks for a perfect recipe!
I’m so glad to hear Tanya!
This is one of my favorite soups. My mother-in-law made such good Mushroom Barley soup that I never attempted it. I miss it, so thanks for what looks like a terrific recipe.
This looks very good–I’ll have to try it!
I always do this soup in a crock pot and have it for lunch on a cold shabbos afternoon! Great and classic recipe!
OMG this looks AMAAAZING! Can I link to this for one of my Friday Food and Favorites posts??
xo
Sharon
sure, no problem!
always looking for more ways to use my slow cooker, so thanks for this!
Do you think I could substitute rice for the barley… Hubby needs to follow a gluten free diet.
I would use brown rice, it will hold up better and won’t turn into mush.
This is a great reminder to NOT put our crockpots away in the warmer months. NOTHING fills the house with deep rich aromas like something simmering for this many hours. THANKS!
There is something that is extremely comforting about soup/ stoup/stews. This looks fantastic.
one of my favorite soups! and i love anything in the crockpot
I love crockpot recipes and this one looks amazing!
Looks and sounds delicious, especially the added meat , I love mushroom barley soup, and of course can’t go wrong with a crock pot recipe
Yummy! Just bookmarked! Please feel free to share with our G+ Community, The Crock Pot Crowd. We welcome posts and recipes from bloggers! :)
http://bit.ly/Zmy5vZ
Thanks! Unfortunately, I am not on Google Plus, but feel free to share it there!
Can this be made conventionally without a crock pot
Sure! Cook the soup until it’s thick and the barley is tender, about 2 hours.
This is going to be a very dumb question, but what the heck. What are flankens? They look like some type of short rib?
No question is too dumb to ask :) Yes, flanken is the same thing as short ribs.
Can I make this for shabbos day? Also i can’t have chicken soup mix or beef, anything you recommend substituting or do you think water will work?
A few of my readers have made this for Shabbos with great success. I don’t use soup mix, I use the cartons of stock from Imagine (it’s vegetarian chicken broth, made only of vegetables). If you can’t have that, I guess use water.
How inportant is it to saute everything first if I’m making this for shabbat much and it’ll have the extra time to cook? Think I can just dump it all in and it would turn out well?
Hi Carrie, I’ve never tried it. Caramelizing the veggies adds flavor, but you are welcome to try without. I’m sure it will still be good. Let me know how it turns out!
It was fabulous – thank you! Just threw it all in and did add the 2 extra cups of broth – let it cook on low from about 5pm to noonish – it got rave reviews!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear!
Hi Chanie,
Is it possible to half this recipe? I have a smaller crock pot and i don’t think it will hold 12 cups of broth/water – but I want this for shabbos day.
Thanks!
Sure Rachel, I don’t see why not!
How many servings does this recipe make? Looks delish, but I think I only need 4-6 servings. Cut it in half? Thanks!
It does make a lot so I would definitely halve the recipe.
If I wanted to make this without the meat, would you suggest any alterations to the recipe?
I also would like to make it overnight for Shabbat lunch. Thanks!
Is that because you want to keep it pareve or you just don’t want to eat the meat?
i dont have broth. How can i use water and beef/chicken soup mix as an equivalent.
Yes you may.
Hi, could I use shin beef as an alternative to flanken? I happen to have a pack.
Yes, I think that would work.
Would I be able to use chicken instead of beef for this?
Yes, I’ve done it. I would use dark meat chicken only though.
Made it for lunch. Came home from shul what a delicious soup on this freezing cold day. Thanks
I only have boneless flanken in the house. Will it hold up if I make this for Shabbos lunch? And if you think the flanken without bones won’t work, could I substitute sausage, like kielbasa?
boneless flanken would work just fine!
My husband does not like mushrooms. Can I leave them out or use a substitute?
I guess you can leave them out.
Hi! Is it better to use boneless flanken or with bone? Thanks!
I like adding bones, it adds more flavor to the soup. But boneless works too.
Hi you say 2 pieces of meat can you say about how many pounds?
I’d say about 2 lbs.
Hi, I just found this & want to try it for the 2nd night Yom Tov. Do you think it will be ok if I put it up right before YT n it cooks till 2nd night? I” add the extra 2 cups liquid or 1 if I half the recipe since we won’t be many people.
Need an alternative to barley, for gluten free. Any suggestions
Unfortunately not!
I’d like to make this vegetarian. Would you use veggie or mushroom broth/stock?
Mushroom broth for added flavor since you won’t be using meat.
How many servings does this recipe make?
About how many servings do you get out of this recipe? What size crockpot?