This barley soup is a rustic, wholesome, and deeply satisfying recipe inspired by Italian home cooking.
It’s easy to make in one pot. It’s excellent for a cozy dinner, and leftovers are fantastic for a quick and healthy lunch.
Expect a thick, creamy, hearty, comforting soup packed with protein and a rich, fulfilling flavor.
What is barley soup?
As you eat this barley soup, you’ll feel nourished and good, hugged by the warmth of the thick, creamy broth, and comforted by the chewy barley and tender legumes.
Rustic and hearty soups, such as lentil soup, kale soup, Tuscan bean soup, cabbage soup, and barley soup, are the easiest to make and the most satisfying to eat.
You’ll wonder why you haven’t made this recipe earlier, and you’ll want to eat it as often as possible.
Barley is one of the first grains cultivated by humans. It is packed with nourishing vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein.
With every spoonful, you know that this food is good for you. It will warm you, heal you, and make you feel great.
Here, we combine barley with lentils, beans, potatoes, and aromatic herbs, as farmers have done in rural Italy for centuries.
Those are the best recipes. Passed down by generations. Nourishing people through centuries.
How to make barley soup
Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page. Substitutions are in the chapter below.
1. Gather your ingredients
FLAVOR BASE & HERBS: Extra virgin olive oil, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, dried chili or red pepper flakes, dried rosemary, and bay leaves.
BARLEY: We recommend using pearl barley as it cooks faster than other types of barley.
OTHER INGREDIENTS: Vegetable broth, dried green or brown lentils, canned or cooked beans (we use pinto or borlotti beans), frozen peas, potatoes, and crushed tomatoes.
2. Make the flavor base
Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add chopped onion, carrot, celery, and sauté on medium heat for 3 – 4 minutes.
Add pressed garlic, red pepper flakes, dried rosemary, and bay leaves, and sauté for one more minute. Stir often.
Tip: You can add a pinch of salt to the flavor base to help the veggies release their liquid, prevent burning, and increase flavor.
Rinse the pearled barley and dried lentils in a fine-mesh sift under running water and add them to the pot.
Stir them in and sauté for 1 – 2 minutes without adding liquid.
3. Simmer until tender
Pour the vegetable broth, crushed tomatoes, peeled potatoes cut into small dice, and the canned or cooked beans drained from their liquid.
Season with salt and black pepper.
Cover with a lid and bring to a boil.
Then crack the top open, lower the heat, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the barley, lentils, and potatoes are tender to your liking. Stir occasionally.
Five minutes before the soup is ready, stir in the frozen peas.
Taste and adjust for salt before serving the soup in a bowl with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil.
Optionally, you can sprinkle parmesan and a slice of crusty bread.
Substitutions
Extra virgin olive oil: Substitute regular olive oil.
Onion: You can use any color onion. Substitute 2 shallots for an onion.
Garlic: Fresh is best.
Carrot and celery: Best if not substituted. They are an essential part of the Italian flavor base or soffritto.
Dried rosemary: Substitute a spring of fresh rosemary or thyme.
Bay leaves: Substitute sage leaves or 1/2 teaspoon of an Italian herb mix.
Dried chilis: Substitute 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.
Pearl barley: You can substitute pearl barley with pearl farro.
Dried lentils: We recommend dried green or brown lentils. You can also use dried red or black lentils. Canned lentils work, too, but they won’t keep their shape the same way.
Beans: You can use canned beans drained of their liquid or dried beans that you previously soaked and cooked in water. Borlotti beans, pinto beans, and kidney beans are best in this barley soup.
Canned tomatoes: You can use crushed or diced tomatoes. Substitute tomato puree, fire-roasted tomatoes, or a pound of fresh cherry tomatoes cut in half.
Potatoes: They add irresistible creaminess to the broth. Substitute winter squash, such as kabocha, acorn, or butternut squash, peeled and cut into small bite-size dice.
Storage
Make ahead: Barley soup is excellent for meal prep. It gets even more flavorful on the second and third day, so go ahead and make a big batch for the week.
Refrigerator: Let the soup cool to room temperature. Transfer it to an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for 4 – 5 days.
Freezer: First, let the barley soup cool completely, then transfer it to a freezer-friendly container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Thaw: You can defrost it overnight in the fridge or with the help of a microwave.
Reheat: Warm the soup in a saucepan or the microwave with a splash of water.
Similar recipes
HEARTY SOUPS: Cabbage soup, kale soup, lentil stew, lentil soup, lentil pasta, minestrone, curry lentil soup, chickpea stew, chickpea soup, black bean soup, lentil vegetable soup, Harira soup, and tortellini soup.
For even more soup recipes, check out our soup category page or our compilation with 30+ healthy soup ideas.
LEGUME RECIPES: 30 easy bean recipes, 40 chickpea recipes, 25+ lentil recipes, 45 easy vegetarian dinners, and 30 high-protein vegetarian meals.
Barley Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 1 rib celery chopped
- 2 large carrots chopped
- 3 cloves garlic pressed
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 bay leaves
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes more or less to taste
- ½ cup pearl barley uncooked
- ½ cup dried lentils brown, green, red
- 6 cups vegetable broth or more if required to fully cook the barley. You can add 3 cups at a time if your pot is not big enough to fit 6 cups.
- 2 cans (15 ounces each) beans or 3 cups cooked beans. We recommend pinto, borlotti, or kidney beans.
- 1 can (15 ounces) crushed tomatoes
- 2 medium potatoes peeled and cut into small bite-size dice
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add 1 large onion, 1 rib celery, 2 large carrots (all chopped), and sauté on medium heat for 3 – 4 minutes.Add 3 cloves garlic (pressed), ½ teaspoon dried rosemary, 2 bay leaves, and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, and sauté for one more minute. Stir often.
- Rinse ½ cup pearl barley and ½ cup dried lentils in a fine-mesh sift under running water and add them to the pot.Stir them in and sauté for 1 – 2 minutes without adding liquid.
- Pour in 6 cups vegetable broth, 3 at a time if you pot is not large enough to fit all.Then add 1 can (15 ounces) crushed tomatoes, 2 cans (15 ounces each) beans (drained), 2 medium potatoes cut into small dice.Season with 1 teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper.
- Cover with a lid and bring to a boil.Then crack the top open, lower the heat, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the barley, lentils, and potatoes are tender to your liking. Stir occasionally.Five minutes before the soup is ready, stir in 1 cup frozen peas.
- Taste and adjust for salt before serving the soup in a bowl with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil.Optionally, you can sprinkle parmesan and a slice of crusty bread.
