Comforting Beef Barley Soup Recipes

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven, such as Le Creuset. Add the oxtails, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes until browned all over. Remove the oxtails with a slotted spoon and reserve.
• Add the leeks, carrots, onion, celery, and garlic to the fat in the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, until the vegetables start to brown. Tie the thyme sprigs together with kitchen string and add to the pot along with the bay leaves. Return the oxtails to the pot and add the broth, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Raise the heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour. Discard the thyme bundle and the bay leaves, and skim off the fat.
• Meanwhile, bring 4 cups of water to a boil and add the barley. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, drain, and set aside.
• When the soup is ready, add the barley and cook the soup for another 15 or 20 minutes, until the barley is tender. Depending on the saltiness of the stock, the soup might need another teaspoon of salt and some pepper. Serve hot, with or without the oxtails.

Steps:

• In a 6-quart soup pot, heat 2 teaspoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the meat and brown evenly, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a paper towel-lined plate.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the remaining oil and the onion and cook until the onion is soft and translucent, about 10 minutes, scraping the pot to loosen any brown bits.
• Add the carrots and garlic and sweat 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1/2 cup of stock and scrape the bottom of the pot. Add the remaining stock, the meat, barley, and thyme and bring to a boil.
• Reduce the heat and simmer, skimming the pot occasionally, until the barley is cooked and the meat is tender, about 50 minutes.
• Ladle into deep bowls and serve, garnished with parsley.