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    Home » Recipes » Soups

    Oct 20, 2022 · Modified: Jan 13, 2023 by Andrea· This post may contain affiliate links · 11 Comments

    Mushroom Barley Soup

    Jump to Recipe

    Skip the beef and dive into this hearty vegan Mushroom Barley Soup. Packed with flavourful mushrooms and aromatics this soup is a welcome comfort on a chilly day!

    2 bowls of mushroom barley soup with spoons on the side garnished with fresh parsley.

    Although you can add beef to this soup the mushrooms and pearly barley add enough "meatiness" to keep even the meat-eaters coming back for more. It's packed with nutrition and is super satisfying!

    Jump to:
    • Pro-Tips for making this soup
    • 🥘Ingredients
    • 🔪Instructions
    • 🥣Substitutions
    • Variations
    • Storage
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • More Soup Recipes
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    Pro-Tips for making this soup

    1. Use dried and fresh mushrooms for a deeper flavour. Porcini mushrooms are the most flavourful but dried shitake would also work.
    2. Don't skimp on the mushrooms. This soup is for mushroom lovers! Chopped and sliced gives a better texture to the soup.
    3. Rinse the barley well. Rinsing the barley will make it less starchy in your soup. If you want your soup to be even less starchy, pre-cook the barley in boiling, salted water for 20-30 minutes or until desired doneness is reached. Cooking the barley in the soup gives it a thick and creamy texture.
    4. Slicing and cooking half the mushrooms first and chopping and cooking the rest in the soup provides depth of flavour and texture

    🥘Ingredients

    Here's what you will need to make this recipe. For quantities see the recipe card below.

    all ingredients to make the soup laid out on a white wood board.
    • olive oil
    • white onion
    • carrots
    • celery
    • cremini mushrooms
    • dried porcini mushrooms
    • tomato paste
    • pearly barley
    • fresh thyme
    • smoked paprika
    • vegetable broth
    • fresh parsley

    🔪Instructions

    See recipe card below for full detailed instructions.

    Step 1 - Cook the sliced mushrooms first in olive oil until softened. Remove and set aside. These less cooked mushrooms will add a different texture to the final soup. Add more oil to the pan and sautee the onion, carrots, celery and chopped mushrooms until soft.

    frying the sliced mushrooms in a large soup pot.
    frying the rest of the vegetables in a large soup pot.

    Step 2 - Add the barley, garlic, tomato paste, smoked paprika, chopped thyme, salt and pepper. Stir well. Add chopped rehydrated mushrooms plus the liquid along with the broth and bring it all to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer and continue cooking for 20-30 minutes until barley is cooked.

    barley, spices and tomato paste added to the pot.
    after broth has been added to the pot.

    Step 3 - Add the sliced mushrooms and fresh parsley. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

    finished pot of soup.

    🥣Substitutions

    This post contains affiliate links. For more information please read my Disclosure Policy.

    • White onion - can be substituted with yellow, Spanish, sweet, red onion or leeks.
    • Cremini mushrooms - use any mushrooms you like. A variety of mushrooms would be delicious. I just wanted to keep it simple with the easiest to find variety with the most flavour.
    • Dried porcini mushrooms - feel free to omit the dried mushrooms. They are an added flavour bonus but if you can't find them or just aren't interested just skip. Dried shitake mushrooms or mixed wild mushrooms would work well here but double the amount as they aren't quite as flavourful.
    • Pearly barley - hulled barley can be used but will have to be soaked overnight and will take longer to cook (about 45 mins to 1 hour). Any of your favourite grains can work in this soup such as wild rice, black rice, farro, quinoa or even lentils! Cooking times will vary depending on which substitute you use. I recommend cooking your chosen substitute separately, following package directions, then adding to the soup in order to make sure it's cooked properly and doesn't make the soup too starchy.
    • Fresh thyme - half the amount of dried thyme can be used.
    • Smoked paprika - I like the intense smokiness of Spanish smoked paprika and always have a tin of La Chinata Sweet Smoked Paprika in my spice cupboard. but feel free to use regular paprika increasing the amount to 1 tsp.
    • Vegetable broth - chicken or beef broth are also delicious if you aren't vegetarian.

    Variations

    For meat lovers - You can easily add your favourite leftover protein to this soup. Reduce the mushrooms by half and add in 2 cups of shredded leftover chicken, turkey, beef, lamb, or pork.

    Gluten-Free - Barley contains gluten so if you are following a gluten free diet substitute the barley for any gluten free grain of your choice or even beans or lentils!

    Add some greens - If you want to take the nutritional profile of this soup to the next level add in some of your favourite chopped leafy greens such as spinach or arugula. Stir them in at the end and let cook until wilted.

    one bowl of mushroom barley soup garnished with fresh parsley with a spoon in the bowl.

    Storage

    This hearty soup will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days and frozen for several months. Make sure the soup has cooled completely before freezing.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Should you cook barley before adding it to soup?

    Cooking barley in soup creates a thicker, creamier texture and requires extra liquid. If you don't want the barley to thicken the soup cook it separately by boiling it in salted water for 20-30 minutes. Drain, rinse, and add it to the soup.

    Do you have to soak barley for soup?

    Pearl barley doesn't require soaking. Just a thorough rinse. Hulled barley should be soaked overnight before adding to your soup and will require extra cooking time.

    Can you overcook barley in soup?

    Just like any grain barley can be overcooked. When this happens it becomes very soft and disintegrates into the soup.

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    Tried this recipe? I would love it if you could leave a star rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and/or a comment below. You can also follow me on social media here on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!

    Want to say thank you?

    📖 Recipe

    one bowl of soup garnished with fresh herbs.

    Mushroom Barley Soup

    This hearty vegan soup will even please the meat eaters!
    4.80 from 15 votes
    Print Pin Rate Save Saved!
    Course: Soup
    Cuisine: All
    Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8 servings
    Calories: 194kcal
    Author: Andrea Mut
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    Ingredients

    • 10 g (⅓ oz) dried porcini mushrooms
    • 680 g (1 ½ lbs) cremini mushrooms, cleaned
    • 2 tablespoon olive oil
    • 1 large onion, finely diced
    • 2 carrots, finely diced
    • 2 celery stalks, finely diced
    • 1 cup pearl barley, rinsed well and drained
    • 4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
    • 1 ½ teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
    • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
    • 2 teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
    • 8 cups vegetable, chicken, or beef broth
    • A handful of fresh parsley, chopped

    Instructions

    • Place dried mushrooms in a dish and cover with ½ cup boiling water. Let sit for 15 minutes. Chop mushrooms and reserve liquid.
    • Divide the cremini mushrooms in half. Thinly slice one half and chop the other half into ¼ - ½-inch pieces and place in separate bowls. This creates different textures in the finished soup.
    • Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add sliced mushrooms and cook, stirring, until softened. Remove mushrooms and set aside.
    • Add another tbsp. olive oil to the pan along with onions, carrots, celery, and chopped mushrooms. Cook and stir until all the vegetables are soft.
    • Add pearl barley, garlic, tomato paste, smoked paprika, chopped thyme, salt and pepper. Stir to coat everything in the tomato/spice mixture.
    • Add chopped rehydrated mushrooms and the liquid plus broth. Bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
    • Add in cooked, sliced mushrooms and parsley. Stir and taste. Adjust seasonings as necessary.
    • As it sits the barley will absorb the broth so it will thicken further. Feel free to add more broth to reach the consistency you like.

    Notes

    STORAGE - This hearty soup will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days and frozen for several months. Make sure the soup has cooled completely before freezing.
    For substitutions and variations see above post.
    NUTRITIONAL FACTS - Please note that these calculations are an estimate only and have not been approved by a registered dietitian. I use an online nutritional calculator from My Fitness Pal to calculate the numbers.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1serving | Calories: 194kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 1376mg | Potassium: 588mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g
    Tried this recipe?Mention @MyPocketKitchen or tag #mypocketkitchen!

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    Comments

      4.80 from 15 votes (8 ratings without comment)

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    1. eva says

      February 27, 2023 at 12:01 pm

      5 stars
      This was a lovely soup. We made it with purple carrots, and so it took on a deep maroon colour. The mushrooms satisfied the 'meaty' taste suggested by the deep colour. The kids loved it as well. Very hearty.

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      • Andrea says

        February 27, 2023 at 2:15 pm

        I'm so happy you enjoyed it Eva! Thank you for commenting

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    2. Tamy says

      January 29, 2023 at 12:39 pm

      5 stars
      I absolutely LOVE this soup - and so does my family❣️ Barley is one of my favourites, and the mushroomy taste is to die for. Love love love it!

      Quick question- does mincing vs chopping garlic have a big effect on taste in a recipe? I’ll be honest, I usually mince because I’m too lazy to fiddle with the cloves - LOL.
      (BTW I ALWAYS take way longer to prep than your stated time. I guess I’m a slow chopper 😂 - but I love all the small pieces! Totally worth the effort!😉❤️)

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      • Andrea says

        January 29, 2023 at 4:30 pm

        Hi Tamy!
        I'm so happy everyone is enjoying the barley soup! Mincing garlic will have a stronger flavour and can burn more easily so those are the only things to take into consideration. The rest is up to you! 😊

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    3. Joanne D Weiler says

      October 31, 2022 at 6:14 pm

      4 stars
      Excellent! My family love beef barley soup. I made Andrea's recipe on Oct 26th and gave some to my daughter who had covid. She said she loved the soup and it was almost as good as the beef barley soup my step-mother used to make. My step-mother passed away last year and her birthday was on Oct 26, so my daughter said the soup was a tribute to her. Great compliment for you Andrea

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      • Andrea says

        November 01, 2022 at 7:11 am

        I'm honoured to be a part of that tribute. So happy you all enjoyed it!

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    4. Arlene says

      October 28, 2022 at 8:07 am

      5 stars
      Incredibly rich and deep flavour! Definitely will be adding this little number to my winter rotation. Andrea, you are a wonderful chef! Thankyou !

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      • Andrea says

        October 28, 2022 at 8:20 am

        Thanks so much! So happy you enjoyed it!

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    5. Edith says

      October 23, 2022 at 3:08 pm

      5 stars
      This soup is delicious! I added cooked chicken to the soup.
      Thank you , Andrea for sharing this wonderful soup
      Edith Dewolde

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    6. Tara says

      October 23, 2022 at 3:00 pm

      5 stars
      Made this yesterday and it is delicious!! I couldn’t eat it fast enough!

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    7. Stephanie Saville says

      October 21, 2022 at 8:53 pm

      5 stars
      Just made this and we LOVE it - a veg meal that tastes like its got beef in it!

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    Andrea from My Pocket Kitchen

    Hello and welcome to My Pocket Kitchen! I'm Andrea, a professionally trained Chef & Pastry Chef . Here you will find easy, step by step recipes that are packed with wholesome, nutrient rich ingredients. Hope you have fun! Read More…

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