Lunch

Beef and Barley Soup

Name: Beef and Barley Soup
Prep time: 25 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 400 g Lean beef, trimmed; 400 g Cooked pearl barley; 200 g Carrot; 150 g Onion; 200 g Mushrooms; 1.2 litres Beef stock; 30 g Tomato purée; 1 tbsp, about 11 g Olive oil; A few sprigs Fresh thyme; One Bay leaf

Diced beef, mushrooms and root vegetables in a thyme broth with pearl barley. Four bowls of 342 kcal with 28 g of protein.

Calories: 342kcal
Protein: 28g
Fat: 9g
Carbs: 38g

Per serving, makes 4. 25 minutes of work, then forty-five minutes simmering. Published 8 September 2026.

Allergens

Gluten
Celery

Nearly every stock cube and pot lists celery.

Flags follow UK labelling rules and come from the ingredients as listed, not from any particular brand. Check the packet before cooking for somebody with an allergy.

Recipe in pictures

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Beef and Barley Soup, plated and ready to serve. — The finished recipe. Beef and Barley Soup

Ingredients 1 to 6 for beef and barley soup arranged separately on a dark worktop. — Ingredients 1 to 6. 400 g Lean beef, trimmed (Weighed raw. The same piece weighed after cooking has lost water, so the protein per gram is higher and the total would come out about a quarter over.). 400 g Cooked pearl barley (Cooked weight.). 200 g Carrot. 150 g Onion. 200 g Mushrooms. 1.2 litres Beef stock (Made up from a cube or a pot.)

Ingredients 7 to 10 for beef and barley soup arranged separately on a dark worktop. — Ingredients 7 to 10. 30 g Tomato purée. 1 tbsp, about 11 g Olive oil. A few sprigs Fresh thyme. One Bay leaf

Beef and Barley Soup, preparation step 1: Cut the beef into 1.5 cm dice, pat dry and brown it hard in the oil in two batches. Set aside. — Step 1. Cut the beef into 1.5 cm dice, pat dry and brown it hard in the oil in two batches. Set aside.

Beef and Barley Soup, preparation step 2: Add the onion, carrot and mushrooms, all chopped, to the same pan and cook for eight minutes, scraping up the browned bits as they release liquid. — Step 2. Add the onion, carrot and mushrooms, all chopped, to the same pan and cook for eight minutes, scraping up the browned bits as they release liquid.

Beef and Barley Soup, preparation step 3: Stir in the tomato purée, then return the beef with the stock, thyme and bay. Simmer with the lid ajar for forty-five minutes, until the beef is tender. — Step 3. Stir in the tomato purée, then return the beef with the stock, thyme and bay. Simmer with the lid ajar for forty-five minutes, until the beef is tender.

The finished beef and barley soup. — Step 4. Stir in the cooked barley and heat for five minutes. Taste for salt and pepper.

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Ingredients

Lean beef, trimmed400 g
Weighed raw. The same piece weighed after cooking has lost water, so the protein per gram is higher and the total would come out about a quarter over.
Cooked pearl barley400 g
Cooked weight.
Carrot200 g
Onion150 g
Mushrooms200 g
Beef stock1.2 litres
Made up from a cube or a pot.
Tomato purée30 g
Olive oil1 tbsp, about 11 g
Fresh thymeA few sprigs
Bay leafOne

Method

Cut the beef into 1.5 cm dice, pat dry and brown it hard in the oil in two batches. Set aside.
Add the onion, carrot and mushrooms, all chopped, to the same pan and cook for eight minutes, scraping up the browned bits as they release liquid.
Stir in the tomato purée, then return the beef with the stock, thyme and bay. Simmer with the lid ajar for forty-five minutes, until the beef is tender.
Stir in the cooked barley and heat for five minutes. Taste for salt and pepper.

Worth knowing

Browning in batches is the difference between beef soup and grey stew. A crowded pan steams the meat instead.
Barley keeps swelling in the fridge. By the third day it is nearer a stew than a soup, which some people prefer. Loosen it with hot water if not.

Other lunch recipes that share ingredients with this one, or every lunch between 300 and 450 calories a serving.

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Macros are calculated from the weights listed above using standard food composition values, and will shift with your own brands and measuring. Weigh what you can. This is a recipe, not dietary advice. The full health disclaimer is below.