Who doesn’t love a hearty barley soup? This one is made even heartier with the inclusion of 2 different kinds of mushrooms, as well as fleshy Swiss chard. It’s plenty filling on its own, but if you prefer to add a little more protein, you can add strips of tempeh to keep it vegan or some cooked shredded chicken breast or lean shredded beef if you prefer.
Ingredients:
- ½ oz dried porcini or shiitake mushrooms, rinsed clean
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 2 teaspoons avocado oil
- ½ cup shallots (or yellow onion), chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ lb cremini or white mushrooms, chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)
- ¼ fine sea salt, plus more, to taste
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more, to taste
- 3 cups vegetable broth (*Or chicken bone broth if not vegan.)
- ¾ cup potted barley or pearled barley (*Potted barley is more nutritious but should be soaked overnight in 3 parts water, 1 part barley before cooking.)
- 1 tablespoon double-concentrated tomato paste
- 3 cups water
- 2 cups rainbow chard, chopped
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 8 oz sliced tempeh, chicken meatballs, cooked shredded chicken or lean cooked shredded beef
Directions:
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the wine to a simmer. Remove from the heat and add the porcini or shiitake mushrooms. Let stand for 15 minutes, then drain them over a bowl, reserving the liquid, and finely chop.
In a large, heavy pot, heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots (or yellow onions), chard stems and garlic and sauté until the shallots are wilted, 3-5 minutes. Add the cremini/white mushrooms, thyme, the ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook until the cremini/white mushrooms release their liquid and begin to brown, 4-5 minutes. Add the reserved mushroom soaking liquid and bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the pan bottom.
Add the broth, barley, tomato paste, water and the chopped porcini to the pot. Cover and simmer until the barley is tender to the bite, 45-50 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
4 Purée about 1 cup of the soup in a blender. Return the soup to the pot, heat until just hot and stir in the lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve immediately.
Did you make this vegan keto mushroom barley and chard soup recipe? If so, please let me know how it goes in the comments. Or if you share pics of your creations on Instagram, please tag me so I can see them. Enjoy! :)
