Slow Cooker Beef Barley Soup with Carrots
Hearty beef and barley soup built on a French onion soup base, slow-cooked with carrots, tomatoes, and frozen vegetables. Tender beef stew meat simmers for hours until fall-apart soft, creating a deeply savory, warming one-pot meal perfect for cold weather.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon butter, Land O Lakes
- 1 pound beef stew meat, cut into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 2 carrot, medium, chopped, about 1 cup
- 2 cup water
- 2 10.5-ounce can French onion soupbeef broth mixed with caramelized onionssubstitute
requires browning onions separately
- ½ cup barley, mediumpearl barley1:1gluten-free alternative
pearl barley cooks slightly faster
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup corn, frozen
- 1 cup green beans, frozen
- salt(optional)
- pepper(optional)
Instructions
- 1
Melt butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until sizzling.
- 2
Add beef and garlic salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is browned.
- 3
Transfer beef and juices to slow cooker.
- 4
Stir in carrots, water, French onion soup, barley, diced tomatoes, corn, and green beans.
- 5
Cover and cook on Low for 5-6 hours or High for 4-5 hours, until meat is very tender.
- 6
Season with salt and pepper as desired.
Tips
Browning the beef in a skillet before slow cooking develops deep flavor and color.
Medium barley cooks through in the 5-6 hour Low setting; pearl barley may soften faster.
Good to Know
Refrigerate up to 3 days in an airtight container. Freeze up to 3 months.
Prepare through step 3 the night before; refrigerate beef and skillet drippings. Combine all ingredients in slow cooker in the morning.
Ladle into bowls; serve with crusty bread or oyster crackers.
Common Mistakes
Skip browning beef to avoid flat, one-dimensional flavor.
Use pearl barley without adjusting cook time to avoid mushy texture.
Overfill slow cooker to avoid uneven cooking and spillover.
Substitutions
Dairy-Free Swaps
Gluten-Free Swaps
General Alternatives
slightly longer cook time
requires browning onions separately