🐓🥕🍲Chicken, Vegetable and Barley Soup.

I only recently used barley for the first time and now I am a convert to barley soup. It's so satisfying and nourishing that I honestly can't wait to cook with it again.

⚕️Hippocrates, Greek physician born c 460BC and regarded the father of medicine, had great respect for barley in one form or another. It seems to have been one of those universal medicaments.

This recipe below serves about 4-6, depending on how big your bowl or your appetite is.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (that's what I personally prefer)
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 brown onion, minced
• 2 medium carrots, chopped into small pieces or in rounds
• 3 celery stalks, chopped finely
• 1 zucchini, chopped into small pieces
• 1 desiree or nicola potato, cut into small pieces
• 1 tomato, grated or chopped
• 200g fresh peas
• 3/4 cup pearl barley, washed
• 400g skinless chicken breast or thigh fillets (or if you are making your own chicken stock, use the cooked chicken meat from the process)
• 4 cups chicken stock, or more
• 4 cups water
• 3 sprigs of thyme
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 bay leaves
• handful of parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper, to taste

Method

• warm the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the diced onion, carrot, celery, potato and zucchini. Cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes.
• add garlic, thyme, oregano, bay leaves, and stir for about another minute. 
• add the barley, tomato, parsley and stir well. 
• then add 8 cups of hot water and stock (or make it all stock if you wish), the chicken and a decent amount salt and pepper. Make sure the chicken and vegetables are covered with liquid. Raise the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, then cover the pot, reduce heat and cook gently for about 40 mins. Skim as required.
• add the peas at this stage and cook for a further 10 mins, Turn off the heat, remove the chicken and shred the flesh before adding it back to the pot. remove the thyme sprigs and the bay leaves.
• salt and pepper to your taste.
• divide into bowls, drizzle with more extra virgin olive oil
• serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese for more flavour if you like.

Notes

• You may need to add more stock at the end to get it to your desired consistency. Some people like it thick and others not so thick. 
• Also, if you can't tolerate fresh garlic, you may want to try garlic infused oil which is usually suitable for garlic sensitive people. We sell a high grade one from Pukara Estate. 
• You could easily substitute some lamb shanks for the chicken, or chickpeas to make it vegetarian.
• Chopped spinach or kale would go nicely too, or even some chilli, ginger and turmeric for an extra kick.
• If you really can’t be bothered chopping your soup (or stir fry)vegetables, 😀we have them freshly cut for you