Mushroom and Barley Soup
Barley and mushrooms are the base of soups all across Poland, Russia, and Ukraine, a cheap and filling pot built for long winters. The flavor comes almost entirely from technique rather than from meat or salt. A small handful of dried porcini, soaked, gives up a dark and savory liquid that becomes the stock, fresh mushrooms browned hard in the dry pot add body and chew, and hulled barley thickens the whole thing as it releases its starch. A spoonful of tamari at the end brings a deep, savory note for almost no sodium, and dill stirred in at the finish is the signature. It thickens overnight into something close to a stew, so make the full pot.
Ingredients
- 1/2 oz Dried porcini
- 12 oz Cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 3/4 cup Hulled barley, rinsed
- 1 whole Yellow onions, diced
- 2 wholes Carrots (cooking), diced
- 2 stalks Celery, diced
- 2 wholes Potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch dice
- 3 cloves Garlic, minced
- 2 wholes Bay leaves
- 1 tsp Dried marjoram
- 1 tbsp Low-sodium tamari
- 1/4 cup Dill, chopped
- 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns, freshly ground
Method
- Cover the dried porcini with 1.5 cups (355 ml) boiling water and soak 15 minutes. Lift them out, chop them, and keep the soaking liquid: that dark liquid is the backbone of the soup, carrying more mushroom flavor than the mushrooms themselves. Pour it in carefully at the end and leave the last spoonful behind, since grit settles there.
- Sweat the onion, carrot, and celery in a splash of water in a large pot over medium heat until soft, about 8 minutes, adding more water whenever it looks dry. This slow softening with no oil builds the sweet vegetable base every good soup starts from.
- Push the vegetables aside and add the sliced cremini to the dry part of the pot. Let them sit without stirring for a few minutes so they release their water and start to brown. Browning the mushrooms is what turns them meaty and deep instead of pale and rubbery, so give them the heat and the time.
- Add the garlic, chopped porcini, barley, potatoes, bay leaves, marjoram, and black pepper. Pour in the reserved porcini liquid and 6 cups (1.4 L) water. Bring to a boil, then simmer covered until the barley is tender and chewy and the potatoes are soft, 40 to 45 minutes.
- Stir in the tamari at the end rather than the start. A single tablespoon adds a savory, almost beefy depth for very little sodium, and adding it late keeps that flavor bright. Finish with the dill, which is the herb that makes this soup taste Eastern European. Add water to loosen; the barley keeps drinking it up as the soup sits.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 190 calories, 8 g protein, 8 g fiber, 140 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
