I was on a college road trip when I had my first taste of Mushroom Barley Soup. My friends and I stopped at a roadside deli—I wish I could remember the name of the place. What I do remember is that piping hot bowl of delicious soup. It was love at first bite.
You can find this soup on most Jewish deli menus. The dish has roots in the Ashkenazi Jewish communities of Eastern Europe. Mushrooms were popular in these cold-weather countries because they could be harvested, dried, and stored for later use.
In my friend Etti Hadar’s family memoir, her Polish uncle Dov Levin talks about how his mother used to string up rows of mushrooms with a thread and needle in the attic. They would hang the mushrooms near the chimney; the heat of the stove would dry them out faster that way.
Barley was also plentiful and easy to grow in the Eastern European climate, making it a common addition to hearty winter dishes like soup and cholent. Barley’s history goes back even further; in fact, it is arguably the world’s first and most ancient cultivated grain. It is also one of the Seven Species mentioned in the Bible.
Ever since that fateful college road trip, I’ve worked on creating my own soup recipe to achieve what I consider the perfect balance of mushroom barley flavor. I’ve stuck to simple, natural ingredients.
Inspired by Uncle Dov’s memoir, I added dried mushrooms with their soaking liquid to the broth, along with fresh mushrooms seared golden brown. The combination adds complex flavor to an otherwise simple soup. A long, slow simmer reduces the broth, making the soup thick and rich.
This robust, filling soup makes a hearty lunch or dinner on a chilly autumn day. Despite being “comfort food,” it is surprisingly healthy. Barley is rich in dietary fiber and selenium. The grain also contains beta glucan, a complex sugar that can help to lower cholesterol. Enjoy!
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Mushroom Barley Soup
Ingredients
- 3 quarts chicken or mushroom stock (low sodium okay)
- 1 1/4 cups pearl barley
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 dried shitake mushrooms
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 cup chopped celery, including leaves
- 1 cup peeled and chopped carrots
- 2 cloves crushed garlic
- 1 pound white mushrooms, scrubbed and sliced
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Pour chicken or mushroom stock into a large stockpot and bring to a boil. Stir in the barley, add the bay leaves, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered. Set your timer for 2:15 (2 hours 15 minutes) starting now.
- While the soup simmers, place dried mushrooms in a separate small saucepan. Add 3 cups of water to the saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water boils, remove saucepan from heat and let the mushrooms soak for 20 minutes.
- Drain the mushroom water by straining it through a coffee filter (use a mesh strainer or colander to hold the filter). Reserve the mushroom water.
- Chop the soaked, softened mushrooms into small pieces and reserve.
- Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion to the skillet and sauté till softened.
- Add the celery and carrots and sauté for 5 more minutes till everything is browning and starting to caramelize.
- Add the soaked chopped dried mushroom pieces and crushed garlic, sauté for 2 more minutes. Your kitchen should smell really good right about now!
- Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Pour the strained mushroom broth into the skillet, bring to a boil, stir. Cook for 2 more minutes till mixture is hot and bubbly. Add the contents of the skillet to the simmering stockpot with the broth and barley.
- Without rinsing the skillet, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium high heat, tilting to coat the bottom of the pan. Spread half of the sliced white mushrooms in a single layer at the bottom of the skillet. Sprinkle them with salt and pepper and turn heat to high. Let the mushrooms sear without stirring.
- After 2 minutes, stir the mushrooms continuously for another 1-2 minutes until they are seared golden brown and shrink to about half their size.
- Pour the seared mushrooms into the soup pot. Heat the last 1 tbsp olive oil in the skillet and repeat the process for the remaining mushrooms. Add the rest of the seared mushrooms to the soup pot, stir to blend all ingredients.
- Reduce heat to a low simmer. Let the soup cook uncovered until your timer goes off (2 hours 15 minutes total cooking time), or until the barley is completely tender and the soup is nicely thickened. Add water during the simmer if the soup becomes overly thick. At the end of cooking, season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.
NOTES
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
Other Great Recipe Ideas
In Erika’s Kitchen: Winter Greens Soup with Mushrooms
The Pioneer Woman: French Onion Soup Stuffed Mushrooms
Simply Recipes: Mushroom Risotto
Kalyn’s Kitchen: Chicken Barley Soup
Weelicious: Barley, Chicken and Broccoli Salad
Absolutely the best!!! Gotta make this!!!
This is my third time. This time i lessened the salt in the broth step and little less on the seared mushrooms cause we need to watch our salt. Great directions.
Yum!
I rarely leave reviews. This was SO good though, I wanted to. I did add some extra dried mushrooms beyond what was called for (used mixed dried mushrooms from Costco). Also used a little bit of beef broth in addition to the chicken stock. Otherwise made as written and we can’t get enough. This recipe makes a large batch too, we froze half for an easy meal in the next couple weeks.
Just made this – absolutely delish. I didn’t have any dried mushrooms so I added a bit more mushroom stock and a dash of dark soy, paprika and fresh thyme to make up for it. Was a big hit in our house and my husband was literally eating it out of the pot – pretending he was just tasting it!
Amazing! Happy it was a hit. 🙂
I just made this recipe I’ve never had mushroom soup, not only was it delicious 🤤 this recipe was easy to make I made a sourdough bread a glass of wine yummy 🤤 I’d definitely would say if you like mushrooms this recipe is delicious thank you Mary
I have been making this recipe for years. It is wonderfully delicious. I add oyster mushrooms to the skillet with the onions, use baby bellas and mushroom broth. It a family request throughout the winter.
Wonderful soup! While I am sure it is good with chicken or vegetable stock, I substituted beef broth because I am accustomed to mushroom barley soup with a beef base. Using low-sodium beef broth gave the beef flavor without the fat of using meat.
Made exactly as is and it was fantastic! Do you think it would freeze well? How long will it last refrigerated? Thank you for another great dinner!
Yes it should freeze well, and it should last about 4 days refrigerated. Glad you enjoyed it!
This recipe reminds me of a jewish deli my mom would take me to just for this soup. It’s nice to know that I can now make it myself! Thanks for the wonderful soup and precious memories. I just had a bowl and could barely finish it. Thanks again!!
I made the soup exactly as written. The soup was very good but the beef was tough. I used meaty beef short ribs as written in recipe. I cooked soup on low simmer for 2 hours and then tried the meat but it was tough, so I cooked it for another hour. It was still tough. It was not soft and able to shred. What did I do wrong?
absolutely delicious. added a lot more veggies, covered the soup the whole time and also added smoked paprika. total winner, thank you so much~!~!
I’ve made this recipe so many times and these are my thoughts:
Firstly, I almost never have broth so I just use water and about 2tsp mushroom umami spice from Trader Joe’s. It’s perfect.
Secondly, I throw everything in the crock pot Friday night and serve it for lunch on Saturday. Everyone loves it and you don’t need to saute everything separately (although it’s always yummier when you do).
Thank you for sharing such an easy, yummy recipe!!
Delicious! I used a mixture of home made beef and chicken stock and added a couple of sprigs of thyme and a splash of cider vinegar to make the flavors pop a bit more. The cooking time is spot on. This soup is rich and hearty with a super silky broth and wonderful flavor.
So glad you enjoyed it Erin!
I have whole grain barley rather than pearled. Do you have any reccommendation for the substitution? I’m guessing I will need to par-cook the whole barley before adding it to the soup.
Hi Erin, whole barley can take 15-20 minutes longer to cook – try parboiling it for about 20 minutes, and then proceeding with the recipe and cooking until tender. If the soup seems to be getting too thick as you wait for it to become tender, you can add additional water to the soup as it cooks.
Can you make this without the dried Shitake mushrooms?
Yes, but you should substitute three additional cups of liquid – perhaps mushroom broth – and if the broth is salty, cut down on the added salt in the recipe to compensate. The soaked dried mushrooms add a lot of flavor here, so don’t substitute water… you will need something with umami to compensate.
Nutritional Facts: How much soup equals a Serving?
Made the soup and it turned out delicious! I added a splash of Sherry to the mushrooms during the searing. Also, added spinach during the last 2 minutes of cooking. I will definitely make it again!! 😃
I’m inclined to take more shortcuts when I make soup but this is a great recipe if you’re willing to make the effort.
This soup is as good or better than the soup at a Jewish Restaurant/Deli in Deerfield, IL. I’ve made this so many times and my family and friends love it. Thank you Tori!!
After one of the coldest nights in Boston ( -34o windchill ) I decided to make this on reading your reviews. Thank you from Boston. I made it and it came out the exact way I thought. I used White and Bella Mushrooms along with the other ingredients. Can’t wait to finish this pot cause I’m going to make another one.
I first stumbled over this recipe in 2015 and gave it 5 stars – which it fully deserves.
In addition to adding a lot more carrots, celery and mushrooms, I sometimes throw in a tablespoon or so of poultry seasoning to give it a little more flavor.
This is an absolute winner of a recipe, and I thank you once again, Tori, for so graciously sharing it with the world.
I just made this soup and it’s delicious. I used turkey stock from Thanksgiving, twice as much garlic, carrots, celery and dried mushrooms and in addition to the bay leaves used a spring of fresh rosemary. I too added paprika and it is lovely, thick and warming. Just right to start off the new year. Thanks for the recipe which reminded me of my childhood.