Name: Slow Cooker Mushroom Barley Soup
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 6 h 15 min
Total time: 6 h 40 min
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon Olive oil; 1 pound Cremini mushrooms, sliced; 1 onion Yellow onion, diced; 2 carrots Carrots, diced small; 2 ribs Celery ribs, diced; 3 cloves Garlic cloves, minced; 3/4 cup Pearled barley, rinsed; 6 cups Low-sodium vegetable broth; 1 teaspoon Dried thyme; 1 leaf Dried bay leaf; 1/2 teaspoon Fine salt; 1/4 teaspoon Black pepper; 2 cups Chopped kale leaves, stems removed; 1 tablespoon Fresh lemon juice

Description

Six bowls of mushroom and pearled-barley broth with a little kale.

Ingredients

Scale

1 tablespoon Olive oil
1 pound Cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 onion Yellow onion, diced
2 carrots Carrots, diced small
2 ribs Celery ribs, diced
3 cloves Garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup Pearled barley, rinsed
6 cups Low-sodium vegetable broth
1 teaspoon Dried thyme
1 leaf Dried bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon Fine salt
1/4 teaspoon Black pepper
2 cups Chopped kale leaves, stems removed
1 tablespoon Fresh lemon juice

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Instructions

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a wide skillet. Brown 1 lb sliced cremini mushrooms in batches over medium-high heat about 8–10 minutes until their released liquid cooks away and edges color. Transfer to a 6-quart slow cooker; this pre-browning stage is part of the method, not a dump-and-go claim.
Add 1 diced onion, 2 diced carrots, 2 diced celery ribs, 3 minced garlic cloves, 3/4 cup rinsed pearled barley, 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 tsp fine salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Cover and cook on low about 5–6 hours until barley is tender but still distinct. Follow appliance fill guidance.
Remove the bay leaf. Stir in 2 cups chopped stemmed kale, cover and cook about 5–10 minutes until wilted; this final interval overlaps the last portion of the conservative slow-cooker clock. Stir in 1 tbsp lemon juice after heat and taste for salt and thickness.
Ladle into six bowls. If barley has absorbed more liquid than expected, record the actual brand, cooked volume and broth adjustment for a revised tested recipe rather than adding an unmeasured amount to this handoff. Cool leftovers promptly and reheat separately from the slow cooker.

Notes

Recipe-development draft; not kitchen-tested. Timing and yield are estimates. Nutrition has not been calculated.

Untested conservative estimate: mushroom browning 10 minutes, slow cook on low up to 6 hours, kale 5 minutes near the end. Actual cooker and barley brand vary.

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 375 minutes
Category: Soups

Nutrition

Serving Size: One sixth of the finished soup