COOK: Mushroom Barley Soup with Lentils
- Mushroom Barley Soup Ingredients
- Kitchen Equipment Needed
- How to Make Mushroom Barley Soup with Lentils
- Storage & Serving Ideas
- Mushroom Barley Soup with Lentils
This mushroom barley soup recipe with lentils is perfect when you want to channel your inner Baba Yaga, stirring a pot of pottage over a simmering fire. It’s warm, earthy, and wholesome, and filling enough for a soup supper or a very hearty lunch or first course. This is sturdy fare, fit for filling the bowl of fairy tale woodcutters or urbane city-folk alike.
It’s also a pantry-friendly one-pot meal, that you can make from staples that are easy to keep on hand (even if you’re snowed in at a little cabin in the center of a dark enchanted wood).
This warming barley soup can be made with fresh cremini or oyster mushrooms, or a blend of fresh or dried wild or domestic mushrooms. If you are using dried mushrooms, re-hydrate them with a bit of boiling water or hot stock. It’s a great way to use some of your foraged stash of wild mushrooms (if you know how to safely identify them) or store-bought is fine!
I like to use a blend of wild mushrooms that includes button mushrooms, oysters, chanterelle, porcini or other boletes. A little bit of porcini mushroom or mushroom powder goes a long way but adds a depth of flavor and aroma that evokes a stroll through a soft forest floor carpeted with fresh fungi.
Mushroom Barley Soup Ingredients
broth or stock:
I used a quart of chicken stock and a quart of venison stock, but you can use beef stock or a mix of light and dark bone broth. For a vegan or vegetarian barley soup, use mushroom or vegetable stock.
You can substitute a high-quality bouillon base and hot water for the stock.
pearled barley:
Pearled barley has been tumbled to remove the outer layer of the grain, while still retaining most of the nutrients and fiber as well as the dense, chewy texture.
mirepoix:
I use a mixture of onion, celery, and carrot here, which add flavor, vitamins, and sweetness to the stew. You could use re-hydrated dried vegetables in a pinch, though fresh are better.
Saute the vegetables in either butter or olive oil. Use olive oil for a vegan barley soup or if you are otherwise avoiding dairy or want to reduce the saturated fat.
mushrooms:
You can use a blend of fresh domestic or wild mushrooms, or re-hydrated dried mushrooms.
lentils:
If you can get black beluga lentils, they’re best here. You could also use French green lentils, or standard brown lentils. The smaller black or green lentils will cook faster than the larger brown ones.
seasoning:
A bit of soy sauce adds umami and salty richness, along with salt and freshly ground black pepper. I use dried herbs in this soup, but you can substitute fresh thyme, bay, and marjoram if you have them. Adjust quantities to taste.
If you are making the soup with fresh button or cremini mushrooms, add a half teaspoon or so of umami powder (powdered mushrooms) if you have any in your pantry.
Kitchen Equipment Needed
soup pot:
I use a large stainless pot with a heavy bottom. You can also use a dutch oven, or make this soup in an 8 quart Instant Pot.
cutting board & sharp knife:
You’ll need a cutting board and a good, sharp knife to cut your vegetables, and the fresh mushrooms if you’re using them.
How to Make Mushroom Barley Soup with Lentils
one: prep ingredients
- Trim the root end and tops of the onions, halve them, and peel them. Cut them into medium dice (1/2″).
- Wash the carrot, trim the root and tip, peel, and cut into small to medium dice (1/4″-1/2″).
- Wash any grit from the celery, trim, and cut into strips lengthwise before dicing.
- Peel and chop the garlic cloves.
- If you are using fresh mushrooms, brush them clean and thinly slice or chop them.
- If you are using dried mushrooms, pour about 2 cups of boiling water over them in a heat-resistant container, cover, and let them re-hydrate. I like to add the dried herbs to the mushrooms while they soak.
two: saute mirepoix
- Heat a large soup pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat, and add the butter or olive oil. If you are using butter, let it just begin to bubble and brown.
- Quickly add the onions and the salt to the pan. Stir well, and saute for 10-12 minutes, or until the onions begin to brown around the edges.
- Add the celery to the pan, and stir. Sweat them in the pan for another minute or two, then add the chopped carrot and garlic to the pan.
- If you are using fresh mushrooms, add those and saute until they release their moisture.
three: add barley & broth
- Add the dried barley and lentils to the pan, stir a few times, and then add the re-hydrated mushrooms along with their soaking liquid.
- Add the two quarts of broth along with another quart of hot water.
- Add the remaining seasonings and stir to mix.
four: simmer & serve
- Cover the pot, reduce the heat, and let simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until the barley and lentils are tender. Stir occasionally.
- If the soup is thicker than you’d like, thin it with additional broth or hot water.
- You can also add a splash of heavy cream or whole milk to make this a richer creamy soup.
Storage & Serving Ideas
Serve the soup hot, or keep warm in a crock pot or over a very low simmer burner for up to an hour or two. Promptly chill any leftovers.
The barley and lentils will absorb additional moisture as they sit, so you may need to add more broth, water, milk, or cream to thin the soup when you reheat it, or keep it thick as a stew.
You can make this soup up to four days in advance, or portion and freeze for easy meal-prep. Freeze in individual portions, or divide into quart deli containers for homemade freezer meals.
Mushroom Barley Soup with Lentils
Equipment
- 1 large soup pot or dutch oven
- cutting board & sharp knife
- measuring cup
Ingredients
- 2 quarts beef, chicken, or vegetable stock (divided) use mushroom or vegetable stock for vegetarian/vegan soup
- 1 quart boiling water
- 1 cup dried mushrooms (about 1 oz, or substitute 2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms)
- 2 tbsp butter or olive oil use olive oil for vegan soup
- 2 cups diced onion 2-3 small to medium or 1 large
- 2 cups diced celery 4 large stalks
- ½ cup diced carrot
- 3 large garlic cloves, chopped
- 1½ cup dry pearled barley
- ½ cup dried lentils black beluga or brown lentils
seasoning blend
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp kosher salt or to taste
- 1 tsp dried thyme leaves
- ¾ tsp black pepper or to taste
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp dried marjoram leaves
Instructions
one: prep ingredients
- Trim the root end and tops of the onions, halve them, and peel them. Cut them into medium dice (1/2″).
- Wash the carrot, trim the root and tip, peel, and cut into small to medium dice (1/4″-1/2″).
- Wash any grit from the celery, trim, and cut into strips lengthwise before dicing.
- Peel and chop the garlic cloves.
- If you are using fresh mushrooms, brush them clean and thinly slice or chop them.
- If you are using dried mushrooms, pour about 2 cups of boiling water over them in a heat-resistant container, cover, and let them re-hydrate. I like to add the dried herbs to the mushrooms while they soak.
two: saute mirepoix
- Heat a large soup pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat, and add the butter or olive oil. If you are using butter, let it just begin to bubble and brown.
- Quickly add the onions and the salt to the pan. Stir well, and saute for 10-12 minutes, or until the onions begin to brown around the edges.
- Add the celery to the pan, and stir. Sweat them in the pan for another minute or two, then add the chopped carrot and garlic to the pan.
- If you are using fresh mushrooms, add those and saute until they release their moisture.
three: add barley & broth
- Add the dried barley and lentils to the pan, stir a few times, and then add the re-hydrated mushrooms along with their soaking liquid.
- Add the two quarts of broth along with another quart of hot water.
- Add the remaining seasonings and stir to mix.
four: simmer & serve
- Cover the pot, reduce the heat, and let simmer for 30-45 minutes, or until the barley and lentils are tender. Stir occasionally.
- If the soup is thicker than you’d like, thin it with additional broth or hot water.
- You can also add a splash of heavy cream or whole milk to make this a richer creamy soup.
Notes
Nutrition
Liked this? Try these recipes!
- French Onion Soup (Pressure-Canning or Freezer Meal-Prep Recipe)
- Zuppa Toscana – Sausage, Potato, Kale and White Bean Tuscan Soup
- Smoky White Bean Soup with Pork & Collards (Instant Pot Recipe)
- Hearty Chicken & Mushroom Stew or Pot Pie Filling
- Wheat Pappardelle Pasta with Pork, Mushroom, and Black Olive Ragu and Sauteed Swiss Chard
- Wild Blewits & Braised Chicken Thighs, White Wine Cream Sauce, and Kale Orzo
- Red Lentil Spaghetti Aglio e Olio with Turkey & Mushrooms
- Fun Guys – How to Can Marinated Mushrooms