Spring Chicken & Barley Soup
photo by januarybride
- Ready In:
- 1hr 5mins
- Ingredients:
- 16
- Yields:
-
8 cups
- Serves:
- 4-6
ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1⁄2 cup finely chopped onion
- 1⁄2 cup finely chopped celery
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 6 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
- 1 large chicken breast, skin removed, trimmed (8-10 ounces)
- 1⁄3 cup pearl barley
- 1⁄3 cup shredded fresh spinach
- 1⁄3 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup trimmed and diagonally sliced asparagus (1/4 inch thick)
- 1⁄2 cup thawed frozen peas
- 1⁄2 teaspoon coarse salt
- fresh ground pepper
- 1⁄2 cup lightly packed torn fresh basil leaf
- 1 strip orange zest (1/2 by 2 inches)
directions
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat; add onion and celery and cook, stirring, until beginning to soften, 2 to 4 minutes.
- Add garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add broth, chicken and barley. Bring to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook over low heat until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate with a slotted spoon.
- Return the broth to a simmer and cook until the barley is tender, 20 to 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, shred the chicken or cut into bite-size pieces; discard the bone.
- When the barley is done, add the chicken, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes with juice, asparagus, peas, salt and a grinding of pepper; return to a simmer.
- Cover and cook over low heat until the asparagus is tender, about 5 minutes more.
- Gather basil and orange zest and finely chop together.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle each serving with a generous pinch of the basil mixture.
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Reviews
-
What a beautiful flavor! I'll admit, I'm a bit of a salt fanatic in soups...but I only added what was written to this soup. WOW! Forget the salt...the orange makes this soup. I added a few extra veggies- fresh carrots, which I added in step one. I also used sliced sugar snap peas with the pods instead of frozen peas, and added them with the broth to boil. Since I used quick barley, I added it toward the end. My chicken was already cleaned and diced from breasts, so I just boiled it with the soup. Extra broth to compensate for the extra veggies and chicken...and the zest of a whole orange. SO GOOD!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
januarybride
Saint Louis, Missouri