This soup features our new Purple Barley from Shelley and Tony at Against The Grain Farm in Ontario. It's a simple soup that combines many of our favourite things. The barley is pre-cooked in this recipe and adds just the right amount of chew.
Miso Vegetable Barley Soup1/2 cup dry Flourist Organic Purple Barley, cooked (about 1.5 cups cooked)
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 large white onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced into half moons
2 medium carrots, peeled, halved and sliced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large can (28oz. or 798g) whole peeled tomatoes
1/4 large head green cabbage, thinly sliced (4 cups chopped)
1 bunch green curly kale, stemmed and chopped
4 cups (1 litre) Vegetable Broth
1 tbsp dry or fresh parsley
1 tbsp honey
1/3 cup dark miso
More salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
First, cook the dry barley in plenty of water (about 8 cups) according to the directions for Farro here. The barley should be ready in about 1 hour or less. When cooked, drain and rinse until ready to use.
In a large soup pot or dutch oven, heat the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion, celery, carrots and salt and cook for 5-7 minutes, until the vegetables are glistening. Add the chopped garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes more, until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the tomatoes, vegetable broth, cabbage and cooked barley, and bring to a boil with the lid on with the heat on high. Once the mixture is boiling, turn the heat down to medium-high (enough to keep a gentle rolling simmer) and cook for 25 minutes with the lid slightly ajar. Stir every a few times during the cooking process.
Add the kale and cook for 2-3 minutes until the greens are wilted and still bright green. Add the dried or fresh parsley, miso and honey and stir to incorporate with the heat off and the lid on.
Season to taste with black pepper, optional olive oil or butter for the soup bowls, and serve hot.
15 comments
Wonderful to hear Shirley! Your substitutions and additions sound wonderful!
Yes, we definitely can make a bigger effort to include serving sizes on our recipes! Your request is noted! This soup makes a fairly generous amount as I am sure you noticed, about 6-8 generous servings or a 5 quart soup pot. So glad it was a hit!
We just slurped heaping bowls of this and pronounce it as outstanding. I did not have celery, so I added green beans that were cut into 1" lengths and added them at the end so to preserve their vibrant green color (just a minute or so before adding the kale). I also added small diced extra-firm tofu when I added the tomatoes as I found them in a fridge clean out. I added about 1/4 cup of honey as it needed more sweet.
To answer Nancy Stevens’ question about locating Miso: Most major grocery stores such as Safeway, Save-On-Foods, Whole Foods, etc. sell Miso. Check the area where you would purchase Tofu or fresh Asian noodles. For a greater variety of Miso you can check T&T or Osaka or Fujiya, or any Asian grocery store.
Hi, how many servings / cups will this recipe yield? I couldn’t see this on the recipe.
Thank you
Hi Nancy! Most stores that sell asian ingredients will sell various types of Miso. If you can’t find a darker variety, any miso paste will do the trick.
This soup looks delicious…Where can you buy dark miso??
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