Description
This Instant Pot Beef & Barley Soup combines rich flavors with tender beef, fresh vegetables, and hearty barley to create a satisfying meal that’s both easy to prepare and comforting. Perfect for family dinners or meal prep, this soup is a delightful choice when you crave wholesome homemade food.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 pounds (1kg) beef stew meat
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 ounces (225g) mushrooms, quartered
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 4–6 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 cups (1.4 liter) low sodium beef broth/stock
- 1 (14.5oz) (411g) can diced tomatoes
- ¾ cup (140g) pearl barley, rinsed
- 2 small potatoes, peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons better than bullion beef base (or use 2–4 cubes)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot to the sauté setting. Once hot, add the stew meat along with olive oil, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper. Brown the meat on all sides, which takes about 5 minutes, then remove and set aside.
- Add mushrooms to the pot and sauté until they're nicely browned, adding more oil if necessary.
- Add diced onion, celery, and carrots to the pot. Season with salt and pepper as desired, cooking for around 5 minutes.
- Stir in the minced garlic and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
- Pour a small amount of beef broth into the pot to deglaze, scraping any browned bits off the bottom to prevent a burn error.
- Add the remaining broth, the browned meat, diced tomatoes, rinsed barley, diced potatoes, beef base, bay leaf, and thyme to the pot.
- Secure the lid on the Instant Pot and ensure it’s locked. Set the vent to sealing and cook on high pressure for 15 minutes.
- After cooking, allow the Instant Pot to naturally release pressure for 15 minutes before carefully turning the vent to release any remaining pressure and removing the lid.
Notes
Feel free to substitute beef stew meat with cubed chuck for more flavor.
Adjust vegetables to your preference; adding peas or green beans can provide extra nutrition and texture.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 330
- Sugar: 4g
- Sodium: 600mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 28g
- Fiber: 5g
- Protein: 24g
- Cholesterol: 80mg