Go Back
Beef and Barley Stew
Melissa Hart

Beef and Barley Stew

Barley gives this stew a nutty chew and thickens the broth without flour. Use pearl barley, not quick-cooking, or it'll surrender before the beef does. Frozen peas go in at the end; eight hours in the pot would turn them gray and bitter.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 8
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 2 lbs boneless beef chuck cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 3/4 tsp black pepper
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 large yellow onion diced
  • 3 carrots cut into 1/2-inch rounds
  • 2 celery ribs sliced
  • 8 oz cremini mushrooms quartered
  • 3/4 cup pearl barley rinsed
  • 6 cups low-sodium beef broth
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 cup frozen peas

Method
 

  1. Season the beef with the salt and pepper and brown it in two batches in the oil over medium-high heat, 5 to 6 minutes per batch.
  2. Transfer the beef to a 6-quart slow cooker and add the onion, carrots, celery, mushrooms and barley.
  3. Whisk the broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire and thyme and pour it into the cooker; tuck in the bay leaf.
  4. Cover and cook on low until the beef is tender and the barley is cooked through, 7 to 8 hours.
  5. Discard the bay leaf and stir in the frozen peas.
  6. Cover and cook on high until the peas are hot and bright green, 8 to 10 minutes.
  7. Thin the stew with 1/2 cup hot water if the barley has absorbed more broth than you like, then check the salt.