Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup

We have named this Vegan Recipe Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup due to the ease of making this soup. There are only four vegetables that require cutting. Also, there are a handful of spices and a few other ingredients that are all placed in the pot before the cooking process begins.

This recipe works well in either a pot on the stovetop or a slow cooker. We prefer the slow cooker so we can put it on and forget about it until its time to eat. Generally, we start cooking this mushroom and barley soup about four hours before we are ready to eat. Once we are prepared to have dinner, the soup is hot and waiting for us.

We make this barley mushroom soup every winter, especially on chilly days. But we also found ourselves enjoying this mushroom barley soup recipe whenever we have a craving for the flavor combination no matter the season.

The trick to this soup is either rinsing the barley before you add it to the soup or not at all depending on personal preference. If you rinse the barley, some of the starch is removed. As a result, the soup will be a bit thinner. In contrast, if you want the soup a tad thicker, do not rinse. We make it both ways, depending on our mood.

Now onto our Effortless Mushroom Barley Soup Recipe

Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup Ingredients

• Onion – 1 Small Onion Diced
• Pearled Barley – ½ Cup Dry
• Celery – 2 Stalks – Large Diced
• Carrot – One Large Diced
• Baby Portabella Mushrooms – 8 ounces Sliced
• Vegetable Broth – 4 Cups
• Parsley – Dried Spice ½ Teaspoon
• Marjoram – Dried Spice ½ Teaspoon
• Black Pepper – Ground ½ Teaspoon
• Sage – Dried Spice ½ Teaspoon
• Bay Leaves – 2 Whole
• Olive Oil – 1 Tablespoon
• Water – 1 Cup

How to prepare our Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup

1. Let’s start by prepping the vegetables for the soup.
2. Peel the onion. Then dice the onion and place in a large pot, for stovetop cooking, or slow cooker.
3. Next, wash and remove leaves and the bottom white portion of the celery. Once you have finished, large dice the celery. Now, add the celery to the pot containing the onion.
4. Thoroughly wash the carrot. Feel free to peel it, if that is your preference. Next, remove the bottom portion of the carrot and discard it. Now, largely dice the carrot. Also, add the diced carrots to the pot.
5. For this step, slice the baby portabella mushrooms to your desired thickness. Add them as well to the pot of chopped vegetables.
   
   Chopped Vegetables for our Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup
6. Next, add four cups of vegetable broth. If you use low sodium broth, you may need to add salt to this soup after it is cooked.
7. Now, add one cup of water.
8. Also, place one tablespoon of Olive Oil to the mixture.
9. To the pot, add one-half teaspoons for each of the following dried spices. Parsley, Marjoram, Black Ground Pepper, and Sage.
10. Add two whole Bay Leaves.
11. Now is time to add the Pearled Barley. But before you do, place it in a strainer and rinse for a thinner soup. Do not rinse if you want the soup a bit thicker.
12. If you are using the stovetop method, bring the liquid to a boil. Be sure to place a lid on the pot while boiling. Once the liquid is boiling, lower the heat and simmer uncovered until the barley has softened. If you are using a slow cooker, place the temperature on high for about four hours. Or, until the barley is to your satisfaction.
13. Serve hot!
14. Enjoy!

Happy Eatin’

Beyond our Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup

If you are a fan of soups, we have another recipe you may want to check out. This soup is called Easy Black Bean Soup. This soup is a bit thicker than the above recipe and so tasty. Check out the recipe if you have an interest. Also, we have a video you can watch showing how to prepare the Easy Black Bean Soup. If you want to watch the video, click this link.

Also, if you like the video, we have plans to make more cooking videos. Subscribe to our YouTube Channel by clicking this link to the Vegetarian Cooking Couple.

Vegan Recipes

Besides this soup recipe, we have other vegan recipes available on our site. Below are some more of the recipes for you to enjoy.

Ginger Broccoli

What makes this recipe so great is the combination of the Roasted Sesame Seed Oil and the Fresh Ginger. We happen to be huge fans of this combination. At times, we will add a bit more ginger than the recipe calls for when we crave a more of its flavor. Feel free to adjust the amount of ginger you add based on your desire for a stronger or milder flavor.

Here is the link to our Ginger Broccoli Recipe.

Savory Open-Faced Sandwich

Then there is our Savory Opened-Faced Sandwich that makes us drool just thinking about the flavor combination. This tomato sandwich, with onions, goes so well over your favorite vegan buttered toast.

If this sounds yummy to you, click the link Savory Open-Faced Sandwich Recipe.

Vegan Taco

Our Vegan Taco Recipe is yet another great tasting meat-free meal. This taco recipe uses dairy-free cheese, vegetarian meat (aka meat substitutes), and fresh ingredients. It is so good tasting that the leftovers will be gone before you know. That is if you have any leftovers.

Here is the link for our Vegan Taco Recipe.

Potato & Carrot One Pot Meal

This recipe is also super simple, like our Effortless Vegan Mushroom Barley Soup, because it is also a one-pot meal.

Let me tell you what we love about making a One-Pot Meal.

First, we love the lack of dirty dishes. One-pot recipes, like this one, generally only require a knife for chopping, a cutting board, a spoon for stirring, and also a single pot for cooking, just as the name implies. The lack of all the pots, pans, and extra utensils make this meal so attractive to us.

The Second reason we love about a one-pot meal is that we can eat multiple times just by creating this one recipe. How wonderful is that? We prepare the recipe one time, eat it right after it’s cooked. Then bam, we have lunch and or dinner already prepped for another day.

Thirdly we love healthy one-pot meals, such as this Potato & Carrot One Pot Meal, because only fresh and healthy ingredients are used. As a result, there is no need to feel guilty about eating this delicious meal.

If you feel inspired to read the recipe for our Potato & Carrot One Pot Meal, click the link.

Follow the Vegetarian Cooking Couple

Well, we hope our recipes have inspired you. If you like what you have read, and more importantly, have tasted, feel free to follow us on our blog by clicking this link. Or if Facebook is more your thing, follow us there by clicking this link.