Beef Barley Soup: The Best Comfort Food You'll Ever Taste 

James cracks me up! It's only an 8.5 star soup, but he won't stop eating it long enough to have a conversation with you.

Mushrooms go very well in a soup like this. That combo of beef, wine, and Worcestershire soaks into the mushroom pieces and they pop with flavor when you bite into them. I usually use crimini, cut in half if they're too big individually.

That "well your devouring it!" I definitely think it was a 9.5/10

Jim, yes, leave in the mistakes...the 'human ingredients' that make every dish fun and delicious! That's part of what makes your channel a success. I enjoy watching you and Magnolia Table with Joanna Gaines because she also let's the 'human ingredients' remain in the show. You're the 'guy next door' that loves to cook and it shows...thanks for letting us come into your kitchen and enjoy!

James is hilarious. He is harsh food critic but devours every dish

Bouquet garni is what the French call it when they tie up a variety of herbs together and put it in the stew.

For someone who wasn't enthusiastic about barley, your son was shoveling it in! This is one of my winter mainstays too. This particular recipe is a great addition. The Worchester is a nice addition I hadn't thought of.

He's not liking the barley but he couldn't stop eating the soup 😂Kids! I think this soup delicious, I can't wait to try it. Thank you for keeping the mistakes in, no one is perfect and it just goes to show that even if you do make a mistake you can still have a great dish.

I love how you didn’t belabor the chopping of the veggies, great editing. I get tired of watching veggies get chopped. Haha I love beef barley soup and will definitely use your recipe. Thanks!!

I just made this! No modifications. Had to add water near the end as you suggested. It’s outrageously delicious! This Taste Tester gives it a 10! Thank you!

Hmm! This takes me back to my childhood. My Mum would make this and often I would get sent to the local green grocer to get a small bag labelled ‘pot herbs’. They looked all dried and shrivelled to me but into the big pot they would go. This meal was served with freshly baked thick sliced buttered bread. Real comfort food in the cold weather.

One of the reasons I love your videos is that you aren't pretentious. I like that you keep it real and honest with us while showing us beautiful yummy dishes. Thank you for that. I'm actually going to try this for dinner tonight. It looks delicious!!!

Jim, I enjoy watching you. Beef barley soup looks delicious. I make it just like you do I put white wine squish up a can of whole tomatoes.I enjoy cooking, not as much when I was younger I am 75 years old now I have slowed down a little bit. I am full Italian parents come from Calabria Italy.

Jim is _so_ ur-Italian American. The best type: not obnoxious or arrogant or precious about any of the cooking. Right mix of traditional and experimental. You can tell he loves good food, good cooking, and a good time. I've learned so many helpful steps from him, where to buy items, how much to use, how to store, understanding how ingredients work with each other, and more. God bless him.

I love how James just tucks into every dish and just devours it 😂

I love this kid. He's straight forward and tells it like it is while continuing to shovel spoonfuls of beef barley. I'd make it with noodles just for him.

This soup looks like a cure for winter! Thanks, as always, for this timely recipe, and for the explanation of and options on those potentially controversial ingredients. These step-by-step tutorials are simply brilliant, and offer humorous insight as well: "High end Target Dutch Oven." Too funny yet too true. Happy Holidays to you and yours.

he makes everything look so easy and his recipes never disappoint

THUMBNAIL MASTER

You guys are awesome. Great job Dad! I think your son's enthusiasm for eating the dish says it all.

There is much to appreciate about your videos, but one of my favorite things is how you start by showing all measured ingredients, with a few brief explanations of what could be an alternative, what stores might have good prices and what cheaper brands are just as good, sometimes even what pans and tools are best. You are a natural born teacher, and I am glad you don’t waste my time straining to be hilarious. And yes, I appreciate that you leave your mistakes in.

A good addition is the classic French bouquet Garnier, which is sprigs of thyme, a few parsley stalks and a big bayleaf sandwiched between 2 bottom ends of a celery stalk and tied tightly together. Alternatively, place half tsp. black peppercorns, a couple of whole allspice, about 2-3 cloves, and a piece of two blade mace in a spiceball or tied up tightly in a piece of muslin. I don't know how easy it is to find some of these spices in the USA. They are used here in the UK in old traditional dishes from before the advent of refrigeration when the meat might be a little bit "high". This combination of spices with half a small onion in milk brought just to the boil then taken off the heat and left to infuse for at the least half an hour. The milk with the spices, etc., sieved out makes really flavourful bechamel. If you need to be as economical as possible, shin of beef is good; it may take a little longer to cook but has a lot of connective tissue which melts down adding a glossy finish to the soup, which could also, meat snd and veg having been initially browned off on the stove, could then be cooked with the other ingredients in a crock pot/slow cooker. I enjoyed the unpretentious and clear presentation

Please leave in the mistakes. I always hold myself to a chef's standard. Im just a mom with no training, working a 9-5 plus commute, trying to make homemade meals for my family. Please for the love of God, leave in the mistakes. Love all your content. Cheers!

I hung up my chef hat about 12 years ago, and it's probably been a couple of years before that I made beef barley soup. Believe it or not, it was one of my favorites. Time to make it, thank you for the inspiration! Always love your recipes.

I laughed so hard at the, "its called Beef & Barley soup, I didn't make it up" 🤣 When I was growing up, my sister used to ask my mother, "Is it supposed to look like that?" anytime mother tried a new recipe. ❤

I'm loving the fact that still all throughout, you're keeping it simple, relatable and humble (understandable!) ... Although if there was ever to be a 'merch store' on the horizon, a t-shirt with "it's not fond, it's brown bits" blazend on it would be GENIUS... MEGA fan of your channel, every episode watched (in some cases MULTIPLE times) - I can only congratulate you ALL on your success with the channel and say THANKS - my weekly goto for quite some time 😎

I don’t watch many videos where there aren’t mistakes. I also don’t make many meals that don’t have mistakes 😂. Great recipe

I love this guy. Down to earth, and the food's good. His son made me laugh. Hoovering the soup while he's complaining about it. Hope he's not intending to be a food critic.

Jim and Tara, I’ve become such a big fan of the channel in the last year. I watch everything as it comes out, and when I get bored, I go thru older videos. Love the content! BTW, James sure has gone thru a growth spurt, hasn’t he? I cook a lot of your dishes, but add my own modifications. It’s all so good! Thanks for the inspiration!

All I’m sayin is - James said he would have preferred noodles, but he kept going back in for more! I consider that a win.

I'm with James on preferring noodles. So I use BOTH the Barley and Ditalini noodles in this and my Ham, Bean & Barley soups. Makes everyone happy.

I love that Taste Tester & all his opinions bc he represents the younger generations. Barley is Gluten Free, right? James is woofing it down, scarfing it up yet "not such a fan of barley" - so hilarious! 😆 Love the detail again Chef Jim, reminders to heat add'l water, low sodium broth bc cooking down intensifies salt, etc - u are one of the best teachers online! Thanks much, can't wait to make this & had previously bought barley waiting for ideas to use it! Merry Christmas to all! 🎄🎁🥣🤗

My mom had to learn everything she knew today about cooking on her own. 26 years of being a mother to four boys with a lot of trial and error, soup included. I initially prepared it the way she served it to us- used better than boullion and lisa marie to enhance the beef. We like putting tomato paste in, too. What i did do differently after this video was pre-cook my veggies in the pan with the red wine before throwing them in the pot. I also added thyme but took it out halfway into the cooking cycle, I really love this new soup I made with thanks to you. Cheers, good health to you and your family.

James is such a riot!…he gives your soup an 81/2 as he scarfs down the entire bowl! 😂. I needed a recipe to use some beef cubes and I just didn’t want to make stew. Thank you so much!

Hey Jim, What I always liked about your channel is that it reminded me of cooking with my mom. Simple cooking with the main ingredient being love and sharing the meal with family. I’ve used so many of your recipes over the last few years so thanks again Sincerely another Italian kid named Jimmy from CT 😊

Beef barley soup is my favorite cozy soup for winter. Home made is so good, far superior to the red label canned stuff. Super with a chunk of sourdough bread with too much butter smeared on it. Heaven! You need to tell Mr. Taste Tester there, that he needs to act like he at least doesn't love the food when he is critiquing. 😅 Noodles, he says. He was sure making himself miserable wishing for those noodles while he was shoveling in that barley as fast as he could. Too funny. Merry Christmas /Happy Holidays to you all, you still have the best cooking channel on the Tube. I can't wait to see what you will bring us next year.

I have made so many of your recipes and repeated them time and time again for my married children who don’t have time to even boil an egg! WONDERFUL!❤️

Made this last night, truly delicious! As someone relatively new to cooking, it was the first time I've been able to make a stew I'm happy with. Thanks so much for the recipe and video!

Thank you so much for this and more memories. My mom, who is in heaven, would be in heaven from this dish. She was CRAZY about barley soup - passed that on to me. Love your recipe! Oh James, James, James - the barley is PERFECT with this beef and stock - I am with James on pasta all the time, but I feel like the barley almost tastes like pasta to me in the soup! James: This barley is not it - but I am still going to devour it like I've never been fed before...

Love the taste tester’s remarks! And the way he took care of that bowl of soup..I love beef barley soup, and can’t wait to try your recipe! Thank you for all the time and cooking involved to offer recipes that are delicious and easy….

Thanks for always going over the ingredients before hand, it's something I wish other channels did since it makes following the recipe much more streamline! 👍

Cannot wait to try this. I have to say, which I’ve never mentioned is everything I’ve tried from your channel comes out delicious. I know when I want a really good comforting meal I come on your channel and pick one. So I’m definitely making this.

My first time commenting, but I have to tell you how much I enjoy watching you and your family. I am 100% Italian heritage, but my family has been in this country for almost 150 years, so a lot of the recipes were lost through the generations. Thanks to you, I finally found and can make pasta e fagioli like my paternal grandmother made. She grew up in Brooklyn on Carroll Street. I make it weekly, now. If your family is like mine, we were never big on gushing praise. We are much better at backhanded compliments and sarcastic remarks. In this video, James reminds me of my brother. Maybe it’s an Italian thing. He would shovel the food into his mouth, obviously enjoying it; but, when asked how it was, he would say-in between bites-“it s*cks”. 😁

I made this soup yesterday and it was delicious! I had to use egg noodles because my store was out of barley. This will now be my "go to" beef soup recipe. Thank You! Love from Texas ❤

Good to see your getting some solid sponsors mate. I could care less about creators doing little adds when I care about what they are doing, and I love your work buddy. Keep it up!

That's like a warm hug in a bowl. Looks amazing, making this weekend

Looks like a total 10 to me. I’ll be making this. Keep up the good work, love your channel!!

Love your presentation, as always. I also love how your taste-tester rates 8.5 while scarfing, barely pausing between mouthfuls. I've read recently about the benefits of barley and this looks like the perfect way to add it to my menu. Thanks!

Yes, yes, I made this and it was a huge hit in our house. The teenagers loved it and it makes the whole house smell amazing. I actually roasted the garlic before adding it bc I was making the Tuscan White Bean Soup at same time and that was also a show stopper - so good. Thank you for your videos!

Hey! you spilt the broth...and showed the chaos live, just for that I'll keep watching your awesome insight in to manufacturing great family meals. Keep the tasty recipes coming. 🍜🍽

I made Jim's recipe and it's so good. It has become my winter soup staple. Definitely placed on regular rotation. Easy to make, too! It's a 10 across the board.

fabulous recipe! I always imagine that James has had a long day at school, and is so happy when it is time to be the taste tester! He doesn't like it but he is devouring it!? He really cracks me up and it makes your videos so much more fun and real when you include your family. I ruined my Lodge Dutch oven with metal implements before I knew better :( Need to get a new one, I use it almost every day.

Beef Barley Soup- Whoo Hoo! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Jim. This was my favorite soup that my Mom made, & she took her recipe to the grave.

Beef Barley is one of my go to soups,..I make it pretty much the same as you’ve made it here, with the exception of the wine…I’ll have to give that a try, see if it steps up the flavour. I also like to add some diced potato towards the end of the process, just because I’m a meat & potato guy. Great recipe, I’m gonna make this over the weekend. Cheers, and Happy Holidays to you & family! 🇨🇦

Your recipes are always so good, love that you include the ingredients in the comments.

James has the best meals and doesn’t realize it.

I made this soup for dinner yesterday, and it was just what we were looking for. The beef was so tender that a spoon could easily cut through it, and the barley made it hardy and comforting without being stodgy at all. Thanks for a wonderful fall and winter recipe that doesn’t use hard to find ingredients, is easy to make, and feeds a crowd. Don’t think it’s not a tasty soup just because there’s not a lot of spices or herbs. This is a recipe I will make again and again.

I’m a new cook and I used this recipe and my family loved it making it again tonight. Thank you.

This was my first time cooking soup from scratch and it was honestly one of the best soups I've ever had. Took one commenters advice about adding some mushrooms and it was an amazing addition. Thank you for making cooking look super approachable. As a student with a relatively tight budget, a lot of channels make cooking look very intimidating, but after seeing how easy you made it look, I immediately went out to buy the ingredients, and was eating by the end of the night!

Thank you so much for doing this. I’ve never cooked barley. I’ve asked my brother over and over about a Beef and Barley soup. He never responded back about it. Now I can make this one and tell him about it. Merry Christmas ♥️

Terrific winter recipe for family dinner. I imagine that it gets even better after a day or two in the fridge.

I love barley! Started making barley soup when children were very young (40+ years ago) and still make it Beef barley Chicken burley Vegetable barley All good and very nutritious Thanks!

This is the recipe I've been waiting for! Used to have this all the time as a kid. Thanks and Merry Christmas. Update: Just made this and it was awesome! Thanks James.

I made this for my husband and he absolutely loved it. I thought there would be lots of left overs but there isn’t much left. Great recipe!! I used ground beef, probably not as good as the steak but it cooked pretty quick and was still very flavourful. I will definitely make it again.

I've made beef barley soup before, but I am going to have to try your version. I love the addition of red wine and Worcestershire sauce. Over the last year I've made several of your recipes and they have all been great. I also appreciate that the ingredients are easy to source.

I really appreciate your sponsorship with Butcher Box! I didn’t know a service like that existed and it’s really wonderful to see. I’m a vegetarian for both moral and health reasons, and it makes me so happy to see that there are industries for more ethically sourced meat on the rise! I hope one day in the future things like that can become more accessible to everyone Keep up the amazing work! I love your videos and your recipes, they’re so entertaining and enjoyable to watch even if I don’t plan on making them.

You remind me of my family, so watching your videos makes me feel like I'm at home. Thanks for what you do!

I love homemade soup in the fall and winter! I also love most all of your recipes...keep them coming! Thank you so much for sharing!!

This is a must make this winter. Thanks for all your content!

easily my favourite cooking channel on youtube

I made this last night. First time I've *ever* made it. It was amazing! I used your recipe, but I cooked it in my pressure cooker to save time after work. Absolutely loved it. It's gonna be a regular event now. Thank you!

Yum! One of my favourite winter meals! I grew up eating my Mum's version but now I make it myself.

Just made this for my family. They loved it!!! It really is delicious just as you made it. Thanks!!

Made a huge batch of this beef/barley soup ~ Sooooooo delicious and perfect for our weather in the 20’s ❄️🥶❄️

I really enjoy your videos, especially your honest taster.

Been looking for a recipe for this soup. Can’t wait to try this one. Looks delicious!

I'm going to follow this recipe with some extra human ingredients, basically using what I have on hand. A large can of cooked chopped beef, dried shitakes hydrated with beef stock and Worcestershire sauce, one cup of barley soaked in beef stock first, double the onion and garlic, and using dried herbs. And the carrots and celery we always have on hand. More of a shelf-stable pantry ingredient soup, actually. And it's always fun to use a good quality cooking wine whilst cooking. 🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷

you and chef jean-pierre proudly share your mistakes with us and save us the pain... thank you!

I only watch your cooking shows. You, Tara, James, daughter occasionally plan my special Sunday dinners. Thanks a million!

One of my favorite soups! So glad you did this recipe. Can't wait to try it this winter.

I love to see the mistakes! A couple of people that I watch actually have "bloopers" at the end of their videos which add a great bit of humor. James is really growing into a young man! Thank you for the wonderful recipes, techniques, and for sharing your family. Happy holidays to all of you!! :)

I make all your recipes and my family just loves them... thank you!

I made this. It is the best beef barley soup I ever made. Thank you for making this so easy to follow. My boys loved it.

I love your mistakes…it shows you’re REAL and not some TV type chef. You’re one of us, cooking for real. Thanks for all you do. Your recipes are the story of my life! 🎄Merry Christmas🎄 🎉Buon Natale🎉

sachet d'epices is held with cheesecloth a bouquet garni is with twine. one is for smaller things like peppercorns, star anise , etc and the other is for stemmed herbs. i just finished culinary school or i would have forgotten this super fast lol

Going to make this very soon. It's great no matter the time of year. Love to watch your videos to learn, cook, eat. :) Thank you for all you do. We love you and your family. :)

I've just watched your channel for the first time. Love your style of cooking and laughed at your son's review.

I would give it a 10! This looks perfect to me, a beef and barley soup lover! What a great tip to tie the thyme with string before putting it in the soup! 🎄😀

Right food as a comfort food in winter season,where place i living at this moment😋❄️☃️

James is adorbs, but... I'm giving it a 10!!! Great reminder to me. I have all the ingredients on hand and haven't made this in ages! Great idea for tomorrow night's dinner! Big favorite in our family. Thanks, Guys! ❤

So I finally made this last night, and yes. It was divine. Definitely my favourite of your recipes that I've tried, this beef & barley soup was rich, luxurious and deeply flavourful - absolutely perfect to eat on a cold winter night. I must confess, I kept getting up to refill my bowl and I most definitely ate over half of it in one sitting. No shame. Very grateful for this recipe - will add it to my rotation!! The wine adds hugely, you're right. And the thyme...utterly delightful. Of course the beef is the star of the show (glad that chuck roast isn't overly expensive either!) (Made it per recipe with only exceptions being using low-sodium chicken stock instead of beef, adding a couple bay leaves, and...I did cheat and added a tablespoon or so of beef BTB!) Again, much gratitude for this one. It's a winner!!

Obviously, this soup is delicious, as James continues to keep eating it 😋. Can’t wait to try this! Thank you for posting.

I already made a few of your recipes but this one is amazing! The broth and beef were so flavourful and the barley had a nice texture to it. Definitely gonna make this again sometime.

Not had barley in a long time, perfect for winter! Thank you.

Bouquet garni !! Thank You for all of your great recipes! Merry Christmas to you & your family !🎄

my second time through watching this to make sure I get it right. Wednesday night is our beef night and that means I will be making this for my family. Excited 'cause I adore barley in soup!

FINALLY a cook on youtube that doesnt make me want to punch my monitor

Thank you for these recipes and sharing your knowledge. I was searching for a recipe and came across your channel and I love it.

Agreed, it's great stuff for a cold winter's day. Ditto the red wine. Adds a great deal of flavour.

Looks heavenly, I haven’t had beef stew in forever and now I’m salivating 😋