1 1/2litres | approximately 6 cups hot beef stockmade with 1-2 stock cubes
salt and freshly ground pepper to season
handful flat leaf parsleychopped, to garnish
olive oil to fry
Instructions
Add the flour onto a plate and season liberally with salt and pepper.
Toss the beef cubes to coat in the flour.
Heat a little olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Fry the beef cubes, in batches, until lightly browned. Transfer to your slow cooker.
Fry the carrots, celery, leeks, shallots and potato over medium heat until slightly softened.
Stir in the tomato purée, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, dry herbs and transfer everything to the slow cooker.
Add the stock and pearl barley and stir well. Cover and cook for 8 hours on low setting.
Serve garnished with a little chopped parsley and crusty bread on the side. Thin the soup with a little water if necessary before serving.
Notes
Vary the vegetables according to what's in season. Squash, parsnips, sweet potatoes are all great additions. Make sure you leave a bit of space at the top of your slow cooker as the barley will thicken as it cooks.