Happy Monday! Today, I’m bringing you one of my favorite soup combinations: chicken and barley. Specifically, a rich, homemade chicken broth with chicken and tender barley that cooks up right in the soup and makes it just the right amount of starchy to give it a nice, creamy texture. It’s a dream soup, trust me.

She’s a bit of a labor-intensive project, perfect for a Sunday evening. But it’s an exceptional soup for meal prep (my husband will eat it all week long), and it freezes perfectly. Throw it into a small Tupperware dish and unthaw it anytime you’re craving a big hug by way of food.

The recipe follows the next section of this post because first, I want to give you some barley background. It will help you decide which variety of barley to use for your soup.

What is barley?

Barley is an amazing, versatile grain that’s perfect for soups, stews, and salads. There are three main barley varieties: unhulled, hulled, and pearled.

• Unhulled barley: Barley naturally has an indigestible outer husk. This husk (also called a hull) must be removed before cooking. If you buy unhulled barley, you must soak it overnight before cooking it for 40–50 minutes.

• Hulled barley: Hulled barley means that the outer husk has been removed, but the bran layer–making it a whole grain–is kept intact. The cooking time is about 40 minutes; you need not soak it beforehand.

• Pearled barley: Pearled barley has had the husk removed, and it’s also been polished to remove the bran layer. While it’s not a whole grain, it’s still an excellent source of fiber. The cooking time is 25–30 minutes, with no need for soaking.

The benefit of pearled barley is that it has a very fast cooking time; however, because the bran layer and husk have been removed, it’s no longer a whole grain. If you don’t mind a slightly longer cooking time and you want to increase your intake of whole grains, opt for hulled barley instead of pearled.

You can also substitute the barley completely in this recipe if you don’t have it. Try it with brown rice or farro and adjust the cooking time as needed.

P.S. Looking for more barley recipes? Check my archives!

Chicken with Barley Soup Recipe

The recipe ingredients and instructions are written out below. If you want nutritional information or want a print-friendly version of the recipe, click the button below!

Get the Recipe

Servings: 8–10

Chicken broth:

• 4-pound chicken, giblets reserved for another use

• 1 yellow onion, scrubbed and quartered (peels left on, if you like)

• 3 carrots, scrubbed and cut into thirds

• 1 head of garlic, halved crosswise

• 4 ribs of celery, rinsed and cut into thirds

• 12 cups water, plus more if needed

• Salt and black pepper

Chicken barley soup:

• 1 tablespoon neutral oil

• 1 yellow onion, peeled and diced

• 3 ribs celery with leaves, trimmed and diced; leaves minced

• 4 carrots, peeled, trimmed, and sliced into rounds

• 2 tablespoons butter, optional

• 1 teaspoon dry thyme

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon paprika

• Crushed red pepper, to taste

• 1 cup pearled barley, rinsed

• 8 cups chicken broth (from the recipe above), plus 2–3 cups water if needed

• ⅓ cup loosely packed parsley, minced; a pinch reserved for garnish

• 1 lemon, juiced

• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Prepare the chicken and broth:

• Place the chicken in a large pot and add the onion, carrots, garlic, and celery. Season with 1–2 teaspoons salt. Don’t go overboard with salting; it will cook down, and you can always add more later. Add a few cracks of black pepper. Bring to a boil and then cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

• Carefully remove the chicken from the pot using tongs. Transfer it to a large bowl and let it cool.

• Return the broth to a rapid simmer over medium heat. Simmer for 30 minutes to reduce the broth further. It will be a dark golden brown.

• Strain the broth into a large bowl through a fine-mesh sieve. Discard solids.

• Pick the chicken from the bones and shred the meat with your fingers. Transfer the shredded meat to the bowl of strained broth to keep it moist. Reserve the carcass for stock if you like.

Prepare the soup:

• Wipe out the pot used to make the broth. You may wish to give it a quick rinse in the sink if you like.

• Place it on a burner over medium-high heat. Add the neutral oil, and once hot, add the onions, celery with minced leaves, and carrots. Season all over with salt and pepper. Cook for 7–10 minutes until they begin to soften around the edges.

• Melt the butter into the vegetables. Once bubbly, add the thyme, garlic powder, and paprika. Add a few generous shakes of crushed red pepper. Cook for 45 seconds until fragrant.

• Add the barley and cook for 1 minute until lightly toasted. Season again with a pinch of salt.

Simmer the soup:

• Pour in the broth and shredded chicken. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30–40 minutes or until the barley is tender. The barley will absorb a lot of liquid; add 2–3 cups of water as needed at the end of cooking. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your preferences.

Finish the soup:

• Stir in the minced parsley and lemon juice. Taste and season, and then turn off the heat.

To serve:

• Ladle the soup into bowls. Garnish with more fresh parsley. Enjoy!