Russian Mushroom Barley Soup Recipes

RUSSIAN MUSHROOM BARLEY SOUP

Steps:

• Rinse the barley. Place the water and barley into a medium pot. Season with salt, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.
• Add the potatoes and continue cooking at a simmer until the potatoes are tender.
• Meanwhile, cut the bacon into small pieces, lardons. Cook on medium heat in a skillet until crisp. Drain on a paper towel.
• Pour out all but about 1 Tablespoon of the bacon grease. You can pour it all out and add about 1 Tablespoon of butter to the skillet. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and cook on high heat. The mushrooms will exude a lot of liquid, keep cooking on high heat until all the liquid evaporates and the mushrooms are golden.
• Add the onions, season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking on medium heat until the onions are tender and just beginning to turn golden.
• Add to the soup and continue cooking until the potatoes are tender. Garnish with the bacon and fresh dill and chives. Serve with sour cream.

HEALTHY MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• Cover the porcini mushrooms with 750ml boiling water and leave to soak.
• Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan and add the chopped mushrooms, carrot and celery. Fry over a medium-high heat for around 10 mins or until the carrots are beginning to turn dark gold. Add the barley and stir the mixture for about 2 mins, then pour in the stock.
• Drain the porcini, retaining the soaking liquor, and cut up any large bits. Add these to the pan, along with the liquor. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 30 mins (it might take a bit longer) until the barley is tender. Taste for seasoning. Stir in the dill. Serve with a dollop of soured cream on top of each bowlful and crusty bread on the side.

VERY EASY MUSHROOM BARLEY SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic; cook and stir until onions are tender and transparent. Stir in mushrooms and continue to cook for a few minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and add barley. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until barley is tender, about 50 minutes. Season with salt and pepper before serving.

RUSSIAN BARLEY MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• Thoroughly rinse the mushrooms under cold water.
• Soak the mushrooms in the 6 cups of water for at least one hour (Ideally four to eight hours). Don't drain the water.
• Reserve the mushroom water (it will be dark in color).
• Uniformly chop the mushrooms and return to the water.
• Add the mushrooms, water, and chicken stock into a large cooking pot (7.5 qt or so).
• Bring to boil.
• Add the barley and cook until the barley is tender. This will be about 10 minutes with 'quick' barley or about 35 minutes with regular.
• While the barley is cooking, peel and cube the potatoes to about 3/4 inch cubes.
• Cut up the onions and saute them in a skillet until golden.
• Finely chop the cooked onions.
• Chop the carrots.
• Once the barley is tender, put the potatoes, carrots, onions, salt, and pepper into the pot.
• On low-med heat cook until the potatoes are done.
• When serving, add two tablespoons of sour cream and finely chopped parsley to each bowl of soup as garnish.

RUSSIAN MUSHROOM AND BARLEY SOUP

Steps:

• If using dried mushrooms, soak them in 1/2 cup of hot water for about 20 minutes.
• Slice and set aside, reserving soaking water, too.
• Put the oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven,add 2 tablespoons of the butter and melt the butter over medium heat.
• Saute the onions and garlic, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent.
• Stir in the consomme and water and add the potato, celery, carrots, bay leaves, dill, barley and the reconstituted mushrooms and soaking water.
• Add salt and pepper to taste, bring the soup to the boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 15 minutes (about an hour if using regular barley), until the barley is tender.
• Clean the fresh mushrooms, cut off and discard woody stem ends, and cut the smaller mushrooms in half and the larger ones into quarters.
• Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan and saute the mushrooms until some liquid has been yielded and no raw color shows.
• Stir mushrooms and liquid into the soup and simmer 5 minutes.
• Remove and discard the bay leaves.
• Just before serving, put the sour cream in a medium bowl and stir a cup or so of hot soup into it to temper it.
• Stir the diluted sour cream into the soup and serve immediately (don't cook the sour cream), garnished if you like with strips of lemon zest.