Beef Barley soup

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Beef Barley Soup

Serves Serves 8    

Ingredients

• 2 pounds stew meat (nicely marbled beef chunks)
• salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 10 cups water
• 3 mounded tablespoons good quality beef base*
• 3 stalks celery (about 2 cups), chopped
• 2 onions, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large potato, peeled and shredded, about 2 cups
• 3-4 large carrots, peeled and shredded, about 2 cups
• 1 cup pearl barley*** rinsed

Instructions

1. Generously salt and pepper the beef. In a large stockpot, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
2. When it is very hot, add about 1/3 of the meat. Brown for about 1-2 minutes, then turn to brown the other side. Remove to a plate when it is browned on all sides.
3. Repeat with remaining meat in 2 more batches. (If you add it all at once it will steam the meat instead of browning it--not what you want.)
4. When all the meat is browned, add all the meat back to the pot with 10 cups of water. Add 3 healthy tablespoons beef stock concentrate.
5. Add the chopped celery, onions, and garlic. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to medium-low. Simmer for about 2 hours with the lid on.
6. When the meat is tender and you can break it apart easily with a wooden spoon, add the shredded potato and carrots. Bring to a boil, then continue to simmer on low for another 30-45 minutes, or until the carrots are tender.
7. Add 1 cup of barley. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low. Cook for another half hour, or until barley is tender and the soup tastes...like home.

Slow cooker instructions:

1. In a large pan, brown the meat according to the instructions. Remove the browned meat to a large crockpot.
2. Add 2 cups of the water to the pan and bring to a boil. Stir up all the browned bits. Add this and the remaining 8 cups of water to the crock pot.
3. Add the beef base, celery, onions, and garlic to the slow cooker and stir.
4. Cook on low for about 6 hours. Add the potatoes and carrots and cook for another hour.
5. Add the barley and simmer for another hour or so, until it is tender.

Recipe Notes

*I suggest Better than Bouillon Beef Base.

The simmer times on this soup are pretty rough. I let mine simmer all morning because I was feeling a lazy-soup-day. The best kind of day for October.

If your meat is not marbled well, you might want to add a bit of worcestershire sauce toward the end, to boost the flavor.

If your soup has boiled down to become more stew-like, simply add more water and beef base.

** I've had some questions about the green garnish I used for these photos. It's basil, but that's just what was growing in my garden when I made this. No garnish is necessary, but I would recommend parsley or chives if you want a fresh kick.

***UPDATE December 2016: I just made this over Christmas for my family in the crock pot using QUICK barley. I used the same amount. I left it in for maybe 15-30 minutes, but check the package instructions. You could do this on stove top too!

Source: This one is from Nana, Kris' mom.

All images and text © The Food Charlatan

beef with broccoli

Prep Time:10 min Cook Time:5 hr

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. sirloin steak or boneless beef chuck roast, sliced thin
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 Tablespoons cornstarch
• 4 Tablespoons water
• 1 (12 oz.) bag frozen broccoli florets
• White rice, cooked

Instructions

• In the insert of the crockpot, whisk together beef broth, soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and garlic.
• Place slices of beef in the liquid and toss to coat. Cover with lid and cook on low heat for 5 hours.
• When done, whisk together cornstarch and water in small bowl. Pour into crock pot and stir to mix well. Add the frozen broccoli over the beef and sauce. Gently stir to combine. Cover with lid and cook 30 minutes to cook broccoli and thicken sauce.
• Serve over warm white rice. Enjoy!

life in the lofthouse https://life-in-the-lofthouse.com/

chicken rice soup asian style - congee

1 c regular rice
2/3 c sweet rice  (or all sweet rice!)
10 c water

chicken quarters or drums or legs or whole cut up chicken. whatever.

10:1 ratio water to rice
PS those cups are rice cups

Dump all that in slow cooker on low for 8-10 hours.  Add salt pepper and anything.  YOu can omit the chicken and put left over meats in at the end.

Spinach artichoke dip

Slow Cooker Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Ingredients

• 2 (14-ounce) cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 8 ounces sour cream
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 8 ounces cream cheese, cubed

Instructions

• Place artichoke hearts, spinach, sour cream, onion, garlic, Parmesan, milk, feta, mayonnaise, vinegar and pepper into a slow cooker. Stir until well combined. Top with cream cheese.
• Cover and cook on low heat for 2 hours.
• Uncover and stir until cream cheese is well combined. Cover and cook on high heat for an additional 15 minutes.

Korean beef slow cooker

--package of beef short ribs (or pork!) 2 lb chuck roast cut in cubes or not. 

--1 cup soy sauce (La Choy and Tamari Wheat-Free are gluten free)

--1 cup brown sugar

--5 whole jalapeno peppers (Stefania used 10. Use what you think is appropriate for your family.)

--1/2 cup water

The Directions.

I plopped frozen solid beef ribs into the crockpot. Can sear

I then put the soy sauce, water and brown sugar on top, and threw in the WHOLE (don't cut them!) jalapenos on top.

If ribs frozen, Cook on high for an hour, then used a wooden spoon to smash them down further into the crock. Then I cooked on low for another 8 hours.

If you are out of the house all day, cook on low. When you get home, turn the ribs over so the other side gets fully saturated 

Crock pot Korean taco

Printer Friendly Recipe
3 pound chuck roast
3/4 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
5 cloves garlic
1 1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoons dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Cucumber Slaw
1/2 hot house cucumber (the long skinny ones)
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
pinch of salt
crushed red pepper flakes to taste

To serve:
flour tortillas
fresh cilantro
Siracha

Directions:
In the bowl of a small food processor, pulse the garlic and ginger until finely chopped.

Place the chuck roast in the bottom of a crock pot. In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the cooking liquid. Pour over the roast.

Set the crock pot to low and cook 8-10 hours. When ready to serve, remove the roast, and shred into bite-sized pieces.

Skim the fat off the top of the cooking liquid. Pour some of the liquid over the shredded meat and serve.

For the cucumber slaw, slice the cucumber as thinly as possible, using a mandoline if you have one. In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar, sugar, salt, and red pepper flakes. Toss the cucumbers in the mixture and refrigerate overnight.

To serve, warm the tortillas and fill with the shredded meat, and top with cucumbers, cilantro, and Siracha to taste.

creamy pot roast 10

2 cans cream of celery soup
4 t beef boullion (if using cubes, chop up 4 cubes)
8 t dried onion flakes or 1/2 small onion diced teeny
1 t onion powder
1/4 t pepper
at least 3lb chuck roast
s + p
garlic powder if you like

1. season meat, sear in skillet
2. mix all other ingredients in crock pot
3. put seared meat in crock.  cook on low 10 hours

sesame chicken

Ingredients:

• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1.25 lbs)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 2-1/2 tbsp tomato paste (*ketchup can be substituted if you don’t have tomato paste)
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced finely
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or white pepper
• 1/2 tsp grated ginger root
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp roasted sesame seeds
• 1 lb broccoli florets, steamed OR one bag frozen broccoli florets, prepared according to package directions

Directions:

1. Place chicken breasts in slow cooker.
2. In a small bowl, combine the honey, soy sauce, onion, tomato paste, sesame  oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, sesame seeds and ginger root. Pour over chicken.
3. Cook the chicken for 6 hours on low. Remove chicken breasts to cutting board and allow to sit for just a minute.
4. Steam broccoli
5. Cube chicken into bite-size pieces. Scoop out about 1/2 cup of the sauce from the slow cooker and put in small bowl. Whisk the cornstarch into the bowl of sauce, then return mixture to slow cooker to thicken the whole batch.
6. Return cubed chicken to slow cooker. Add the steamed broccoli, too. Stir gently, to coat.
7. Allow to sit for about ten minutes, slow cooker set to warm.
8. Serve over white rice.

balsamic pot roast

Balsamic and Onion Pot Roast in the Crockpot

(Makes about 6 servings, recipe created by Kalyn.)

I used a standard 3 1/2 quart Crockpot for this recipe.

3-4 pound boneless chuck roast
1-2 T steak rub (I used Szeged Steak Rub.)
black pepper to taste
1-2 T olive oil (depends on your pan)
1/4 cup water to deglaze pan
2-3 large onions, peeled and thickly sliced
1 cup beef stock, reduced to 1/2 cup (can use a can of beef broth, but be sure to reduce it)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (I used Fini Balsamic Vinegar)
1/2 cup tomato sauce (You can substitute one can diced tomatoes, drained well. I might puree the tomatoes.)

Trim as much fat as you can from roast, and cut if necessary to fit into Crockpot. Rub meat well with steak seasoning and black pepper. Heat heavy pan with small amount of olive oil and brown roast well on both sides. This will take a few minutes; don't rush the browning step.

While roast browns put 1 cup beef stock in saucepan, bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, then let cool slightly and mix in balsamic vinegar and tomato sauce. Peel onions and cut into thick slices. Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup water and add to sauce mixture.

(You can stop at this point and refrigerate browned roast, cut onions and mixed sauce ingredients and then put them in the Crockpot when you go to work in the morning. Don't refrigerate them in the crockery liner. Having the meat start out cold will add several hours to the cooking time, which will be good if you're cooking it all day while you're away.)

Place onions in bottom of Crockpot. Put meat on top of onions and pour beef stock mixture over. Set Crockpot to low and cook 6-8 hours, until beef is tender. The meat might be partly submerged in liquid after this much time. (If I am home, I might turn the meat once or twice.

Remove meat from crockpot and cover with foil to keep warm. Drain liquid from Crockpot and remove as much of the fat as you can with fat separator or skimmer. Cook down liquid by about 1/3, and serve sauce with meat and onions.

Note: If I wasn't making this for phase one, I might put some carrots in the bottom of the crockpot with the onions.

nstructions:

Trim as much fat as you can from roast, and cut if necessary to fit into Crockpot. Rub meat well with steak seasoning and black pepper. Heat heavy pan with small amount of olive oil and brown roast well on both sides. This will take a few minutes; don't rush the browning step.

While roast browns put 1 cup beef stock in saucepan, bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, then let cool slightly and mix in balsamic vinegar and tomato sauce. Peel onions and cut into thick slices. Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup water and add to sauce mixture.

(You can stop at this point and refrigerate browned roast, cut onions and mixed sauce ingredients and then put them in the Crockpot when you go to work in the morning. Don't refrigerate them in the crockery liner. Having the meat start out cold will add several hours to the cooking time, which will be good if you're cooking it all day while you're away.)

Place onions in bottom of Crockpot. Put meat on top of onions and pour beef stock mixture over. Set Crockpot to low and cook 6-8 hours, until beef is tender. The meat might be partly submerged in liquid after this much time. (If I am home, I might turn the meat once or twice.

Remove meat from crockpot and cover with foil to keep warm. Drain liquid from Crockpot and remove as much of the fat as you can with fat separator or skimmer. Cook down liquid by about 1/3, and serve sauce with meat and onions.

Note: If I wasn't making this for phase one, I might put some carrots in the bottom of the crockpot with the onions.

- See more at: http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2007/01/how-to-make-pot-roast-in-crockpot.html#sthash.PEO55Re6.dpuf

Balsamic and Onion Pot Roast in the Crockpot
(Makes about 6 servings, recipe created by Kalyn.)

I used a standard 3 1/2 quart Crockpot for this recipe.

Ingredients:
3-4 pound boneless chuck roast
1-2 T steak rub (I used Szeged Steak Rub.)
black pepper to taste
1-2 T olive oil (depends on your pan)
1/4 cup water to deglaze pan
2-3 large onions, peeled and thickly sliced
1 cup beef stock, reduced to 1/2 cup (can use a can of beef broth, but be sure to reduce it)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (I used Fini Balsamic Vinegar)
1/2 cup tomato sauce (You can substitute one can diced tomatoes, drained well. I might puree the tomatoes.) - See more at: http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2007/01/how-to-make-pot-roast-in-crockpot.html#sthash.PEO55Re6.dpuf

Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker

Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker

Yield: 6
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 8 hours
Total Time: 8 hours 10 min

It's incredibly simple and the chicken goes into the crockpot in minutes.

Ingredients:

Rub Ingredients
4 tsp salt
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 1/2 to 4 1/2 lbs roasting or fryer chicken
1 cup chopped onion, approx 1 medium to large onion
4-5 carrots, scrubbed, no need to peel, chopped in halves or thirds
4 celery stalks, cut in thirds
2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1 lemon quartered

Directions:

Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl.
Remove chicken from packaging and remove neck and pouch with organs. Discard or reserve for later use in another recipe. Rinse chicken and pat dry with paper towels.
Rub garlic all over outside of the chicken. Put garlic inside the chicken. Rub the rub all over the outside and inside the chicken. Add quartered lemon to the inside of the chicken.
Place onions, carrots and celery inside the slow cooker. Place chicken on top of the vegetables. Cover slow cooker and cook chicken on low for 4-8 hours. (When I used a 4 lb chicken, it took about 6 hours. The time will depend on the size of the chicken and your slow cooker.) Cook until the internal temperature of the leg is at 160 degrees F or use a pop-up thermometer as the original recipe calls for.
Remove chicken and place in a 9x13 glass baking dish. Place baking dish in the oven under the broiler for about 4-5 minutes. Allow chicken to rest after removing it from the broiler for 5-10 minutes.

crock pot chicken burrito

3 or 4 chicken breasts (frozen or not)
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 can ro-tel (undrained)

put in crock pot and cook on LOW for 5 hours

with about 1 hour/30 min left
use forks to shred chicken
throw in frozen corn
15oz can rinsed & drained black beans

when time is up, stir in 1 block of cream cheese

Shredded Honey Chicken

3 large boneless skinless frozen (thawed) chicken breasts
1 1/4 cup honey (room temperature)
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
2 1/2 tbsp. tomato paste
1/4 cup water
1 1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tsp. white granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. brown sugar
1/2 tbsp. ground ginger

Place all 3 chicken breasts into Crock-Pot (can be thawed or frozen).

Mix remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whisk together until fully blended. Pour over chicken.

Cook on low for 6 1/2 hours for frozen chicken, and 5 1/2 hours for thawed chicken. Use a large fork or two to pull apart the chicken breasts into shredded bits and mix with the sauce. Let sit on low for another 20 minutes.

Asian Pork Shoulder

1/2 c soy sauce
1/2 c brown sugar
1-2 T chili garlic sauce
1 T ginger
1 T 5spice powder
s+p

2.5 pork shoulder - cut into 2" cubes
1 medium bok choi sliced thin
2 diced scallions

1) In 4-6 qt slow cooker- soy, sugar, chili/garlic, ginger, 5psice, 1/2 t salt, 1/4 t pepper
2) add pork, toss to coat
3) 4-5 hours on H
7-8 hours on L
4) skim off fat, fold in bok choi w/ scallions