Awhile ago, our friends Corey and Rose gave us a pretty hefty bag of stew beef that they couldn’t use.  They’d bought a share of a grass-fed cow that had recently been butchered, and they were awash in meat.  Which sounds a little odd now that I’ve typed it out.

The first two outings of this beef were in iterations of the Persian dish gormeh sabzi, which is a delicious, subtle stew of greens, leeks, kidney beans, and (of course) beef.  Mr. Boyfriend was head chef of course, and the beef yielded some of the best, tastiest khoresh he’s ever made and that I’ve had the pleasure of eating.

So the remainder of our windfall had been languishing in the freezer for a criminally long while before I pulled it out, defrosted, and chucked it in the crock pot yesterday with a host of other things to make some soup.  Soup is my second favorite go-to food to get rid of things about to pass their prime, the first being pizza.  But root veggies don’t so much go great on pizza.  Nor does stew beef.  So out trots the slow cooker, and several hours later we have soup.  Yum.

I was too wrapped up in eating my prize today to post a picture.  Tomorrow.  For now, here’s the checklist for your own delicious crockpot soup:

Mmmmm, soup...
  • 1-1 1/2 pounds grass-fed stew beef, cut into 1″ pieces with only the most solid bits of fat removed
  • 1 c. carrots, chopped
  • 1 1/2 c. celery, chopped
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 c. dry barley (if you opt to make this on the stove rather than the slow cooker, remember to soak and drain the barley beforehand)
  • 2 Tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp salt
  • 2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2 bay leaves
  • a dash of Worcestershire sauce
  • 6 c. water

Combine all ingredients in your crock pot, and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8.  Do a taste test before serving, as you may want to add a little more water and pepper (the pepper’s spiciness cooks away a bit, and the barley may absorb more water than expected and make a thicker soup than you like).  If you use beef that wasn’t grass-fed, you will want to trim the fat more judiciously and probably omit the olive oil.  This recipe makes a very rich, opaque broth, and is perfect for the coldest winter days.  It just hit the high of 12° in New York today, so I can truly attest to this fact.  Crock pot soups are great for those who work too, because you can prep them the night before or in the morning before you leave and let them go all day.  Most modern pots also have a “warm” setting, so you can leave them out for a day or two for self-service if the folks in your household keep opposing hours (like mine).  I recommend serving this with a nice crusty bread or roll, or some sandwich bread that’s just gone stale toasted nice and crisp.

In other news, I may have a finished sweater to show you soon.  And there are games afoot (literally) for February that will need explaining in the days to come.

I have used quite a lot of parentheticals in this post.  I apologize.  They were on sale.