There’s nothing more comforting than a bowl of beef stew unless, of course, it’s a bowl of steaming hot beef stew loaded with lots and lots of barley. Y’all, now that’s comfort food at its best. Seriously folks, this really is a bowl of stew you can totally make a meal out of, and thanks to the pumpkin and seasonings, its flavor is totally as amazing as its texture.

Soup is fine and dandy, but let’s just be honest, in a full-on kitchen battle, Stew kicks Soup’s butt. That’s right, I said it, Stew is better than Soup, and because of this, Stew has absolutely no problem looking down its nose at Soup and saying, “Sorry buddy, but you’re not good enough, step aside. You’re too wimpy for these folks. They need something better. Something that will make them come running to the dinner table.”

So, now that the weather is finally starting to get chilly and comfort food feels more like an everyday thing, it’s only normal for Stew to want to show its face around the dinner table. And this time around, Stew has decided it wants to be super-thick, stick to your ribs good, with a touch of pumpkin and lots of barley thrown in for good measure. After all, Stew is anything but boring.

Ingredients:

Stew Meat:

• 1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 3 Tablespoons Corn Starch
• 1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Finely Ground Black Pepper
• 1 1/2 Pounds of Beef Stew Meat, Cut into Bite-Size Pieces
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil, Divided
• 1 Large Sweet Yellow Onion, Finely Diced

Stew:

• 1 (15-oz.) Can Pure Pumpkin
• 1 Cup Pearl Barley, Rinsed
• 2 Teaspoons Dried Thyme
• 1/2 Teaspoon Finely Ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1/4 Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 3 Tablespoons Corn Starch
• 2 (32-oz.) Cartons Beef Broth

Directions:

Stew Meat:

• Place the flour, corn starch, salt, and pepper in a large Ziploc bag and tightly seal. Shake to combine.
• Add the stew meat, seal again, and shake to combine.
• Place 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat or in a crockpot/instant pot on the brown/sauté setting. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, or until translucent. Remove the onion; set aside.
• Place 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the same Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot and add half of the stew meat. Cook until browned; remove and set aside.
• Place the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the same Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot and add the remaining half of the stew meat. Cook until browned.
• Add the cooked onion and the other half of the browned stew meat back into the Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot.

Stew:

• Add the pumpkin, barley, thyme, pepper, salt, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes to the Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot.
• Place the corn starch into a small bowl. Whisk in a 1/2 cup of beef broth.
• Pour the corn starch mixture and the remaining beef broth into the Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot. Stir to combine.
• Cook for 8 hours on low heat if using a crockpot and use the stew setting if using an instant pot. If you are using a Dutch oven, bring the mixture to a rolling boil, reduce the heat to low, and then cook until desired consistency.

Suggestions:

• Rinsing the barley will help to remove any dust, dirt, or debris.
• Use whichever cooking method you prefer for this recipe. I used a crockpot/instant pot on the brown/sauté setting for the onions and meat, followed by the crockpot setting for the actual stew.
• If using a Dutch oven, the soup will need to cook for about an hour to thicken and allow the barley enough time to plump up nicely.
• When it comes to stew, I prefer it to be thick, which is why I added extra corn starch to thicken it. If you prefer your stew to be not quite so thick, leave it out.
• There’s a lot of barley in this stew. You can always add less if that’s your thing. I happen to like that this stew is a meal in a bowl. It’s quite filling.

Improvements:

• Add a few bay leaves to the stew while it is cooking. Make sure to remove them before serving.
• Garnish with fresh thyme before serving.
• For a meatless alternative, replace the beef in this recipe with mushrooms and use vegetable broth instead of beef broth.
• Swirl a bit of sour cream or whipping cream into the stew before serving.

Print

Yum

Comforting Double Barley & Pumpkin Beef Stew

Ingredients:

Stew Meat:
• 1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 3 Tablespoons Corn Starch
• 1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Finely Ground Black Pepper
• 1 1/2 Pounds of Beef Stew Meat, Cut into Bite-Size Pieces
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil, Divided
• 1 Large Sweet Yellow Onion, Finely Diced
Stew:
• 1 (15-oz.) Can Pure Pumpkin
• 1 Cup Pearl Barley, Rinsed
• 2 Teaspoons Dried Thyme
• 1/2 Teaspoon Finely Ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1/4 Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 3 Tablespoons Corn Starch
• 2 (32-oz.) Cartons Beef Broth

Directions:

Stew Meat:
1. Place the flour, corn starch, salt, and pepper in a large Ziploc bag and tightly seal. Shake to combine.
2. Add the stew meat, seal again, and shake to combine.
3. Place 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat or in a crockpot/instant pot on the brown/sauté setting. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, or until translucent. Remove the onion; set aside.
4. Place 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the same Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot and add half of the stew meat. Cook until browned; remove and set aside.
5. Place the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the same Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot and add the remaining half of the stew meat. Cook until browned.
6. Add the cooked onion and the other half of the browned stew meat back into the Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot.
Stew:
7. Add the pumpkin, barley, thyme, pepper, salt, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes to the Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot.
8. Place the corn starch into a small bowl. Whisk in a 1/2 cup of beef broth.
9. Pour the corn starch mixture and the remaining beef broth into the Dutch oven or crockpot/instant pot. Stir to combine.
10. Cook for 8 hours on low heat if using a crockpot and use the stew setting if using an instant pot. If you are using a Dutch oven, bring the mixture to a rolling boil, reduce the heat to low, and then cook until desired consistency.

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Soup Saturday Swappers is a group of friends who get together on the third Saturday of each month to share their favorite soup and stew recipes based on a theme chosen by one of the members. To join Soup Saturday Swappers you can send an email to wendyklik1517@gmail.com. Visit our Pinterest board to find more great soup and stew recipes.

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