Tomato Barley Stew with Pulled Beef

You will need:

• 1-2 lbs of fresh tomatoes. We buy organic, heirloom tomatoes from the farmer’s market
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup diced onion (1 medium)
• 3 carrots, diced (thin)
• 1 cup organic dry barley, rinsed
• 1 28-ounce can organic crushed tomatoes (preferably fire roasted)
• 4 cups free-range chicken broth
• 6-8 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 tablespoon dry oregano
• 1 tablespoon dry basil
• 2 teaspoons crushed rosemary
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• Himalayan salt and cracked black pepper
• 2 cups chopped Lacinato / Dino kale

Directions:

1. Add olive oil, onion, and carrots to a preheated stockpot over medium-high heat. Cook 5 minutes, or until onion is translucent. Stir in barley and cook 5 minutes, or until grains are aromatic. NOTE*** Slice the carrots very thinly, or they will take awhile to soften.

2. Slice the fresh tomatoes and add them in. Stir in the can of fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, garlic cloves, oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme, and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to low-medium and simmer 40-60 minutes, or until barley is plump and tender. Stir in kale and cook 5 minutes, or until wilted and tender.

3. Herb Roasted Chickpeas if desired. (We place fresh chickpeas onto a cookie tray, coat them lightly in olive oil, oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, and pecorino Romano. Roast them for 20-30 minutes on 375^o, or until dried)

Optional: This stew tastes great on its own; however, we like to also slow-cook a rump roast in our crock pot and add pulled beef to this dish as well.

Enjoy!

I have included helpful links to show you some of the products that we use most. You may find some of these products cheaper at your local grocery store.

This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of them, I will receive a commission (at no extra cost to you). I only ever endorse products that I personally use and have benefited from. Thank you for your support!