Beef Barley Slow Cooker Stoup

1 Lb Beef - I used very lean sirloin cut into little pieces
1/4 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove finely minced garlic (I used two cloves grated on a microplane grater)
1 Box Campbell's No Salt Added Beef Broth
1/4 cup Barley soaked overnight

This can be cooked in continuity if you don't want to use the slow cooker - just start the barley in the morning and throw everything together at night.

The night before: Stir fry the beef long enough to get it really browned well and leaving lots of little bits on the bottom of the pan - DO NOT USE A NON-STICK PAN if you can avoid it. I used a stainless steel frying pan so lots of carmelization in the bottom of the pan. Remove meat from pan and keep warm, add onion and garlic and fry for a few minutes, then add carrot and celery and fry for a few minutes. Add in the Beef Stock cube and enough water to deglaze the bottom of the pan. Put aside and let contents cool. Refrigerate overnight.

Meanwhile, put 1/4 cup barley in a bowl and rinse a few times. Cover with water and let stand in a bowl in the fridge overnight.

In the morning, combine meat mixture with barley mixture in Slow Cooker. Add 1 Box of Beef Broth. Turn on low and let cook all day. Delicious!!

Serving Size: 6 Bowl Size Servings

Number of Servings: 6

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user NSSTAMPQUEEN.