Cranberry Bean and Barley Stew

A delicious and simple soup that uses barley to soak up the rich pot broth produced by a cranberry bean. You can substitute other hearty, delicious beans that produce a great pot-broth, like Rio Zape.

Cranberry Bean and Barley Stew

A simple, flavorful bean soup – an instant and recognizable classic
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 30 minutes
Soaking Time8 hours
Total Time10 hours
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Keyword: Barley, Dry Beans
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 463kcal

Ingredients

Beans

  • 1 lb cranberry beans (dry)
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1 shallot peeled and left whole or cut in half
  • 2 cloves garlic whole
  • 1 stalk celery cut into large chunks
  • 1 carrot cut into large chunks
  • 1 tsp peppercorn
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp dried oregano

Stew

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp miso paste or 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic crushed
  • 2 carrots halved and sliced
  • 3 stalks celery halved and sliced
  • 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup pearled barley
  • 3-5 cups spinach
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp pepper

Instructions

Soak Beans

  • Rinse and pick through the beans. Add the beans to a large bowl and cover with at least double the amount of water, by volume. Add about 1% (by weight) salt, typically around 2 tsp salt and mix. Set aside, covered, for at least four and up to about eight hours.

Prepare Soup

  • When ready to cook the beans, drain and add the beans to a large pot. Add 4.5 quarts of water; you will be using the bean cooking liquid as the base for the soup, so you want plenty of water here. As you bring the beans and water to a boil, clean the various ingredients used to cook the beans listed above and add to a large soup sock and/or a spice bag. (You can leave the bay leaves out if you’d like and just add to the bean liquid, since you can continue using those for the final product too.)
  • Once the beans reach a boil, cover and set a timer for 10 minutes. When time is up, bring the mix down to a low simmer and cook, covered, for 30 minutes, or until beans are nearly cooked. (They can be just a little undercooked, since you will continue to simmer.) If the beans get overcooked, quickly remove from the heat, salt the water well, and add the tomotoes. The salt and acid will slow the cooking.
  • While the beans cook, prepare the other ingredients. Large dice the onion, mince or crush the garlic, and slice the celery and carrots into stew-worthy small pieces. For the celery, I usually slice the stalk in half vertically (or even fourths for very large stalks) and then slice into 1-2 cm slices. For carrots, I would cut large ones in half and then slice the halves (or smaller carrots) to 1-2 cm slices. Add all of the vegetables to a single large prep bowl. Rinse the pearled barley. Rinse the spinach.
  • Optional: If you are cooking the final soup in the same pot as the beans, you can wait until the beans are fully cooked and move the beans and their cooking liquid to a bowl to the side. Remove the soup sock and/or spice bags from the beans and their liquid. DO NOT DRAIN – you want to save all liquid.
  • Either way, in a large pot, add 2 tbsp of olive oil and heat over medium-high. Add the onion, garlic, celery and carrots. Add about 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper (or to taste). Cook until they are softening and developing flavor, usually 5-7 minutes. It’s OK if the onion is taking on some color. Then, add the 2 tbsp miso paste or the 2 tbsp tomato paste. Cook until fragrant, 30-90 seconds. Add the can of tomatoes, with their liquid, and mix well. Season with the remainder 1 tsp salt and additional ½ tsp pepper (or to taste) remembering tomatoes soak up a lot of salt usually.
  • Add the rinsed 1 cup barley and the beans and their cooking liquid. Stir everything together. Lower the temperature once you’ve reached a simmer and allow to simmer for 30 minutes, until the barley is chewy and no longer hard.
  • Once the barley is cooked, add the rinsed spinach and turn off the heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

  • Six servings
  • Could use a small portion of crusty bread for the liquid, but the barley provides enough filling carbs

Nutrition

Calories: 463kcal | Carbohydrates: 82g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 1056mg | Potassium: 1441mg | Fiber: 27g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 6751IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 168mg | Iron: 6mg
Nutrition Facts
Cranberry Bean and Barley Stew
Amount Per Serving
Calories 463 Calories from Fat 63
% Daily Value*
Fat 7g11%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Sodium 1056mg46%
Potassium 1441mg41%
Carbohydrates 82g27%
Fiber 27g113%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 23g46%
Vitamin A 6751IU135%
Vitamin C 10mg12%
Calcium 168mg17%
Iron 6mg33%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.