Instant Pot Beef Barley Soup

Instant Pot Beef Barley Soup made with tender chunks of beef, pearl barley and fresh vegetables in flavorful beef broth is the perfect meal to warm up a cold day. This homemade soup is Grandma’s recipe made easy in the pressure cooker!

This easy Instant Pot beef barley soup recipe is one of my grandma’s old recipes that I adapted for the pressure cooker. What used to take hours on the stove top now takes time — usually less than an hour in the Instant Pot!

Instant Pot recipes are good like that!

This hearty soup is chock-full of tender beef, chewy barley and plenty of fresh veggies. It’s pretty much a one pot meal that will warm you up on a chilly fall night or cold winter’s day.

My husband says it’s the best beef barley soup he’s ever tasted! If you like hearty Instant pot soup recipes, try Instant Pot Cabbage Roll Soup, Rotisserie chicken soup or Instant Pot Beef Stew.

Ingredients

You only need a few simple ingredients to make this delicious beef and barley soup recipe. If you don’t have them at home, you can find what you need in the grocery store:

• Olive oil or vegetable oil
• Beef stew meat — packaged or cut up a chuck roast
• Small onion 
• Celery stalks 
• Medium carrots — use baby carrots if you want
• Garlic cloves
• Low sodium beef broth
• Worcestershire sauce
• Pearled barley (pearl barley)
• Diced tomatoes, canned
• Dried parsley or Italian seasoning
• Sea salt
• Ground black pepper

How to Make Beef Barley Soup in Instant Pot

First, you’ll need to rinse the barley under cold running water.

Do you need to rinse barley?

Well, you should. This helps to remove excess starch, dust and any other debris that may have accumulated on the grains.

Just pour the barley into a mesh strainer. Then, rinse it under the water, and fluff with your hands.

Next, set the barley aside while you chop up your veggies. Aim for about 1 cup of chopped carrots, celery and onions.

No need to cut them up too fine. Otherwise, they’ll get really soft when pressure cooking.

Then, cut your stew meat into bite sized pieces. If you can’t find stew meat already cut up, buy a small chuck roast, and cut that up into smaller beef cubes.

Season the meat with some salt and pepper. Then, brown your meat in a little bit of olive oil or vegetable oil on the saute setting.

It’s easier to brown beef in batches. So, for 2 pound of meat, brown about half, then transfer to a plate and keep warm while you do the second batch.

Use kitchen tongs to turn the meat. No need to cook it all the way through — you just want to brown the outside.

Next, add your chopped veggies to the bottom of the pot. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook them for a minute or two, or until just slightly tender.

Add a little bit of beef broth to deglaze the pot. The veggies release liquid as they cook, but you want to release any browned bits that may be stuck to the bottom of the pot.

Turn the saute feature off. Then, add your stew meat and any drippings back into the pot.

Pour in the beef broth and Worcestershire sauce.

Then, add the rinsed barley. Give it a quick stir to make sure it’s covered with broth. Add the tomatoes, remaining ingredients, and place the lid on the pressure cooker.

Cooking Time

Cook the beef barley soup for 25 minutes on high pressure. The pot does take about 10 to 15 minutes to reach pressure.

When it’s done pressure cooking, allow a 10 minute natural release, followed by a quick release. Total cook time will vary.

When you remove the lid, give the soup a good stir. I like to add fresh parsley at this time to brighten up the soup and add some freshness.

You can leave the soup on the keep warm setting or serve this flavorful soup immediately. It’s the perfect comfort food, along with crusty bread, on a cold winter day!

Variations

We think this old fashioned beef barley soup recipe is perfect as it is. But, you can easily change it up to suit your own tastes.

To thicken beef barley soup, add a tablespoon of tomato paste. Or, stir in a cornstarch slurry after pressure cooking.

The barley acts as a thickener, but if you want more of a beef barley stew, add the slurry. Keep in mind, the soup thickens as it cools.

You can also add chopped potatoes or fresh mushrooms for extra flavor. Or add a splash of red wine for richness.

How to Store and Reheat

Store leftover beef barley soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This hearty beef barley soup tastes even better the next day! It should last for 4 to 5 days in the fridge.

For longer storage, you can freeze this delicious soup. Pour smaller portions of cooled soup into freezer bags or freezer safe containers.

Reheat beef barley soup in the Instant Pot on the saute function or on the stove top or in your slow cooker.

You may need to add more beef broth when reheating, as the soup gets thicker when refrigerated or frozen.

I hope your whole family enjoys this updated version of Grandma’s old fashioned beef barley soup as much as we do!

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