If you haven’t noticed, I pretty much love anything with an egg involved. While totally optional in this case (this soup is delicious with just a little parmesan sprinkled on top too), the poached egg adds a luxury to this dish, which is a nice quality in a basic veggie soup.
All together, this soup comes together in about an hour. You can use quick-cooking barley if you’re short on time, but I like to use the legit hulled barley (aka barley groats) because it is the least processed and better for you.
Shout out to my Dad for teaching me how to make a his “perfect” poached egg! Keep reading for Vito’s egg poaching technique…
Vegetable Barley Soup with Poached Egg
Serves 4
Recipe by Just the Tip / Inspired by Gourmet via Epicurious
Here’s what I used:
-
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium zucchini, diced
- 4 oz shiitake mushrooms, stems removed & sliced (I would use more next time but this is what I had…)
- 1 tbsp chopped thyme
- 1 15-oz can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
- 1 qt low sodium vegetable broth
- 3/4 cup hulled barley
- 6 ounces baby spinach
- 4 large eggs (optional)
- grated parmesan cheese
- salt, pepper
Here’s what I did:
- In a large soup pot or dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, and zucchini, season with salt and pepper, and saute for about 10 minutes.
- Add the thyme and mushrooms and saute for about 5 minutes.
- Add the broth, tomatoes, and barley. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer and cover for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Fill a pot of water with water and bring to a rolling boil. Crack the eggs directly into the pot, keeping it at a rolling boil, for 2-3 minutes until the whites are set. Remove with a slotted spoon and blot dry with a paper towel.
- While the eggs are cooking, stir in the baby spinach to the soup. Season with salt and pepper, and serve with the egg on top.
Just the Tip 