Slow Cooker Chicken Soup with Barley & Mushrooms

A healthy chicken soup that fills up your belly without the need for carbs on the side. This all-in-one pot of slow cooker chicken soup comes with barley, sweet potato, parsnip, Swiss brown and porcini mushrooms for a one-dish hearty meal.

Yield: Serves 4
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 390 mins
Difficulty Level: 2/5

Ingredients

• 20 g dried porcini mushrooms
• 1 cup (250 ml) boiling water
• 2 chicken drumstick and thigh (700 g)
• 1 brown onion (150 g), chopped finely
• 2 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 litre (4 cups) chicken stock
• 1/2 cup (100 g) pearl barley
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 1 sprig fresh thyme
• 1 parsnip (250 g), chopped finely
• 1 sweet potato (250 g), chopped finely
• 2 stalks celery (300 g), trimmed, chopped finely
• 250 g Swiss brown mushrooms, quartered
• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• salt and pepper, to taste

Steps

01. Place porcini mushrooms in a small heatproof bowl with the water; stand 15 mins or until softened. Drain, reserve porcini and the soaking liquid.

02. Meanwhile, discard as much skin as possible from the chicken. Place chicken, onion, garlic, stock, barley, rosemary, thyme, parsnip, sweet potato, celery, swiss brown and porcini mushrooms and reserved soaking liquid into a 4.5-litre (18-cup) slow cooker. Cook, covered, on low, for 6 hours.

03. Remove chicken from cooker. When cool enough to handle, remove meat from bone; shred coarsely. Discard bones. Return meat to cooker; season to taste. Serve topped with parsley.

Photo: bauersyndication.com.au