Well friends. What a week. What a day. What a time. I was feeling pretty indifferent as this week started and thankfully I'm ending it on a higher note. I'm not sure what all shifted other than my attitude and continually praying for joy and peace no matter the situation.
We had a handful of good moments this week and then there were some bad. Some tears. Some frustration. I think this is okay right now and I think we're all working out our stress in various ways, not knowing exactly how to deal with it as we've never been here before.
A few Tuesdays ago the stress was so much that I was thankful to order some take out. It was a much welcomed break even if I do love to cook! The following night was one of those night where I found myself making all the food. I had a chuck roast I had to cook and Easter ham that also needed to be dealt with. We got a veg box from Misfits and kale chips were made. The kitchen was in full explosion mode.
Ordinarily I'd start this soup in the slow cooker and allow it to cook for 6-8 hours on low. Well, it was 4 PM and that was not happening so I was thankful for the Instant Pot. If you follow along on Instagram you may have seen I've acquired my Mom's instant pot now too and am an official kitchen tool hoarder. I'll be honest and say I love it and we've used both multiple times at once!
This soup may not seem like a spring staple, but it's still chilly here and I see some of you are getting snow so consider this if you're needing a comfort meal or something or a cold day. Who says you can't have soup yearlong though, right?!
I made this with the instant pot in mind but you could easily make this in your slow cooker. This is my covid version of this soup, meaning I'm using what I've got. While I used red onions here I would usually use white if I had them!
Ingredients You'll Need for the Soup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 3-4 pound chuck roast, cubed
2 red onions, diced
1 small can tomato paste (6 ounces)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup red wine
4 cups water
2 teaspoon beef better than bouillon
2 teaspoons vegetable better than bouillon
5 carrots, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup soy sauce
3/4 cups barley
Put the Instant Pot on to Saute.
To the pot saute the onion then add in the tomato paste and dried oregano. Stir that for a couple minutes then add in your tomatoes.
Next add in the wine, water, and better than bouillon. Cancel the saute function.
Add to the pot your beef, soy sauce, carrots and barley. Season with salt and pepper but don't worry about this too much right now as the soy sauce carries a lot of salt with it.
Press the "meat/stew" button on your Instant Pot and let it cook! Allow to naturally release for 10 minutes then release the steam and serve it up!
We love this soup and it freezes excellently. I've got several of these ready to go in the freezer for nights when I don't want to cook!