Soup: Barley-Vegetable Chicken Soup

By LynnK

Ingredients

• 8 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup regular barley
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (1 to 1 1/4 pounds total), cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 3 medium carrots, sliced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup snipped fresh parsley or 2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes
• 1 tablespoon snipped fresh sage or rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried sage or rosemary, crushed
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup chopped green, yellow, and/or red sweet pepper

Preparation

Step 1

1.
In a 4-quart Dutch oven, bring broth to boiling; add barley. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

2.
Add chicken, celery, carrots, onion, dried parsley (if using), sage, and black pepper. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add sweet pepper; cover and simmer about 5 minutes more or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Stir in fresh parsley (if using). Makes 8 (1 1/2-cup) main-dish servings.)