Recipes

[qualityshopper]

Let me begin by telling you that I know practically nothing about cooking--in other words, I'm a complete novice. I have an Instant Pot that's been sitting around for a couple of years, and I've decided to finally try to cook something in it. The something I've chosen to make is vegetable soup with barley. 

The ingredients I plan to put in it include a 12 oucne bag of frozen soup mix (contains potatoes, carrots, peas, corn, green beans, lima beans, okra, celery, and onions), a can of diced tomatoes, fresh zucchini, chicken broth, Quaker quick barley, and of course seasonings. I'll probably also add a few extra fresh potatoes.

Now here are all of my questions. Should I put all of this in the pot at once or should certain ingredients be added later? What is the ratio of liquid I should put in for the amount of veggies? Should I use the soup setting or pressure cooker setting, and for how long? And, finally, what about the barley? I've read that I should cook it separately and then add it to the soup. Also, that it should be washed before cooking.

I'm absolutely cluless! Would really, really apprectiate help from any of you with my first attempt to make homemade soup. Thanks!

[spud188]

Your soup idea sounds really good to me,cover your veggies with broth,I never have rinsed barley.
You might want to cook it separately to make sure it doesn't absorb all your broth. I would use the soup function on your IP.

[Ainhisg]

This recipe will be a good recipe for you to try.  I have made it.  Personally, since you're not familiar with an electric pressure cooker, I would not advise winging it on your first attempt.  I highly advise following a recipe for best success.  The whole rootitoot website will really help you especially the tip times section.

https://rootitoot.com/recipes-and-cooking/soups/beef-and-barley-soup/ 

[phoenixbrd]

@qualityshopper Sounds like a good place to start, soup is easy and always tastes good!   Fresh potatoes, onions, carrots, celery are easy to chop, to me it just tastes better.....but if it is a time issue, you can use frozen.  Also, I use veggie broth and add a tablespoon of Veggie Better than Bullion.  It gives a wonderful rich taste to the broth of your soup.  Yes, I wash barley before using.  After your first attempt at the basic soup recipe, feel free to explore with your soup - you might want to add mushrooms, spinach, kidney beans, etc. 

For me, cooking is creative.  Have fun and let us know how your soup turned out! 

[10sluvr]

not sure how long you plan to simmer, but the potatoes will take the longest to cook. I would simmer them in broth for about 15 mins. Barley will absorb liquid, so plan on adding. Sometimes mine end up like a stew, which i'm fine with. I also nuke the mixed veggies before adding-a little precook defrosts and makes things go faster.

[RespectLife]

I DO rinse my barley, but never use Quick Barley.  I find it pasty and mushy.

I only use Goya and it definitely takes the longest to cook.  20 mins.

Longer than potatoes...however, I wouldn't have barley and pots in my soup.  Too much starch.

I never add any kind of pasta, rice, barley etc to my IP to cook w/ everything else.

I always cook it separate and add later.  It will soak up all your broth.

My IP had very easy directions to follow.

Ya gotta take her out for the first test ride sometime.

Go to Bluejeanchef  dot com

Meredith Laurence, The Blue Jean Chef, has TONS of easy IP recipes.

She writes very easy directions!

[Sooner]

@qualityshopper By all means cook the barley separately.  Follow the directions on the bag.

The rest of the things?  Read the directions on the bag.  If  all of the things seem to be raw frozen then use the soup setting.  If they are a very quick cook time, maybe set the cooker for half the time the soup setting is

One thing about a pressure cooker--you can set it, let it go and look.  If it isn't as done as you want, lock the lid back on and try again.  Some cookers might have to cool a little before you can put the lid back on, but most don't.

You can always cook it more.  Sometimes if something isn't quite done we'll set ours on saute and leave the lid off and boil for a few minutes.

Have fun!  Let us know how it turns out.  

[RedTop]

For me personally, NOTHING in this soup needs to be cooked under pressure!  I would definitely use the soup setting; I use sauté sometimes when I want a hard boil on something.   

I would cook the potatoes until they begin to soften, wash and cook the barley separate, dump the vegetables and liquid in, and simmer until hot.   

[qualityshopper]

Thanks everyone for the help. I even called the Quaker company today to ask them about the barley. They said it was already washed, but I could wash again, and I could either go ahead and just add it directly to the IP or cook it separately first. In other words, leaving it totally up to me to do whatever. This is going to be an interesting experiment. I just hope that the finished product will be edible . Anyway, really appreciate the suggestions and help. Happy cooking!

[ceh]

This is the recipe I use for Mushroom Barley soup. I think it is delicious. I reduced the pepper to 1/4 tsp per reviewers and started with 1/2 tsp salt since more can be added later if necessary.

https://recipeteacher.com/instant-pot-mushroom-barley-soup/