Slow Cooker Chicken Barley Soup

Chicken soup in a white bowl with fork and spoon.

5 from 5 votes

Slow Cooker Chicken Barley Soup is a set and forget soup where the family dinner cooks itself! Juicy chicken, tons of veggies, slurp worthy.

Prep Time10

Cook Time4

Total Time4 10

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Western

Keyword: slow cooker chicken barley soup

Servings:

Calories: 544kcal

Author: Adrianne

Ingredients

1 large onion skin peeled and diced, Note 1
2 large carrot Note 2
4 stalks celery Note 3
4 chicken thighs skinless, boneless, Note 4
½ teaspoon salt Note 5
½ teaspoon black pepper also Note 5
6 cups chicken stock (chicken broth) Note 6
1 teaspoon dried thyme Note 7
1 cup barley Note 8
2 cups mushrooms sliced, Note 9

To serve

flat leaf parlsey stems removed, leaves chopped
black pepper

Instructions

Vegetable prep: use a knife, vegetable peeler and cutting board to peel and dice the onion, peel and chop the carrots and slice the celery into pieces.
Chicken thighs: place the chicken thighs onto a chopping board and season with salt and black pepper. Then use tongs to flip them to the other side and season this side with salt and pepper also.
Layer: sprinkle the diced onion into the slow cooker insert, followed by the diced carrot and chopped celery. Then use the tongs to place the seasoned chicken thighs on top.
Liquids: pour the chicken stock into the bowl and then sprinkle the dried thyme across the top.
Cook: set the timer for 4 hours on high heat (or 8 hours on low), put the lid on and let the dish cook. Towards the end of this time use the knife and cutting board to slice the mushrooms. Then with only 1 hour of cook time remaining, remove the lid and add the cup of barley and sliced mushrooms. Stir to combine then use the tongs to pick up the cooked chicken and place it onto a chopping board. Use a knife and slice the chicken into pieces then add the sliced chicken pieces back to the pan. Stir gently to combine then place the lid on and allow the soup to cook for a further 1 hour.
To serve: once the cook time is up, remove the lid and portion the soup into bowls. Garnish with chopped parsley and sprinkle with pepper Provide forks and spoons for serving.

Video

Notes

Note 1 - Onion: we need 1 large onion which we peel and then dice. White onion (with brown skin) is recommended over red onions.
Note 2 - Carrot: we want to use 2 large carrots in the soup. We only need to trim the base and top, peel them and then finely dice.
Note 3 - Celery: we want to use 3-4 stalks of celery and simply cut the leaves off and give the base a trim.
Note 4 - Chicken thighs: we use boneless, skinless chicken thighs for the recipe. No need to brown or prep other than to season with a little salt and pepper before we add them to the crockpot.
Note 5 - Salt and pepper: we use salt and a little bit of black pepper to season the chicken thighs before we add them to the slow cooker.
Note 6 - Chicken stock: in Australia we call this chicken stock, but it also commonly known as chicken broth around the world. I prefer to use the premade liquid version for the recipe as opposed to chicken stock cubes with water (less ingredients and can simply open the lid and pour it in).
Note 7 - Dried thyme: we use dried thyme as our herb for flavor in the soup. Alternatives are the equivalent amount of dried parsley or Italian herbs.
Note 8 - Barley: barley is a great alternative to using pasta and rice in soups. It is dense, chewy and delightful. We don't use much in the recipe but you will find that this is enough when combined with all of the other ingredients in the soup. It is pearl barley that we need.
Note 9 - Mushrooms: these get added towards the end stage of the cooking process to avoid them softening too much. White mushrooms, button mushrooms or simply chopped will do the trick.

Nutrition