ALL MEASURES ARE APPROXIMATE
you will need:
roughly a pound of beef - i use boneless short ribs. stewing beef or beef shank is also acceptable.
beef soup bones
2 large onions
2 shallots
2 pounds carrots
1 pound potatoes (i like baby reds)
half pound parsnips
4 ribs celery
1 bell pepper
garlic, to preference
1 bag corn
1 bag green beans
3/4 cup barley
a small can of diced tomatoes (they are usually 15 or so ounces)
red wine
soy sauce
tomato paste
oregano, to taste
basil, to taste
bay leaves
salt and pepper
*
the stock:
preheat oven to 375°. when oven is ready, roast beef bones for a half hour. i use a dutch oven, it will need to be at least 4qt capacity.
when half hour is done, add (roughly chopped) one pound carrots, 1/4 pound parsnips, 2 ribs celery (leaves and all), garlic, one onion, one shallot, bell pepper, and a tablespoon of tomato paste and roast for another hour.
when this time is up, deglaze with about 1.5 cups of red wine. let wine reduce and add enough water that the vegetables are loosely covered. add basil, oregano, and bay leaves. bring to a boil and simmer for at least an hour.
strain vegetables. at this point i like to refrigerate the stock overnight to skim off any fat that remains.
the soup:
cut up the boneless short ribs into acceptably sized pieces. marinate in soy sauce for about 15 minutes. brown meat and remove from pot. let it drain on a couple paper towels. discard most of the fat.
dice the garlic, shallot and garlic. sautee in the remaining beef drippings until translucent. add the beef back and deglaze with a cup or so of red wine again. when the wine has reduced properly add the stock. chop the remaining carrots and parsnips along with 2 more ribs of celery. add diced tomatoes. oregano, basil, and bay leaf also goes in the pot now. add all that and add enough water so the vegetables are well covered. bring to a boil, reduce and simmer for 90 minutes.
chop the taters and add them. bring soup back to a boil and reduce to a simmer again. they should take about 45 minutes. at this point start the barley, because it will take about 40 minutes too. when the potatoes are fork tender, add the corn and green beans. bring it back to a boil for a couple minutes and the corn and green beans should be cooked through. add the barley.
at this point you may need to adjust the level of broth. adjust seasoning to taste.
enjoy! i like to eat it with a piece of warm and crusty bread.
*you could really add just about any vegetables that you want, such as peas (yuck) or lima beans (double yuck), etc.
