Swiss Barley Soup – How to Make it Healthy and Delicious
Swiss Barley Soup, or Bunder Gerstensuppe, is traditionally eaten in the Swiss Alps in the winter. It is a warm, delicious soup that comforts you after being outdoors. I discovered this soup while I was visiting friends in Switzerland while we were hiking down the mountain in Grindelwald, Switzerland!
While this soup is typically made with heavy cream, butter, and bacon, I have created a lighter version of this soup. It still gives you the same delicious flavor without all the extra calories and fat. This soup makes a great starter or can be eaten as a meal. When I eat this soup, I am transported back to my amazing trip in the Alps!
If you are interested in learning more about Swiss food, check out my post, 6 Things to Eat in Switzerland.
Ingredients for Swiss Barley Soup
- Pearled Barley – Barley adds a nice heartiness to this soup. And because barley is a good source of fiber, it helps to keep you full.
- Potatoes – Potatoes also round this soup out nicely. They add nutrients and texture.
- Vegetables – This soup has plenty of vegetables from potatoes, leeks, onions, celery, and carrots. These vegetables add color, texture, nutrients, and fiber.
- Half and Half – At the end of cooking the soup, you traditionally add heavy cream. By changing this to half and half, you reduce the calories, fat, and cholesterol content, but the flavor is still amazing.
- Bacon – Bacon adds flavor to Swiss Barley Soup. The bacon is still in this recipe, but I decreased the amount of bacon to cut down on the saturated fat. However, if you are vegetarian, you can make this recipe without the bacon.
How to Make Swiss Barley Soup
First, heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and leek and cook until the vegetables begin to soften, which is about 10 minutes.
Then, add the carrots, celery, bay leaf, and bacon. Then lower the heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Next, add the stock, barley, and potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low to simmer. Simmer for 1 hour, uncovered, stirring occasionally.
After 1 hour, remove the bay leaf. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the half and half. Allow the half and half to cook through for 1-2 minutes, without boiling. Then remove the pot from heat.
Ladle the soup into bowls. Garnish with parsley and serve!
Nutritional Benefits of Swiss Barley Soup
Barley
Barley is a whole grain that is a rich source of fiber, B vitamins, and potassium. One type of fiber in barley is beta-glucan, a type of soluble fiber, which helps you to feel full. This can result in reducing appetite and overall intake and may result in weight loss over time. Barley also has insoluble fiber which promotes regular digestion.
Also, the fiber in barley can prevent gallstones as well as lower cholesterol levels. Barley is also a good source of iron, magnesium, zinc, manganese, copper, selenium, and vitamin B-6.
The barley in this recipe is pearled barley which means the hull and bran have been removed. Hulled barley still has the bran and germ intact, but the inedible outer shell is removed. This also means that hulled barley takes longer to cook, 1 1/2 hours compared to about 1 hour for pearled barley.
Fiber
With all the vegetables and barley, this soup has 5 grams of fiber per serving. If you are looking to increase your fiber intake, this soup will help to add to your total daily fiber!
Fiber or dietary fiber is the part of a plant that the human body cannot digest or absorb. There are 2 different types of fiber in foods: soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber means it dissolves in water and forms into a gel. Examples of foods containing soluble fiber are oats, beans, apples, oranges, carrots, and barley!
To learn more about fiber, read my post on 27 of the Best High Fiber and Low Carb Foods!
Carrots
Carrots are high in beta-carotene (which is converted to vitamin A) and vitamin C, as well as vitamin B6 and potassium. They also are high in antioxidants such as lutein, which in combination with beta-carotene help promote good eye health. The two main antioxidants in carrots, carotenoids and anthocyanins, help to lower the risk of cancer.
Leeks
Leeks are a part of the same family as onions, shallots, and scallions. They look like a giant scallion or green onion but have a milder taste that goes great in soups. And they are nutrient-dense!
One serving of leeks provides 31 calories and is high in beta carotene, vitamin C, and a good source of vitamin K and manganese. The nutrients in leeks have many health benefits such as improving digestion, promoting weight loss, lowering cholesterol levels, and may protect against certain cancers.
Potatoes
Potatoes are an excellent source of vitamin C, B6, and a good source of niacin, and folate. There is a variety of minerals such as potassium, manganese, magnesium, and phosphorus.
Tips
- Serve this soup as a starter to your meal or it can be eaten as a meal on its own with crusty bread!
- If you are vegetarian, change the chicken stock to vegetable stock and cook it without bacon.
- You can use hulled barley instead of pearled barley to add even more fiber and nutrients, but you will need to cook it for at least 1 ½ hours and increase the amount of stock used due to evaporation.
Recipe adapted from Food.com
Be sure to take pictures of your Swiss Barley Soup masterpiece and tag @noshnourishwander on Instagram if you make this recipe!
What are some of your favorite ways to cook with barley? And what are your favorite soups? Leave your answers in the comments below!
More Soup Recipes!
- Amazing Italian Sausage with Vegetables Soup
- How to Make Slow Cooker Lentil Soup with Vegetables
- How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Swiss Barley Soup
Equipment
- large pot or Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 1 large leek washed and finely chopped, white part only
- 3 medium carrots peeled and finely diced
- 3 stalks celery finely diced
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 ounces bacon diced
- 8 cups chicken stock
- Âľ cup pearl barley
- 2 medium russet potatoes peeled and diced
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- 1 cup half and half
- fresh parsley for garnish
Instructions
- First, heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and leek until the vegetables begin to soften, which is about 10 minutes.
- Then, add the carrots, celery, bay leaf, and bacon. Then lower the heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Next, add the stock, barley, and potatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low to simmer. Simmer for 1 hour, uncovered, stirring occasionally.
- After 1 hour, remove the bay leaf. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the half and half. Allow the half and half to cook through for 1-2 minutes, without boiling. Then remove the pot from heat.
- Ladle the soup into bowls. Garnish with parsley and serve!
Notes
Nutrition
It was delicious.
I’m so glad you liked it, Dave!
This is my favorite Swiss soup! I can’t wait to try your recipe.
Thank you for introducing me to Switzerland and this soup, Audrey!