Southwestern Chicken Barley Soup

Last week of school before Christmas break. The kids are vibrating at a frequency only dogs and parents can hear — the frequency of children who are fourteen school days from freedom, or five, depending on how you count, and they are counting, believe me, they are counting in their heads and on their fingers and on the whiteboard in the kitchen where Josie has written a countdown in dry-erase marker that she updates every morning with the precision of a mission control technician.

I finished Christmas shopping. I will not describe the presents because the presents are not the point — the point is the choosing, the standing in aisles thinking about who each child is and what each child needs and what each child wants and the gap between need and want, which is where Christmas lives. Justin needs nothing and wants everything and asks for nothing. Tyler needs everything and wants specific things and asks for exactly what he wants. Amber needs books and wants privacy and asks for gift cards with the practicality of a girl who knows what she likes better than I do. Josie wants everything she sees on television and needs none of it and asks for all of it, and I buy some of it, and the some is enough, because at nine, the quantity of presents is more important than the quality, and I am not above manufacturing quantity through strategic gift-wrapping of socks.

I drove a short haul to Hastings mid-week. The slow cooker had chicken noodle soup, because chicken noodle soup is the December soup, the soup that says winter, the soup that cures colds and loneliness and the specific weariness of a woman who has been Christmas shopping for four children and a mother and a husband and is tired in her bones but will not stop because stopping is not in the Novak operating manual.

I made lasagna for dinner Saturday — the big one, the 9x13, layers of noodles and meat sauce and ricotta and mozzarella. Lasagna is a commitment. Lasagna says: I have time and energy and I am spending both on this meal, for you, because you are worth the hour it takes and the cleanup it requires. Tyler ate three pieces. The lasagna did not survive the weekend. Nothing survives the weekend when Tyler is eating.

That slow cooker chicken noodle soup I mentioned — the one I left going on the counter before the Hastings run — that’s the spirit behind this Southwestern Chicken Barley Soup. It’s the same idea: you put it together before the chaos of the day, and it rewards you at the end of it. I’ve been making variations of this one for years, and the barley is what makes it feel like a meal — substantial enough that even Tyler pauses between bites, which is the highest compliment I can give a soup.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 45 min (or slow cooker 6–8 hrs) | Total Time: 1 hr | Servings: 8

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup pearl barley, rinsed
1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
1 cup frozen or canned corn, drained
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Salt and black pepper to taste
Juice of 1 lime
Optional garnishes: sour cream, shredded cheddar, chopped cilantro, sliced avocado

Instructions

Combine in pot or slow cooker. Add chicken, broth, barley, black beans, diced tomatoes, corn, onion, bell pepper, garlic, cumin, chili powder, oregano, and smoked paprika. Stir to combine and season with salt and pepper.
Cook. Stovetop: bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook 40–45 minutes until barley is tender. Slow cooker: cook on LOW 6–8 hours or HIGH 3–4 hours.
Shred the chicken. Remove the cooked chicken breasts or thighs, shred with two forks, and return the meat to the pot.
Finish with lime. Stir in lime juice and adjust seasoning to taste. Simmer an additional 5 minutes to meld flavors.
Serve. Ladle into bowls and top with your choice of sour cream, shredded cheddar, cilantro, or avocado.

Nutrition (per serving)

Southwestern Chicken Barley Soup — The December Soup That Gets Us Through