Pearl Barley and Vegetable Soup Recipe.

Asalaamu alaikum warahmatullaahi wabakatu all,

Barley was the grain most frequently consumed by the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu alayhi wassallam). It is full of vitamins, minerals and fiber.

Ibn Al Qayyim (rahimullah) suggested that the broth in which barley is boiled is more nutritious than its flour. Barley broth helps against coughing and throat roughness, stimulates the body to remove waste, cleanses the stomach, quenches the thirst and extinguishes heat. It also provides comfort and has a decomposing quality.

Ibn Al Qayyim (rahimullah) said regarding making barley water to drink that the barley should be boiled in 5 times its own amount of water in a clean pot. It should be placed on a low heat and cooked until only two fifths of the mixture remains. Then remove the cooked barley grains and use the remaining water as required.

Winter is on its way in many countries so here is my recipe for mixed vegetable soup with pearl barley. This easy to make healthy soup is delicious enjoyed with a slice of homemade bread spread with a small amount of ghee.

1 cup pearl barley, soaked for a minimum of 10 hours in enough clean water to cover, drained.
5 cups of boiling water
4x vegetable stock cubes
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 large onion roughly chopped
3 celery stems, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
Mixed vegetables of your choice - I used diced carrots, sliced green beans, sliced celery stalks, peeled potato cut into chunks, sweetcorn and courgette. You can add swiss chard, turnips, swede, cauliflower, spinach, butternut squash chunks etc.
1 carton/tin of chopped tomatoes in their natural juice.
Salt, pepper and spices to your taste.

Firstly heat the oil in a pot, add the onions, garlic and celery. Cook while stirring until the mixture turns translucent. There is no need to brown it.

Then add all the other ingredients. Bring to the boil, then cover the pot with a lid, lower the heat down to minimum and cook for 55 mins to 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Simmering soup. The aroma in my kitchen was amazing :)

The barley grains will swell and soak in a lot of the water. Be sure to add more water if the mixture becomes too thick during the cooking process.

Then it is ready to serve. This soup also freezes really well so you can enjoy it anytime.

White-stemmed swiss chard beet is a preferred vegetable to add in barley soup, particularly for the convalescing.

Umm Al-Mundhir (radhi Allahu anha) narrated that "The Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu alayhi wassallam) entered upon me, while 'Ali (radhi Allahu anhu) was accompanying him, and we had a cluster of unripe dates hanging." The Messenger of Allah began eating from them, whilst 'Ali also wanted to eat from them. She said, "The Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu alayhi wassallam) said to 'Ali, 'Stop, stop, for you are still recovering.' So 'Ali sat and the Prophet ate." She said, 'I made some chard and barley [soup] for them, so the Prophet said, 'O 'Ali eat from this, for indeed it will be more suitable for you.'"

Jami at Tirmidhi Book 28, Hadith 2170. The isnad is hasan (Darussalam).

It was also narrated that Sahl Ibn Sa'd (radhi Allahu anhu) said, "We used to be happy on Fridays. We had an old woman who would take the roots of chard beet and put them in her cooking pot, and she would add grains of barley. When we had prayed [Jummu'ah], we would visit her and she would bring it to us and we would be happy on Fridays because of that. We would not eat lunch or take a nap until after Jummu'ah, and, by Allah, there was no fat in it."

Bukhaari and Muslim

Reference to Healing with the Medicine of the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wassallam). Darussalam 2003. Page 286.

Further info on Barley's benefits - http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=127