Slow-Cooker Beef and Barley

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Not bad once you do everything the other reviewers say (ie. add a ton of garlic, some bay leaves and more salt and pepper. We put in over a cup of barley and boy does soak up a ton of the broth! My husband likes it more like soup so we added another whole 4-6 cups of beef broth when we got home so it was more soupy. Also, I added parm to the top of mine like another reviewer recommended and it made it better. We will try again with less barley and just know that we need to add more broth when we get home.

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It was pretty good. I left out the mushrooms because I dont like them. The flavor was nice, added a little more salt and pepper to taste once it was done. We have enough leftovers for 2 more nights id say.

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LOve this recipe, so easy and tasty!

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As others have said the barley does get a little mushy. I decided to go with it and added grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and it resembled risotto. I thought it was good and will make it again.

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I am a big fan of the heartiness of barley and thought as some of the other reviwers that I could come home to a lovely bowl of 'soup'. First off, with that much barley and the instructions to cook for 8 hours was the first mistake. The barley expanded and took over everything. It stuck to the crock-pot and the taste was bland as well. I had no liquid left over and had to try and add some to make it presentable. Wonder what the magazine was thinking adding this recipe. As the others said, there are WAY better recipes out there. Did the magazine even test this before adding it???

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I made this last night and what a disappointment. Its mushy, tasteless and unfortunately I thought I would have come home to a great leftover meal and its just going in the trash. I have been making foodnetwork recipes for years and have had some great meals. Today I created an account hoping that my message would save someone from wasting their time and money and good wine.

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Bland, mushy, blah. My husband called it gruel! Prison slop! We laughed so hard... But seriously, it's just not good.

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great base recipe. After reading the reviews I made quite a few additions to the recipe...more barley; red wine; more garlic and thyme; red onion; two fresh bay leaves. I also used stewing beef that had already been cut into large chunks instead of one whole piece of meat...This worked out quite well because there wasn't really any fat rendered during cooking, so nothing to skim. I compensated by drizzling the final product with a scant amount of good quality evoo. I'll definitely make this recipe again.

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Read the reviews, this recipe is bland! Following the advice of reviewers, I added red wine, Worcestershire, garlic, extra salt, onions, and chicken broth, but it still turned out flavorless. The horseradish was a lifesaver, and an absolute must have!

As advised, I did not cook for 8 hours-- 6 hours was plenty of time and everything was cooked perfectly.
I recommend that you double the barley. Its presence was scarce and got lost in all of the vegetables.

Bottom Line: Alot of ingredients translates into little taste in this recipe, despite all of our heroic attempts to revive it. Everything was cooked nicely, but lacked flavor. Probably will not make again..

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I love beef stew with barley, but, my recipe is a lot of work. So, I made this recipe yesterday. However, after reading the reviews, I knew I had to make a few changes. First I seared 2 pounds of large diced STEW MEAT that I sprinkled with garlic salt and pepper. Then I added 5 cups of regular beef broth and a can of crushed tomatoes, instead of 4 cups low sodium beef broth and 1 cup water. As well as the remaining ingredients, I added several medium whole peeled onions, 2 pounds peeled, sliced carrots and 4 cloves of garlic, just peeled and smashed, salt, pepper and a pinch of cayenne to taste. I simmered it in a crock pot for only 6 hours, because several reviews said it was too mushy. Two hours before it was done, I mixed in a cup of white wine as well. It was wonderful, and a lot easier than the beef stew I usually make. If needed, thicken with a little WONDRA flour, it doesn't lump. I bet this would be just as good with cubed seared lamb. Thank you!