Tom Kerridge's chicken and barley soup recipe

This chicken and barley soup is packed with flavour and the pearl barley makes it a lovely, hearty meal.

Tom Kerridge's soup uses a whole chicken, spatchcocked or quartered. Buying the whole bird is actually one of the cheapest ways to buy chicken, and means there is no wastage. Pearl barley is a lovely versatile grain that keeps you full for a long time and contains lots of fibre, so it's great for a healthy digestion. This is a fantastic soup for cold days when you want something comforting and bolstering. Tom says, 'When it’s chilly outside, make a big batch of this for a comforting supper, or take it to work in a flask for an easy lunch. Dried mushrooms lend lots of flavour here. They are a great store-cupboard ingredient to have on hand for pepping up soups, pasta sauces, stews and casseroles.'

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 4 celery sticks, diced
• 2 courgettes, diced
• 2 leeks, trimmed, well washed and diced
• 2 litres fresh chicken stock
• A bunch of thyme sprigs, tied with string
• 2 bay leaves
• 250g pearl barley
• 40g dried porcini mushrooms
• 1.5kg free-range whole chicken, spatchcocked or quartered, skin removed
• 200g cavolo nero, tough stalks removed, chopped roughly
• 250g frozen peas
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Extra-virgin olive oil, to drizzle
• 30g Parmesan, freshly grated, to serve (optional)

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large flameproof casserole dish over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, celery, courgettes and leeks and cook for a further 5 minutes, or until softened.
2. Pour in the chicken stock and 1 litre of water and add the thyme, bay leaves, pearl barley and dried porcini. Stir and bring to a gentle simmer.
3. Lay the chicken in the casserole, season generously with pepper and simmer gently for 1 hour, turning the chicken over halfway through cooking.
4. Lift the chicken out of the broth onto a plate and allow to cool a little. Remove and discard the thyme and bay leaves from the broth. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bone and shred into bite-sized pieces.
5. Bring the broth back to a simmer and stir in the cavolo nero and peas. Cook for 2 minutes, then return the chicken to the soup and stir well. Taste to check the seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.
6. Ladle into warmed bowls and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Best served with grated Parmesan.   This recipe was taken from Tom Kerridge's Fresh Start: How to cook amazing food at home

Top tips for making chicken and barley soup

To freeze: Allow to cool, then freeze in two-portion containers. Defrost fully in the fridge overnight, then reheat in a saucepan over a medium heat, until hot all the way through.

If you really don't like to waste a thing, you can save the chicken skins and roast them to make chicken crackling. Stretch them out on a non-stick baking tray, cover them with another non-stick baking tray to sandwich them flat, and bake in a medium-hot oven for about 15 minutes. They should turn golden and crisp up beautifully. Use them like crispy bacon.

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