HEARTY HEALTHY CHICKEN BARLEY SOUP

This chicken and barley soup is delicious, wholesome and a comforting meal to stay warm during cold weather. Surprise yourself with this healthy and nutrient packed bowl of warm soup.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup barley uncooked
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken cut into bite size pieces
• 2 celery stalks finely chopped
• 2 medium tomato chopped
• 1 medium onion finely diced
• 2-3 springs of fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dried thyme)
• 2-3 cloves garlic minced
• 1/2" ginger cube finely julienned
• 1 tsp smoked paprika divided
• 3 cup low sodium organic chicken stock
• 3 cup water
• 1 tbsp avocado oil
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a stock pot on medium to high heat. Add chicken, salt, pepper and 1/2 tsp smoked paprika. Sauté chicken for about 5-6 min or until tender and all the water has evaporated. Take out the chicken and keep aside
2. In the same pot, add minced garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant for about 30 sec. Then add onion and sauté until translucent
3. Add chopped tomatoes and cook for about 2-3 min.
4. Add celery, barley, chicken stock and water. Bring the mixture to a boil.
5. Then add fresh thyme, salt, pepper, and the remaining smoked paprika. Simmer the mixture on low heat for about 25 to 30 min.
6. Add cooked chicken, adjust seasonings, if necessary and simmer for about 5 min.

Recipe Adapted From watchwhatueat.com

Recipe Notes

You can cook chicken breast or thigh first and then cut them into bite size pieces. However, make sure that the chicken is well done

If you don't like ginger, you can skip it altogether

You can also add vegetables like carrot, spinach, peppers etc. to make it even more healthy (and colorful!).