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Ash-e-jow (Iranian/Persian Barley Soup)

SUBMITTED BY: Autumn Leaves PHOTO BY: KAIA22

"I've seen a lot of recipes for this soup; however, my mother-in-law adds tomato paste for a bit of a different flavour and she doesn't add any lentils or beans. It's thick, filling, and delicious, and you could make it vegetarian by using vegetable stock."

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PREP TIME	10 Min
COOK TIME	2 Hrs
READY IN	2 Hrs 10 Min

SERVINGS

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Servings
USMETRIC

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

2 quarts chicken stock
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 cup uncooked pearl barley
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup tomato paste
salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
8 lime wedges

DIRECTIONS

Heat the chicken stock in a pot to a gentle simmer.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat and saute the onion until translucent. Add the pearl barley to the pot and stir for one minute. Stir in the hot chicken stock, turmeric, lime juice, tomato paste, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 1 hour.
Mix in the carrots and continue simmering 30 minutes or until the soup has thickened and the carrots and barley are tender. If the soup is too thick, add hot water, one tablespoon at a time.
Place the sour cream in a small bowl. Slowly pour 1/2 cup of hot soup mixture into sour cream, whisking constantly. Gradually add the sour cream mixture into the soup pot, whisking constantly. Stir in the fresh parsley. Serve with fresh lime wedges.

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REVIEWS

Reviewed on Apr. 9, 2007 by Melanie

Full Review

The reviewer gave this recipe 5 stars. This recipe averages a 0 star rating.

Melanie
Apr. 9, 2007

My best friend is Persian, and I love the rich flavour of Persian food. This soup is great and full of flavour. I've always tried to make Persian food myself, but whenever I've tried it doesn't taste the same as my best friend's mom. This is the closest I've gotten so far! Excellent recipe and really easy. Update: I've since made this dish countless times and it is definitely Persian approved! I do things slightly differently though. When I saute the onions I add the tumeric. I definitely add more then a teaspoon of tumeric. I keep adding pinches until the onions are a bright yellow-orange. I also add saffron, which makes this dish more authentic. I take a few saffron stems and mix them with about a 1/2 teaspoon of hot water so it becomes a liquid, and I add it in the beginning to the onions. I also add the finely diced carrots when I add the barley, because I find it takes a while for the carrots to cook in this recipe. Fresh parsley is also a must, and I probablly add at least a cup of it finely chopped. And finally this recipe makes the barley into a thick stew, and it isn't really like a soup texture. If you want to to be soupy add more broth and decrease the barley.

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5 users found this review helpful

My best friend is Persian, and I love the rich flavour of Persian food. This soup is great... MORE

Reviewed on Mar. 13, 2008 by Leslie D

I never do these online review things, but I had to say how much I loved this soup! The... MORE

Reviewed on Sep. 13, 2007 by evillhog

This was a very easy and great tasting soup! The whole family loved it. I did use the veggie... MORE

Reviewed on Apr. 22, 2008 by Danae

I followed the recipe exactly and it was very tasty! I was looking for something different to... MORE

Reviewed on Mar. 22, 2008 by Alicia Piva

Delicious, filling, healthy, and nutritious! MORE

Reviewed on Jan. 19, 2008 by Marcy

Full Review

The reviewer gave this recipe 4 stars. This recipe averages a 0 star rating.

Marcy
Jan. 19, 2008

Made recipe for six; these were generous portions so had I made the recipe for just two people, I think one bowl each woud have sufficed (with a side dish or bread). Using the recipe for six, I added a quarter teaspoon more turmeric. I also used low sodium soup AND added some salt as I went along--however, this soup seems to need a lot more salt than it had in order to make it as flavorful as I would have liked. I also used low fat sour cream. Maybe because of the low fat cream and low sodium soup it didn't have as much "oomph" as I was hoping for, or maybe it's just supposed to be subtle in taste. However, my husband really liked it. Next time I will put the carrots in along with the barley (although the soup cooked for about 1 1/2 hours the carrots were still a little hard), and my husband also suggested adding some celery for additional flavor, texture and color. This is a good, hearty winter soup, not the best I've ever had, but quite decent. Make sure you squeeze on the fresh lime from the lime wedges before you eat the soup--to me it really was THE necessary finishing touch for this soup in terms of flavor, although my husband thought the soup was good enough to stand on its own. I served this soup with a corn bread loaf, recipe for which I found on this site, and the soup and loaf were definitely a complete and satisfying meal.

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Made recipe for six; these were generous portions so had I made the recipe for just two... MORE

Reviewed on Oct. 14, 2007 by StickGirl

So good! I sub'd a pinch of saffron threads for the turmeric. Plus added a can of garbanzo... MORE

Reviewed on Oct. 11, 2007 by shawn

this was good but it was not for us, it was very thick and creamy but it seemed like it was... MORE

Reviewed on Mar. 15, 2007 by Patti Corbett

I would have to admit that the soup was interesting, and I ate the whole bowl, but I didn't... MORE

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