Beef and Barley Soup with Pancetta Crumb

FOR A 4.5-5.5 LITRE SLOW COOKER. SERVES 6

Hearty and filling, this soup is the very epitome of comfort food and is the ideal dish for a cold winter’s night. This old-fashioned favourite is made even more delectable by a sprinkling of lovely, salty, crisp pancetta.

2 leeks, white part only, cut in half and sliced

1 onion, diced

450g beef (such as chuck steak or gravy beef), cut into 6mm cubes

1 medium carrot, diced

300g parsnips (peeled weight), diced

2 sticks celery, sliced

50g swede (peeled weight), diced

60g butter mushrooms, sliced

½ cup pearl barley

1 litre beef or chicken stock, or water with 2 teaspoons stock powder

250g pancetta, diced

3 teaspoons tomato paste

30g baby spinach leaves

2 teaspoons canola or rice bran oil (or similar)

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley

Place the leeks, onion, beef, carrot, parsnips, celery, swede, butter mushrooms, pearl barley, stock, half the pancetta and tomato paste into the slow cooker and stir to combine.

Cover and cook on High for 4 hours or Low for 8 hours or until the beef and vegetables are tender. Stir in the spinach leaves and add salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small pan over medium heat and sauté the remaining pancetta until crisp. Drain on paper towel then crumble.

Serve each bowl of soup topped with a sprinkling of the crumbled pancetta and the parsley.