Dziadek Wally’s Mushroom Barley Soup -- Getting Closer Is Enough

Babcia Rose called on Tuesday to inform me that Christmas Eve pierogi production will begin on December 23rd at seven in the morning and that my attendance is not optional. She did not ask if I had plans. She did not ask how I was feeling. She said, "Friday, seven o'clock, bring an apron," and hung up. Babcia Rose does not believe in long phone conversations. She believes in showing up with an apron and doing what needs to be done. I'm starting to think she's the wisest person I know.

I went Christmas shopping at the Target on 95th Street. I had eighty dollars, which is what you get when you're twenty-one and living on savings and your parents won't let you pay rent but you still have some pride. I got Dad a new tape measure because his is held together with electrical tape and optimism. I got Mom a candle that smells like vanilla because she likes candles and I lack imagination. I got Matt a Cubs shirt because they won the World Series last month and he cried on the phone about it and I want a physical reminder that my thirty-year-old brother wept over baseball. Kristin is getting a gift card because Kristin has everything and wants nothing and lives in New York where everything costs more than I can afford.

For Babcia Rose, I'm making mushroom soup. Dziadek Wally's recipe — or Wally's version of it, which involves dried mushrooms and barley and sour cream and the kind of instructions that assume you already know how to cook, like "add broth until it looks right." I practiced this week. I bought dried porcini mushrooms at the Polish deli on Archer Avenue — four dollars for a small bag that smells like a forest — and I simmered them with onion and barley and chicken broth for an hour. Added sour cream at the end. The soup was good. Not Wally's good, but close. Getting closer is the only metric I have for anything right now.

I drove past the Papalardo house on Thursday. The lights were off. Not nighttime-off — empty-off. Someone told Mom that Mrs. Papalardo is going to her sister's in Indiana for Christmas. I understand that completely. How do you sit in the house where your daughter grew up and open presents like she isn't missing from every room? You don't. You go to Indiana. You let someone else's house hold the holiday.

I wrapped presents on the living room floor while Dad watched Jeopardy. He got seven answers right and announced each one like he'd solved a murder. The house smelled like the pine candle Mom lit on the mantle. Christmas is coming whether I'm ready or not. I'm not. But the apron is clean and Friday is the 23rd and Babcia Rose is waiting.

I made this soup twice before December 23rd. The first time it was too thin. The second time it was better — the barley had more time to absorb, the mushroom flavor had more depth, and I remembered to let the sour cream come to room temperature before stirring it in so it didn’t curdle. Dziadek Wally’s instructions say “add broth until it looks right,” and I’m slowly learning what right looks like. This is that soup — the one I’m bringing to Babcia Rose on Friday morning, apron packed, hoping it’s close enough to feel like him.

Dziadek Wally’s Mushroom Barley Soup

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 1 hr 10 min | Total Time: 1 hr 30 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 1 oz (about 1 cup loosely packed) dried porcini mushrooms
• 3 cups hot water, for soaking mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 8 oz fresh cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 3/4 cup pearl barley, rinsed
• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth (add more as needed — until it looks right)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 cup full-fat sour cream, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• Fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped, for serving

Instructions

1. Soak the dried mushrooms. Place the dried porcini in a bowl and pour 3 cups of hot (not boiling) water over them. Let soak for 20 minutes. Lift the mushrooms out with a slotted spoon, roughly chop them, and set aside. Pour the soaking liquid through a fine mesh strainer or paper towel-lined sieve into a measuring cup, leaving any grit behind. Reserve the liquid.
2. Sauté the aromatics. Melt butter in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and just beginning to turn golden, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
3. Build the base. Add the carrots and celery to the pot and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until slightly softened. Add the fresh cremini mushrooms and the chopped rehydrated porcini. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have released their liquid and the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 6 to 8 minutes.
4. Add barley and broth. Stir in the pearl barley, then pour in the chicken broth and the reserved mushroom soaking liquid. Add the bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a low simmer. Cover partially and cook for 45 to 55 minutes, until the barley is tender and the soup has thickened. If the soup becomes too thick, add additional broth or water, 1/2 cup at a time, until it looks right.
5. Finish with sour cream. In a small bowl, whisk together the room-temperature sour cream and flour until smooth. Ladle about 1/2 cup of hot soup broth into the bowl and whisk quickly to temper the mixture. Pour the tempered sour cream back into the pot and stir to combine. Do not boil after this point. Taste and adjust salt and pepper.
6. Serve. Remove the bay leaves. Ladle into bowls and top with fresh chopped parsley. Best served with crusty rye bread alongside.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 218 | Protein: 9g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 29g | Fiber: 5g | Sodium: 480mg