This is a family favourite soup that we enjoy all throughout the winter. It freezes well so we make a large quantity when we make it. It does take plenty of seasoning so let your taste buds be your guide when it comes to salt.

Altogether you will need to allow about 3–4 hours of cooking time but you can cook it for longer without a problem.

We use a piece of beef shin with the bone in for this recipe but my mum would sometimes use a piece of casserole beef or a ham or bacon hock instead which makes the flavor extra rich if you like that bacon taste. If you are using a ham hock, delete the salt or the soup will be overly salty.

In a large (8 to 10 liter) heavy based soup stock pot add the following:

• fill the stockpot ¾ with filtered water.
• 1 piece of beef shin, ham/bacon hock or other beef meat trimmed of excess fat (about the size of a small adult hand)
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 1 tsp yeast spread like Marmite, Vegemite, Promite or 1 Tbsp soy sauce or tamari if you don’t have the other.
• 2–3 beef stock cubes, we like Massel (which are vegetarian)
• 2 tsp vegetable stock powder (we like Rapunzel Organic Bouillon)

Bring up to a simmer and simmer covered for about 1 hour. At this point you can cool the broth and leave it in the refrigerator over night so that any fat from the beef or hock will solidify to the top. Remove this fat before continuing.

If you don’t have time to let the stock sit overnight, just skim off any visible fat with a spoon.

Bring to stock back to the simmer then add:

• ½ cup of dried soup mix — split peas, lentils etc, washed and drained
• ½ cup pearl barley, washed and drained

Simmer for another hour or so, remove the meat taking it off the bone and set aside in the refrigerator.

Add the winter vegetables. Use a medium size potato as your guide, about the size of a small fist, and add roughly the same amount of each of the following root vegetables:

• 1 potato, grated
• 1 sweet potato, grated
• piece of pumpkin, grated
• piece of swede or yellow turnip, grated
• 1 carrot, grated
• 3–4 small stalks of celery with leaves, diced
• 1 parsnip, grated (optional)
• 1 small leek, sliced (optional)
• 1 14 oz can chopped tomatoes (optional)
• ¼ cup parsley, finely diced
• 2 tsp salt (depending on your taste) *

At this point the soup will need about another hour and a half of cooking.

Then add the chunks of meat back to the pot. The beef will be a bit stringy by now so you may discard it if necessary, but if you are using ham hock, the meat will be moist and tender.

The soup will be quite thick however if you want it thicker, simmer with the lid off for a time to reduce the liquid further. Add some freshly chopped parsley just before serving.

*Note on the salt. There is a fine balance here, make sure you taste before adding more salt as you don’t want the soup to be over salty. Do not add additional salt if you are using a ham or bacon hock until you have tasted the finished soup.