Better Than Basic Barley Soup

Directions

1. 1
   Melt the butter in a large pot.
2. 2
   Add the ham hock to the pot (buy a nice, meaty one, you'll be glad). Lightly brown on all sides.
3. 3
   Add carrots, celery and onion to pot and cook until soft but not brown.
4. 4
   Pour chicken broth and beer (a lighter beer like a lager works well) to pot (careful the beer will foam up) and stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. You also may want to add more water here so that the ham hock is covered.
5. 5
   Season the broth with a good dash of pepper and the bay leaves. Wait on the salt until the end of cooking as the ham hock and chicken broth are both salty.
6. 6
   Turn down the heat to medium or medium low.
7. 7
   Simmer for about 15 minutes.
8. 8
   Turn the heat up to about medium high.
9. 9
   Let soup get to a high simmer or low boil and then add the barley. The barley will absorb water and become larger as it cooks, so don't be tempted to bump up the amount too much. It should also give the stock a more silky, slightly thickened texture. Watch it, you may have to turn down the heat so the barley doesn't cause the pot to boil over.
10. 10
    Let the barley cook in the soup for about 30-40 minutes or until tender.
11. 11
    Remove ham hock from stock. Let cool and then separate meat from fat and bone. Throw out the fat (or use it for whatever you want). Chop the meat and return it to the pot. Return the bone to the pot for flavor.
12. 12
    Taste the soup and adjust salt and pepper.
13. 13
    Serve soup with bread and butter. Don't serve the bay leaves or the bones. Leave those in the pot to make the soup even better the next day, which it will be.
14. 14
    Enjoy! And please don't tell my grandma about the beer (but wow, it makes a difference).