Nordic Instant Pot chicken and barley soup
June 29, 2026 · 1 min read
This is Nordic comfort food in one pot: chicken, whole-grain barley, and root vegetables simmered into a deep, dill-flecked broth. Barley is the Nordic whole grain that makes a soup genuinely filling, and the pressure cooker softens it and pulls flavor from the chicken in about half the time a stovetop pot would take.
The barley keeps drinking up broth as the soup sits, so it goes from soup to almost a stew by day two — loosen it with a splash more broth when you reheat.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon rapeseed (canola) oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 2 celery stalks, sliced
- 1 cup pearl barley, rinsed
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper
- Small bunch fresh dill, to serve
Steps
- Use the sauté setting to soften the onion, carrots, and celery in the oil for a few minutes, then turn it off.
- Add the chicken, barley, broth, thyme, and bay leaves.
- Seal and cook on high pressure for 25 minutes, then let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
- Remove the chicken, shred it, and stir it back in. Discard the bay leaves.
- Season well and serve scattered with plenty of fresh dill. It thickens as it stands — loosen with broth when reheating.
Notes and swaps
Pearl barley is the easy choice; pot (hulled) barley has more fiber but needs a few extra minutes. Chicken thighs make the richest broth. This is a flexible clean-out-the-drawer soup — add parsnip, leek, or kale. Dill is the finishing touch that makes it Nordic. Serve with rye bread. It freezes well, though the barley softens further.
Tell Nordic Diet Companion "chicken and barley soup" and it reflects how the whole grains fit your Nordic week — no weighing, no counting.