Cuchuco de Cebada is a traditional Colombian soup made with barley and pork. This soup is popular in the Santander region of the country. Filling and comforting dish perfect for a cold day.

Cuchuco de Cebada (Colombian-Barley and Pork Soup)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds pork ribs or pork bones
- 10 cups water
- ½ cup soaked barley
- 2 yellow medium potatoes peeled and diced
- 2 red potatoes peeled and diced
- ½ cup chopped onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 scallions chopped
- ¼ cup red bell pepper diced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ teaspoon sazon goya with achiote
- 1 beef bouillon tablet
- 2 cups shredded cabbage
- ½ cup peas
- ½ cup diced carrots
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Place the onion, garlic, scallions, red bell pepper in the food processor.
- Place a pot over medium-high heat. Add the water, beef bouillon, barley and pork ribs, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the onion mixture salt and pepper and let it simmer for 50 minutes.
- Add the potatoes, cabbage, peas, carrots, Sazon Goya and ground cumin, cover and cook for 25 minutes more or until the pork is cooked.
- Add the cilantro and serve.
Nutrition

Cuchuco is a classic Colombian soup from the center of the country. It is a thick soup made with corn, wheat or barley, and different vegetables like peas, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, pork and herbs. It is usually served with avocado, ají and salad on the side. It is the perfect comfort soup for a cold winter day!
I garnished my Cuchuco de Cebada with extra shredded cabbage, tomatoes and avocado and it was delicious.

Buen provecho!


Kim
Erica- This is such a pretty and inviting soup, Erica.
Do you ever have trouble with your pork bones splintering into the soup? I tried working with pork bones once and there were little pieces of bone in my sauce.
Erica
Kim- What kind of bones did you use? I usually use pork ribs or neck bones!
Heather B
It looks great, but my husband doesnt care for pork too much. I was thinking to replace the pork with beef (his preference). It should still be good, I hope! Thanks for sharing!
tasteofbeirut
The soup caught my eye because I love avocados and any excuse is good to eat some, which this soup provides me with one! hearty and delicious, what is the wait? I will make it , definitely, one of these days/
grace
barley, peas, cilantro, huzzah! what a great soup, made even better with the flavor infused by those bones. nice.
Anna
Hi Erica, Happy New Year for you and your family. As usual you make me crave something, this soup looks lovely and the avocado on top it's such a nice touch. Loved it. Have a great weekend.
rebecca subbiah
lovely soup, and the addition of addition of avocado 🙂
always adore your blog Erica tell folks about it all the time
Rebecca
norma
I wish we were neighbors....this is excellent for a day like today...
Have a great weekend.
Oceanbeat
@ a canadian foodie...I live in Canada too, "Montreal" and I find Sazon Goya or the colombia version "TRIGUISAR" even at my local grocery store. Basically it is a mix of cumin, achiote or turmeric for coloring, garlic powder and pepper. You can make your own mixing equal parts of cumin and achiote, annato or turmeric and half of garlic and 1/4 of ground pepper.
Mr Shawn
So.... after I put the onions, peppers, etc. in the food processor (step 1), how long do I leave them there?
An hour? 2? All day?
Marino Munoz
Hola Ericca saludos. todas las formulas de nuestra cocina..... con much orgullo Marino
5 Star Foodie
This sounds like a hearty , warming and healthy soup with barley & veggies! excellent!
Joan Nova
A meal in a bowl and even though it's thick and hearty, I love the you lightened it up with fresh avocado and shredded cabbage on top. Gives it a bit of freshness as you spoon soup.
A Canadian Foodie
This sounds DIVINE and healthy! What does sazon goya with achiote taste like? What kind of seasoning is it... a hot pepper, a blend of seasonings? We have a Mexican store here, and can access almost anything in the world in our city - but not everything... like the aji. So, if I cannot find it, wanted to have an idea what might work.
YUM!!!!
🙂
Valerie
Katie
This looks nummy and I have some sazon goya with achiote in the pantry I've been looking to use up!
Just so I understand the recipe right, in step one do you process the veggies to a pulp/paste?
Erica
Katie- Yes!
Tangled Noodle
Happy New Year, Erica!
This looks so delicious! I brought a bag of barley with me to the Philippines, thinking I would make simple beef and barley soup. But now it will be put to much better use in cuchuco de cebada! 😎
Belinda @zomppa
Love how hearty this is! The beans...the pork ribs. Would like it on this chilly day!
Gera@SweetsFoodsBlog
I'll bookmark this creamy recipe for the cold days of winter - sounds excellent 🙂
Have an Excellent 2011! 🙂
Gera