Chinese Beef Soup

Chinese Beef Soup (Original Source: Reader's Digest)

• 1 ½ pounds beef stew meat, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) reduced-sodium, fat-free beef broth
• ¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 piece ginger, peeled and cut into 4 pieces
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup uncooked barley (I subbed angel hair pasta, broken into short pieces)
• 12 cups stemmed spinach leaves
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced (optional)

Preparation:
1 In a large saucepan, combine beef, onion, garlic, 6 cups water, broth, soy sauce, ginger, fennel seeds, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
2 Stir in barley. Lower heat and simmer, covered, for 1½ hours until beef is very tender.
3 Stir in spinach. Simmer 2 minutes. Remove ginger pieces. Garnish with scallion, if desired.