Peel and chop the carrots, chop the celery, and dice the onion
Add all vegetables and barley to the slow cooker along with spices and bay leaf
Add 3-4 cups of water. (More if you want it more soup like, less if you want it more stew like) I added ~3.5 cups of water
Stir and place lid on slow cooker. Cook on low for at least 4-6 hours (or until barley and vegetables are tender)
Either towards, or at the end of cooking, be very careful and remove the ham bone. Remove the ham from the bone and any fat. Replace the ham into the slow cooker and stir.
Use a ladle to serve and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
If you plan on making the dish just to freeze for later, I recommend letting the ham bone cool longer so it is not so hot. Ladle out into single size freezer and microwavable safe dishes and let completely cool before placing into freezer.
I got 5 servings out of this. Depending on how big you make your portions, you may get more or less
As the stew cools, it will continue to thicken.
I just used water since all of the vegetables and ham bone give it such an excellent flavor. I find there is no need to add extra salt or stock to this dish.
If you need to make modifications based on dietary needs, but are not sure what to do, just let me know and I will help you find a way to modify the recipe to make it work for you!