Hi Jo Jo, Yes you saute the barley with the onions and mushrooms and it cooks when you add the soup and water. After the stated cooking time I check the barley to see if it's soft enough as some barley takes longers to cook fully than others.
I agree with you the DH's could eat the same thing almost every night but a like some variety and often cook big batches of soups and freeze half for later meals. Let me know how you like this soup. May in Jersey