Chicken Noodle Soup
This recipe begins with making homemade chicken stock. You are welcome to skip this step entirely and purchase a whole rotisserie chicken and store bought stock, or use some homemade stock you’ve previously frozen. But, if you want the best flavor, make your own chicken stock from fresh chicken on the bone. It’s some work, but super-satisfying making this Chicken Noodle Soup from scratch. See Notes below the recipe if you’re going to purchase pre-cooked chicken and stock.
Use aromatics when you’re cooking your chicken for the stock. They will help flavor your stock, and that’s certainly something you want. At times, I will rummage through my refrigerator and find any vegetables that are about past their prime, and that would contribute flavor to my stock. I will chop and throw those in (such as bell peppers, leeks, green onion, herbs, etc.; not vegetables like beets that will bleed and turn your chicken stock into Valentine’s day.) I think you get my drift.
Notice I listed only 2 teaspoons of kosher salt in the ingredients for the stock. Good rule of thumb, you can always add salt, but you cannot take it out. (Sorry, but the potato thing never worked for me!) You can add salt as you go instead of dumping a guessed, large amount into the water before cooking your chicken. It’s a safe way to cook.
Good news! You can adjust your veggies in this recipe. Add more or less carrots if you would like. My kids aren’t really big celery eaters, so I would probably lower that amount just for them. Love onions? Add more! Leeks would be good in this recipe, too.
Enjoy!
Chicken Noodle Soup
Ingredients
For the stock and chicken:
- 1 (3-4) pound whole chicken, rinsed, giblets removed
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 3 celery ribs with leaves, chopped
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
- 3 dried bay leaves
- 8 sprigs Italian parsley
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- fresh water, to cover chicken
For the soup:
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 medium carrots, sliced
- 3 celery ribs, sliced
- 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, smashed and minced
- 3 cups dried noodles, see Notes
- 6 cups chicken stock, lower sodium if store-bought
- 4 cups shredded chicken
- kosher salt, to taste
- freshly-cracked black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients for the chicken stock in a large stockpot (at least an 8-quart) with a lid. Pour enough water to cover the chicken by a couple of inches. Place the lid on the pot and bring the water to a boil over high heat.
- Once the water is beginning to boil, remove the lid or prop it a little to prevent spilling, if necessary. Lower the heat to medium-high and gently boil until the chicken is cooked through and a digital thermometer inserted into the thickest part reads 165 degrees.
- Carefully remove the chicken from the pot and place in a shallow dish, like a 9x13” pan, until it is cool enough to handle and remove all the meat. Allow the stock in the pot to cool also while the chicken is cooling.
- Place the cheese cloth inside a colander and place the colander inside a large enough bowl to hold the stock. Another stock pot, Dutch oven, or large bowl would be good. Carefully strain the stock through the cheese cloth, and discard all the solids. They have given their all.
- Shred the meat from the chicken; set aside.
- Wipe out the stock pot if necessary so it is clean to make the chicken noodle soup.
- Heat the oil in the stock pot over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the carrots, celery, and onion, and sauté until just softened. Add the garlic and stir for about 30 seconds.
- Maintaining the heat, add 6 cups of the stock to the vegetables. Feel free to add more of the stock to your soup if you would like. Any remaining stock can be refrigerated or frozen for another later use. Add salt and pepper to taste and bring to a gentle boil.
- Add the noodles and cook according to the package directions.
- Add the shredded chicken, taste for seasoning, and adjust as desired. Serve very warm.
Notes
Slow cooker method: Place the chicken and all the stock ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover and cook for 6 hours on high or 8 hours on low, or until the chicken is cooked through, reading 165 degrees on a digital thermometer. Remove the chicken and allow it to sit uncovered until cool enough to remove the meat. Strain the stock through cheesecloth. Pressure cooker/Instant Pot method: Be sure your pressure cooker is large enough to hold the chicken, vegetables, and enough water to cover by 2 inches. Place all the ingredients in the pressure cooker, cover and lock the lid into place. Over high heat, set the valve to high pressure. When the indicator lets you know it’s come to pressure, set a timer for 60 minutes. NOTE - cook times will vary with the size of your chicken and pressure cooker. Please, adjust as needed.
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