Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Delicious Chicken Noodle Soup

Delicious Chicken Noodle Soup

Well, it's certainly not cold here! It is the first day of Winter and it's 74 degrees. That isn't what I had in mind for my Christmas weather, but hey, I can't control the weather. It is kinda crazy, isn't it? Is anyone going to have snow this Christmas? We'll see!
 
I decided to make chicken noodle soup because it's a great freezer meal and my husband loves it. I do too, especially with the cold/flu season happening, it's good to have a stock-pile of this stuff!



Ingredients:
1 (3 1/2-pound) whole chicken
3 quart(s) low-sodium chicken broth
6 carrots, peeled
4 stalk(s) celery, ends trimmed
3 medium onions, peeled
5 black peppercorns
1 clove(s) garlic, crushed
10 sprig(s) parsley
2 sprig(s) thyme
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoon(s) unsalted butter
4 leeks, tops and root ends removed
1 teaspoon(s) salt
1 teaspoon(s) fresh-ground pepper
3 cup(s) (5 ounces) medium egg noodles


Directions:
Make the stock: Place the chicken and chicken broth in a large stockpot and set it over medium heat. Roughly chop 2 carrots, 2 celery ribs, and 1 onion and add to the broth. Add the peppercorns, garlic, 2 sprigs of parsley, thyme, bay leaf, and enough water to just cover the chicken. Bring the broth to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until the chicken is very tender -- about 1 1/4 hours -- skimming the surface periodically. Remove the chicken and place in a large bowl. Strain the broth through a very fine sieve into a large, clean bowl or stockpot. Discard the vegetables.



Make the soup: Skim any fat off the top of the strained broth and discard. Slice the remaining carrots, celery, onions, and leeks into 1/4-inch-thick pieces and set aside. Remove and discard the skin and bones from the chicken, cut meat into 1/2-inch pieces, and set aside. Chop the remaining parsley leaves and set aside. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the vegetables and cook until the onions are translucent -- about 7 minutes. Add the chicken, the reserved broth, salt, and pepper. Simmer the soup until the vegetables are tender -- about 1 hour. Stir in the egg noodles and parsley and cook until the noodles are tender -- about 10 more minutes. Serve hot.



I am not feeling too well so I just took the recipe from this website. I have made this recipe at least 5 times and it always turns out great. There is quite a bit of chopping involved but this is delicious. As I mentioned earlier, it can be frozen. I put 2 cups per freezer bag and it freezes for a long time.

I hope you enjoy this soup!

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