Chicken Love - Ultimate Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

If you look up lists of favorite comfort foods, chicken noodle soup is usually found at the very top. For good reason - usually packed with such lovely flavors as parsley, garlic, thyme or ginger, it's often the first thing you reach for when in need of something rich and delicious.

Even better than that, chicken noodle soup is inexpensive, easy to make and simple to prepare. It takes a little less than half an hour to prepare, and when served with a fresh, green salad and some crusty French bread, and you have a meal in no time.

Check out this quick and easy recipe and see for yourself how simple it is to make this lovely comfort food for yourself!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe - Ingredients

• 1 32 oz can chicken broth (homemade is better if you have it!)
• 1/2 onion, sliced (any kind you like, red, white or yellow)
• 4 stalks fresh parsley
• 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic - 2-3 cloves
• 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken (thighs or breast)
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1/2 onion, finely diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 8 ounces wide egg noodles
• Optional - minced fresh parsley, for garnish

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe - Directions

1. Add the broth to a large stock pot. Toss in the parsley, thyme, onion, garlic, salt, and pepper. Add chicken, and bring the pot up to a boil.
2. Reduce to a simmer and simmer for about 12 minutes or so, or until the chicken is cooked through. Be careful not to over cook the chicken.
3. Remove the chicken from the broth and set aside. Strain the broth - I like to use a fine mesh strainer and a coffee filter. This helps ensure that the broth is very clear - which is gorgeous in the finished soup. Not strictly necessary, it does remove the coagulated proteins that form when the chicken is poached in the broth.
4. Heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the celery, onion, and carrots. Saute the vegetables for about ten minutes, until they are softened and fragrant.
5. Return the strained broth to the stock pot with the vegetables. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and add the noodles. Stir well, and simmer the noodles for about ten minutes, or just until cooked.
6. While the noodles cook, cut the cooked, cooled chicken into small pieces. I like a small dice - think of how well it would fit on a soup spoon.
7. Once the noodles have cooked, add the cut chicken back into the pot. You're ready to serve!

I don't really believe that chicken soup does a thing for someone when they are sick. But it does make folks feel better on a couple of levels. First, you feel better for doing something for someone who doesn't feel well. Second - the recipient feels better because you did something loving.

Tradition is that chicken soup will help fight a cold, and there is some evidence that garlic has some natural antibiotic properties. I'm a firm believer in the long held Chinese belief that fresh or pickled ginger will help an unhappy tummy. I like to use strong flavors just because if you have a cold, you often can't taste flavors as well.

I make this for my daughter all the time. She told me once that she likes being sick because of the soup. Not a bad testament!

I also had to take pictures for this article in a hurry - as soon as the oldest two boys smelled the broth simmering, they began stalking the pot - 'is it done yet?" must have been said 78 times, even though it was only a few minutes.

This basic recipe for chicken noodle soup is great as it is, but there are quite a few variations that you can use to tweak it however you like it!

1. Swap out some of the fresh herbs - try adding bay leaf, a little fresh rosemary or fresh oregano. These can be wonderful but go easy with the amounts of these stronger, more aromatic herbs. Fresh rosemary and oregano especially can be over powering, so start with very small amounts until you know how much you like.
2. Try variations on the noodles. We like wide egg noodles best, but there's no reason at all not to try other types. My oldest son sometimes makes this recipe with fettuccine, and my daughter is known to throw rotini into hers.
3. If you want a creamy chicken noodle soup, simple add 1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream to the broth right after you add the diced chicken back to the pot. Take it off the heat and don't let it boil after you add the cream. Otherwise, you run the risk of letting it curdle.
4. A little citrus can be gorgeous with chicken noodle soup. Try a squeeze of fresh lemon into the finished soup. Or try some fresh lime juice instead, and garnish with fresh avocado and minced cilantro.
5. Swap out the pasta for rice noodles and add a teaspoon or two of freshly grated ginger when you simmer the broth.

Use your imagination, and you'll quickly have your very own recipe, just the way you like it, for your own homemade chicken noodle soup!