Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

This recipe will have everyone in your family thinking you're a super chef! It's delicious!
It is also labor intensive, so if you don't have a lot of time to make it, you can use a box broth and skip right to the Soup section in the instructions.

Classic Chicken Noodle Soup
Serves 4 to 5 people

Broth:
3 lbs chicken thigh, skin on, bone in.
7 pints water
3 medium carrots, roughly chopped
2 stalks celery, roughly chopped
1 small onion, quartered
1 clove garlic, smashed
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
6 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
2 sprigs thyme (optional)





1. In a large thick-bottom pot, combine the chicken, chopped carrots and celery, onion, peppercorns, garlic, herbs, and water.

2. Bring just to a boil, cover partially and simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes. Occasionally skimming off any unwanted fat and foam.

You can use a spoon (like I did here) or you can use a fine mesh skimming spoon (you can buy one here on Amazon and I know Wal-Mart also carries them).

3. Transfer chicken to a plate or cutting board. Remove the skin and discard.

4. Pull the meat off the bones and cut or shred into bite size pieces.

 

(If you are going to use your hands, let the chicken cool before doing this step.) :)

5. Return bones to the pot and simmer for 30 minutes.

6. Strain the broth through a small-holed strainer into another pot (if you have one; if not you can strain it into a large bowl, clean and use the same pot. Less dishes! Yay!) Discard the bones and veggies/herbs. Skim off any fat and season to your liking with salt.

7. Return the broth to the heat and boil until reduced to 2 1/2 quarts, about 30 minutes.


Soup:
2 medium carrots, peeled, cut diagonally
2 medium stalks celery, peeled, cut diagonally
1/2 lb noodles (I just used cut spaghetti)
   salt, as needed
   cooked chicken
2 Tbsp flat-leaf parsley, leaves only (optional)
1 sprig dill, chopped (optional)
If you're not making the broth: 2 1/2 to 3 quarts chicken broth










8. Add the sliced carrots and celery to the broth, cover and simmer until just tender, about 12 minutes.

9. In a saucepan, bring salted water to a boil and cook the noodles to al dente and drain.
(You can also par-cook them in the water and then finish them in the broth. Just make sure you rinse them before putting them in the broth.)

10. Add the noodles, chicken, and any other seasonings or herbs to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add salt to taste.

Serve hot.


And really, you can just have fun with it! Change up some of the spices/herbs, add peas right before you serve it, or use baby carrots instead of larger ones. :)
Again, it takes time to make the broth, but the end result is very tasty! If you don't have time to make this just any ol' day of the week, you can make this a special occasion dinner for when company is over.

Keep coming back for more recipes, tips, tricks, and stories!

Have a great day and bon appetit!