Good for What Ails You Chicken Soup

I have a recipe to share today that's perfect for winter weather, and is a good follow up to my chicken post from earlier.  One morning, Someone Special and I had a conversation that went more or less like this:

Someone Special: "I feel terrible, baby. Do you know a place where I could get some chicken soup for lunch today?"
Me: "Why don't I just make you some chicken soup?"
pause
Someone Special (hopefully): "Would that be easier for you than packing up all the kids and going somewhere?"


Isn't it amazing how men can ask you to do something for them under the guise of making your life easier?
(Don't freak out, baby. I'm just teasing)

Anyway, I set out to make a homemade chicken soup, and it turned out good. I mean, really good. The kids all gave it their approval by gobbling it up. Someone Special ate several helpings and claimed that he really did feel better. (Grandma was a medical genius: there's actual science behind why we always eat chicken soup when we're sick. You can read about the wonders of broth here.) He called me the next day, "Do you still have any chicken soup leftover? Could I come over and have some?"

Apparently, the way to a man's heart is still through his stomach.


I think the secret to making good homemade chicken soup is to use homemade chicken stock. The broth is the absolute star: rich, creamy, not-thick-not-thin and just right. Also, I used carrots two ways in this soup: I added regular diced carrots with the vegetables the way you normally would, but I also sauteed some carrots with the onions and celery until they were good and caramelized to really bring out their sweetness. I think this added another layer of flavor. I also used butter, rather than olive oil, to saute the vegetables in to add an extra layer of richness to the broth. The result is a soup that warms you to your bones and tastes like home.  Campbell's who?

The following Sunday, after church, we went out to eat at a favorite local restaurant, and the soup of the day was chicken and rice. After our waitress bounced away, pony tail swinging, Someone Special snickered.

"You've ruined me for all other chicken soups, baby. Why do they even bother?"


Good for What Ails You Chicken Soup

10 cups homemade chicken stock
4 tablespoons butter
2 cups cooked, cubed chicken breast
2 cups plus 1/2 cup carrots, peeled and diced
1 onion, peeled and diced
3 celery ribs, diced
2 tbsp flour
1 bag frozen lima beans
1 tsp dried thyme
1 handful chopped, fresh Italian parsley
salt to taste*
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To add rice:
1/2 cup uncooked, medium-grain white rice
1 tbsp butter
1 1/3 cups water
**or simply cook to package instructions


Get your  chicken stock ready by warming it in a pot, or as I did, in the microwave in the tupperware container it had been frozen in. In another large soup pot, melt 4 tbsp of butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and the 1/2 cup of carrots. Stirring occasionally, saute until carrots are good and caramelized. They should be soft and browned but not burned, about 10-12 minutes. This next part takes some coordination, so read carefully. Add the flour to the butter-vegetable pot, stirring constantly with one hand, and begin slowly adding chicken stock, one ladle-full at a time, with the other hand. When all the stock is added, I like to take my handy dandy immersion blender and puree all the vegetables, because someone doesn't like the texture of cooked onions and celery. This step is not necessary, though, if you don't have picky eaters in your household. Add the chicken, lima beans, and the rest of the carrots, salt, pepper, and thyme and bring to a gentle boil. Lower the heat to low, and let it simmer away.

Now cook your rice.

In a separate medium-size pot over medium heat, melt butter. Add the rice and stir constantly, gently toasting the grains until they are golden brown. Turn the heat to low. Carefully add the water and cover, stirring occasionally, and let cook until rice is soft and fluffy, about 20 minutes.

When vegetables are soft in your soup, add the cooked rice and parsley.
Serve with crusty bread.

Enjoy ;)



*I do not salt my stock at all when I make it, as I prefer to salt each individual dish. So my soup needed a lot of salt, almost 1 tbsp. If you use store bought stock, you will not need nearly so much, even if you use the low sodium variety. I would start with 1 tsp and go from there.