I’ve been fighting a cold for over a week and nothing seems to be working, not sleep, not Dayquil, not lots of water or tea. Yes, it’s an old cliché, but chicken soup can indeed work wonders so I decided to make my mom’s recipe. It’s helped my cold on several levels: familiarity, warmth, comfort. I don’t think she’ll mind I’m sharing her recipe with you. Moms like that kind of thing.
My mom’s eat-when-you-have-a-cold chicken noodle soup
Ingredients
1 medium-sized whole chicken, preferably free-range
enough water to submerge chicken in soup pot
4 fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 carrots, sliced
2 celery ribs, halved lengthwise, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
8 ounces dried egg noodles
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Make the soup
Place whole chicken in soup pot filled with water over high heat. Add bay leaves and thyme. Bring to a boil and cook chicken for about 20 minutes. Remove chicken, leaving stock in pot. In a separate pan add olive oil, onion, garlic, carrots and celery. Cook and stir for about 6 minutes, until the vegetables are softened but not browned. Add to pot of chicken stock. Meanwhile, remove chicken from bones and add to pot. Cook over medium heat for about 45 minutes, then add the noodles and simmer for 5 minutes until tender. Continue to simmer for another couple of minutes and season with salt and pepper. If you’re sick, enjoy while sitting on the couch in your pajamas. Eat until you run out of soup or feel better.
Well-written. Thanks. I have been learning a lot about ethnic cooking lately. There are a lot of creative recipes using rice out there, the trick is finding one that really brings out the flavor of the rice you are using. Visit my blog if you’d like to read more. Thanks again for this blog – it is really informative.