Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Chicken Noodle Soup (made easy)



There's nothing quite like homemade chicken noodle soup to cure whatever may ail you. (And it seems that in January there are many who are 'ailing'!)  If the thought of cooking up stock and making your own noodles is a little daunting, here's a short-cut recipe that is delicious and doesn't take long to cook up! 

  • 1 rotisserie chicken
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 stalks celery, diced
  • 3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 or two cloves garlic, minced
  • 10 cups chicken stock (store-bought or homemade)
  • 350 gr / 3/4 pound noodles (I used fresh linguine from the deli, cut into 2 or 3-inch pieces)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 star anise* 
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

  1. Remove the meat from the rotisserie chicken; cut into bite size pieces and set aside.
  2. Heat oil in a large stock pot over medium heat.  Add the onions, celery, and carrots, and saute until onions begin to turn translucent. Add garlic and saute for another minute or so.
  3. Pour the 10 cups chicken stock into the stock pot. Add bay leaf, star anise and parsley and simmer over medium-high heat for about 30 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, cook noodles in a separate pot according to directions...being sure not to overcook.  Drain.
  5. Add chicken pieces and noodles to the soup pot.  Test and adjust seasonings as needed.  Heat through and serve.
*star anise is optional, but gives a wonderful exotic flavour to the soup.

Serves 6-8