Grandma’s Best-Ever Chicken Noodle Soup

 

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 cups shredded chicken, preferably mix of white and dark
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 10 cups chicken broth
  • 4 celery ribs, chopped
  • 4 medium carrots, chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 t. finely chopped fresh thyme (or 1/4 t. dried)
  • 8 oz egg noodles
  • Optional: 1 T fresh parsley and 1 T.lemon juice

Directions:

I use a pre-cooked roaster chicken. If you do the same, skip Step One.

  1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels; season with salt & pepper. In a stockpot, heat 1 T EVOO over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces of your choice—breasts and/or thighs, skin side down, cook until dark golden brown. Remove from pot; remove and discard skin (or chop it up and give your pets a treat!) Discard all but 2 tablespoons of drippings.
  2. Add onion, celery, and carrot to drippings; cook and stir over medium-high heat 4-5 minutes. Add garlic, cook 1 minute longer. Add broth, stirring to loosen browned bits from pot. Bring to a boil. Return chicken to pan. Add bay leaves and thyme. Simmer, covered, until chicken is tender, 25-30 minutes.
  3. Remove soup from heat. Add noodles and let stand, covered, until noodles are tender, about 20-22 minutes. (I skip this step by making the noodles separately.)
  4. When chicken is cool enough to handle, shred meat into bite-sized pieces. Add chicken to pot. If you pre-cooked noodles, add them now. Stir in parsley and lemon juice. Adjust seasoning with additional salt & pepper if necessary. Discard bay leaves.