Since I have just run across this empty node shell, and by coincidence I just made soup, I feel obligated to add this evening's cooking revelations to the mix.
What got me started is that the neighbor called looking for soup this morning. Her youngest daughter started puking about 4:45 this morning and by dawn two out of three of her girls were not going to be going to school. I was able to take over to her some Lipton's-in-the-box, but I was under explicit instructions from my significant other that if I got within six feet of any germ I would have to be sterilized before I would be allowed back in the house (frankly that had me worried). I successfully acomplished my mission without infection or loss of important ancillary appurtenances, but in the spirit of preventive medicine I decided to make some home made chicken soup.
My method is pretty straight forward and if I may I'll share: Cook one whole chicken. I use a blue roasting pan with lid, wash the chicken, place in pan, cover, into oven at 350° for an hour. Don't forget to flour the liver and cook it too, it's the best part. No need to add water or anything. When the chicken is done, set aside to cool. Cut up a pound of carrots and boil them for 10 minutes in a saucepan, then add six cut up stalks of celery to the boiling carrots and cook for 10 minutes longer. Drain the vegetables and rinse with cold water. Careful now, make sure the celery is a little crunchy. Start heating 8 cups of water in your large soup pot, when it boils add chicken bouillon in the proper amount and boil for a few minutes. Then set soup pot off heat. Add the cut up chicken meat that has been separated from the bones, and skin and other littly icky chicken parts. The chicken left over stuff then gets boiled for 10 minutes in a small saucepan with about 4 cups of water to leech out the true essence of chicken. That part isn't really necessary, but it tastes better when you do that step. The cooled carrots and celery are now added to the soup pot. Boil a 1 pound package of egg noodles, don't cook too long, al dente is the goal. Rinse in cold water and into the soup pot. By now the chicken parts are boiled, pour through a strainer and when the liquid cools some, the fat will rise to the top. Skim that off, and add that last 2 cups or so of liquid to the soup pot.
That's about it. There's enough salt from the bouillon, I guess you could do herbs if you know about that, but I just let it cool a litle while and into the fridge. We microwave it to reheat, it's gone in 2 days. It feels healthy. Bon appetite. |
