Ingredients
- 1 organic chicken (not in stock)about 2- 2.5 kilos in weight
- 8 teacups of water
- 2 large onions, coarsely chopped
- 3 stalks of celery, cut into medium thick slices
- 6 carrots, peeled and finely sliced
- 3 crushed garlic cloves
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
This delicious classic chicken soup is made using a whole chicken that is cooked in the water to create an excellent broth. The best chicken to use is organic chicken as it is packed with flavour. If you cut the whole chicken into pieces this makes it a speedier process that ensures a good taste and the bonus is that the excess meat can be used to make a meal for another day.
Tips! If you double the quantities of water and vegetables you will make enough soup to last a couple of days and more ingredients can be added to ‘ring the changes’.
Steps
1 Done | 1Wash the chicken and cut into large pieces – cut the backbone into two. |
2 Done | 2Place the chicken pieces in a large pan with the water. Bring the water to the boil and remove any foam that has formed using a slotted spoon. |
3 Done | 3Reduce the heat so that the pan is gently simmering and add all the vegetables. |
4 Done | 4Cover the pan and continue to simmer very gently for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat |
5 Done | 5Carefully lift the chicken pieces from the pan and allow to cool for a few minutes. |
6 Done | 6Cut enough chicken for the soup into small pieces and when the rest has completely cooled, it can be wrapped and kept in the fridge to use for a tasty curry or similar dish. |
7 Done | 7Remove any foam from the soup again. |
8 Done | 8Add the chicken meat to the soup and season to taste. Gently warm the soup through and served with freshly cut bread. |
9 Done | 9 (optional)Tips! If you double the quantities of water and vegetables you will make enough soup to last a couple of days and more ingredients can be added to ‘ring the changes’. * Everyone loves noodles, so add these, some broken lengths of spaghetti or pasta shapes to the soup and gently simmer for 8- 12 minutes depending on your chosen pasta. * Create a really delicious flavour by adding some fresh lemongrass or some curry powder. * Give your chicken soup a real vegetable boost by adding chopped spinach, kale, cubes of potato or butternut squash. * For fun, pop an egg into the soup to poach. |
