When it is a rainy day and your hubby feels like this (see picture above), it's time to make Homemade Chicken Noodle soup. I make everything from scratch, from the chicken broth to the pasta noodle.
For the chicken broth, I usually collect about 10 chicken backs and necks in the freezer (when hubby cuts them out from the chicken when he makes his Famous Kentucky Fried Chicken). I defrost the chicken parts, rinse them well and add to my huge stock pot. In goes a whole onion, a whole carrot, some potato peelings, a celery rib and some whole peppercorns. Let boil and then simmer for an hour. When you make chicken broth, remember to skim the scum (brown, white to blackish foam that comes up when the soup starts boiling) off from the soup. It makes the soup clearer and prettier.
For the pasta noodles, I usually just use a cup and a half of all purpose flour. Dump it in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center of the flour. Break a couple of eggs in middle of the flour and with a fork start mixing up the eggs. You will see that mixing it up with catch some flour and soon you will incorporate all the flour in the egg mixture. When it resembles like wet dough, use your hand to gather all the mixture in a ball and start kneading. Knead vigorously till the dough becomes somewhat smooth. Cover with a bowl and let rest for 5 minutes. Continue kneading until dough is smooth. Form into a log about 3 inches round. The dough at this point should weigh about 1 lb. 8 ounces. The color of the dough should look like a golden field of wheat ready to be harvested, and the dough should be very dense. And it should be a soft as the flesh on your earlobes. Roll out thinly and cut into strips.
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
To assemble the soup, you should have the following:
2 carrots
2 potatoes
2 celery ribs
1 white onion
4 cooked, chicken breasts
5 cups of chicken broth
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
1. Dice up the carrots, onion and celery. In a large soup/stock pot, add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add the diced carrots, onion and celery. Saute this trio for 10 minutes, yes I said 10 MINUTES. This will brown the edges of the carrots, caramelized the onion and make sure that the celery has soften and cooked.
2. While your veggies are sauteeing, dice up the chicken breasts into cubes. You can shred them into strips or even fat strands. Add the cubed chicken to the pot and stir for about 2 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and set the heat to medium high and bring everything to a boil.
3. While waiting for the soup to boil, peel and dice up your potatoes. Do not add these to your soup yet as you don't want it to overcook and get mushy. When the soup starts to boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for about 25 to 30 minutes or until the carrots are cooked.
4. In another pot, bring about 4 cups of water to a boil. Add about a teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Get your handmade noodles and dump it into the boiling water. Cook for about 5-7 minutes. It doesn't take long to cook freshly made noodles. Drain and set aside.
5. When the carrots are done to your liking, add the diced potatoes and noodles. Let cook for 10 minutes more. When the potatoes are done, sprinkle minced celery leaves or chopped parsley to add pretty green flecks to your soup.
Ladle into bowls, serve hot with crackers or crusty bread. Don't forget to sprinkle ground black pepper before you take your first sip. It's homey comfort in a bowl.
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