EASY Chicken Noodle Soup

If there's one soup we can all agree on that brings us a strange amount of comfort it would definitely have to be chicken noodle soup. Ever since I was younger when I felt sick or down I was told chicken noodle soup would make me feel better, and to this day I am sticking to that mindset. Emotional support soup is a thing, don't tell me otherwise. Just ask whoever created the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" book series, they saw the direct emotional connection to soup and the soul.

The main difference with this recipe compared to your store bought option is the meat and broth. The flavor that comes with making your broth from scratch using a whole chicken is untouched. And the best part is it is extremely easy to do as long as you have an hour to spare to let it really simmer all of the good ingredients into the broth.

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Let's Get Started!

Ingredients

Chicken Broth:

• 1 whole chicken (~3-5lbs)

• 2-3 lemons, halved

• 10 garlic cloves, smashed

• 1 yellow onion, quartered

• 3 bay leaves

• 1 tbsp dried parsley

• 1 tsp dried thyme

• 1 tsp smoked paprika

• 1 tsp crushed red pepper

• 2 tbsp knorr chicken bouillon

• 1 tbsp flaky salt

• 2 tsp ground pepper

Chicken Noodle Soup:

• 1 bag, wide egg noodles

• 4-6 large carrots, chopped

• 4 celery stalks, chopped

• 1 yellow onion, chopped

• 1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley

• 1/4 cup freshly chopped green onion

• 3 tbsp butter

Directions

1. Clean your whole chicken and add to a large stock pot then add water to the pan until the chicken is fully covered. Add your bay leaves, lemon, onion, and smashed garlic to the pot along with the rest of your spices and seasonings.

2. Bring your chicken to a boil and then turn down to medium low for about 45 minutes or until chicken is tender. The meat should be falling off the bones once it's ready.

3. Once your chicken is done turn off the heat and remove it from the broth to a cookie sheet or a cutting board to rest and cool for at least 15 minutes. If you start shredding this too quickly your meat will lose a lot of its juices, plus your hands may suffer from mild burns so just be patient ;)

4. Skim out the excess onion, lemon, and bay leaves from the chicken broth. Feel free to leave in the garlic or remove it, I personally enjoy the extra bite in the final dish. Pour the broth into a large bowl and set aside, we are going to use the stock pot to start the final dish.

5. Turn heat to medium on stock pot and add butter. Once the butter is melted add onion, celery, and carrots and top with a lid for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6. After the vegetables have tenderized, toss in your freshly chopped herbs and turn heat to medium low.

7. Begin shredding your chicken, remove the bones and excess skin. I like to pull the meat apart with my fingers and then use a chopping knife to make the bites a little smaller.

8. After you've shredded the chicken add it back to your pot along with your chicken broth. Stir until completely mixed together.

9. Bring the pot to a boil, and ddd in your desired amount of egg noodles. Cook for about 9-10 minutes, or follow cooking instructions on the bag.

   1. Make sure there is enough broth to cook the amount of noodles you are going to add to the pot.

10. Once your noodles are ready, salt and pepper to taste. Then serve in a big bowl nice and hot!

Gab's Tip: Make buttery garlic mashed potatoes to scoop to the side of your bowl. Its like having chicken noodle soup as the gravy to your potatoes....