Chicken soup. It's magic. Can soup is evil and it's magic is bad.
Needed things and starting point.
I start with thighs. Just the thighs, not the thigh and leg pieces. Leave the skin on. Set them in a backing pan in the oven at 350 with the skin up. Uncovered. The idea here is not to cook them threw. Just get them started so the soup wont take hours to cook. Get these in the oven before starting the rest of the soup. You don't have to salt or season them. Wont hurt if you do but you don't have to.
If you don't want to or are unsure about cooking chicken get a rotisserie chicken from Walmarts or any other place that sells them. Cut up as much as you want to add to the soup.
One stalk of celery. Clean it and cut it up.
One large onion or two depending on how much you like them. Tip to keep your eyes clear. When cutting the onion keep the knife wet. The water will react with the chemicals in the onion before they can get air born.
One bag of carets. Skin em and cut them up.
Note to the wise. Veggies you cut up yourself will have a better overall sweetness and favor. YES it's worth the effort. It makes a sweet and better tasting soup.
Other vegetables of choice. I like peas, corn and green beans. Frozen not canned.
More needed things
Spices.
Poultry spice is EVIL. It's 90% weeds ( parsley ) and a mixed bag of real stuff. It's cheap for a reason.
Get.
Sage.
Rosemary.
Thyme.
Garlic.
Salt.
Pepper.
Bay leaf.
Oil of choice. I like olive oil. Any cooking oil is good. Don't use straight butter or margarine. They burn at a low temp and will make the soup taste bad.
Let's get this party started.
Cut up your celery, unions and carets and put them all in a large bowel.
Put some heat under a large pot and add your oil of choice. Dump in the veggies you cut up. Cook these down till they're wilted. Once wilted add your other veggies of choice and cover with water. Add your spices. For me? I like it heavy on the spice so I dump in a good table spoon of each except the bay leaf. Two or three of them do just fine. Salt and pepper. You'll have to add them by taste if you haven't cooked before. DO NOT taste uncooked chicken. If your unsure about how much salt to add wait till everything is completely cooked. Then taste and add salt as needed.
Take the mostly cooked chicken out of the oven. Pull off and discard the skin. They will be hot so be careful. Cut each piece up into chunks and add to soup. I add the thigh bone as well. Adds a great flavor! These can be pulled out later. If your using rotisserie chicken add it now. Cover and let cook till all the veggies are soft.
Don't use the liquid left in the pan you cooked the chicken in. This will be really fatty and greasy. If you would like to add it. Set it in a bowel and let it cool completely in the icebox. Scrape the grease off the top and put the broth in a pan. Cook it for a boil to make sure it's completely done. Stir so you don't burn it. Add this to your soup.
You end up with a BIG pot of really healthy chicken soup. If your really under the weather just drink the broth. it will have enough flavor in the veggies and chicken. You can add water to if if needed. When the magic of home made chicken soup starts to work start eating it all!
Here's a free tip for those sick enough to be blowing chunks. You do not have to suffer from dry heaves. Drink a LOT of water. Keep drinking a lot of water till things settle down completely. You WILL thank me.
