Chicken Soup - Tips and Recipes

joesgirl

August 16, 20050 found this helpful

When making homemade chicken soup I start out by covering the chicken with cold water and bringing it to a boil. Then I put it on simmer for about 1 hour. I line a colander with a clean white cloth (which I have wet with water and rung out to help the cloth "stick" to the colander). I then pour the broth into the cloth that is lining the colander.

Rebekah

August 16, 20050 found this helpful

Whenever I make a whole chicken or when we get a rotisseree chicken .. I save whatever we don't eat and save and freeze the carcass. When I have a couple of leftover chickens I "brown" the bones and toss in a large crockpot with carrots, onions, garlic and whatever dried spices I feel like that day or are getting old in the cupboard and water and let cook on low overnight. I then strain through cheesecloth and have a wonderful roasted chicken stock. Let cool and place in freezer bags .. defrost and add leftovers, veggies, chicken, turkey, pasta just about anything for a quick dinner. I also do the same thing with turkey after Thanksgiving!

Good Luck!

When I make a chicken soup from scratch, I make sure the chicken is just covered with water. Too much water will leech out the chicken flavor and weaken the broth. To the water I add 2 or 3 Wyler's solid chicken boullion cubes which enhances the flavor very nicely. I've tried other brands boullion cubes, but the flavor I like is missing. To get rid of the fat I use a four cup plastic measuring cup with a spout on the bottom from which I pour the broth into another container while the fat rises to the top. When all the broth is out I dispose of the fat. Much easier and less messy than the cheesecloth method. If using rice, I cook and store the rice separately as it would absorb too much of the broth if mixed in. Noodles do not seem to do that, and they taste so good if served the next day because they are flavored by the broth they set in.

When I was in college I worked in a kosher jewish deli. The mensch added diced green pepper to the soup. I had never had this before but it added a nice fresh mild bite to the soup.