Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Chicken Soup

This weekend, one of my sons came home from college for spring break. He was supposed to arrive Friday, but had a very minor fender bender because of ice (no damage to him or the post, and only a minor ding in his truck bumper), so he decided to stay there until Saturday.

If you ever meet a Jewish grandmother, she will always tell you that everything can be cured with chicken soup. Well, I knew chicken soup wouldn't cure a ding in a bumper, but it sure would make the idiot, er, I mean driver, feel better about it. A couple of weeks back, we were having issues with our drain line (tree roots), so couldn't use the garbage disposals for a while. I ended up with 3 chicken carcasses wrapped in foil and frozen, along with the giblets fro
m aforementioned chickens. Well, homemade chicken broth sure did sound good to me!

I started with instruction from Julia Child and James Beard, and here's what I came up with for a marvelous chicken soup.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP


3 chicken carcasses (leftover from dinners)
3 sets chicken giblets
1 onion, quartered
1 carrot, cut in eighths
2 ribs celery, quartered
1 garlic clove, minced

10 peppercorns
6 quarts water

Put all ingredients in a pan; bring to a simmer. Skim off the scum as it forms on top of the broth. Simmer for a couple of hours (2 to 3), or until the carcasses fall apart. (Note: Julia Child says not to boil the broth, or it becomes cloudy. I can testify to the veracity of that statement.) Strain through a cheesecloth lined strainer. Pick through the bones for chicken scraps, after they cool.

To make the soup, return the broth to the stockpot. Add the chicken scraps, and about a pound of cooked chicken chunks. Slice 2 carrots, mince 1/2 onion, slice 2 celery ribs, and simmer together about 30 minutes. Add 1/2 pound egg noodles or rice, and cook until the vegetables and starch are tender. Serve with baking powder biscuits, and prepare to have no leftovers.

I didn't even get lunch on Sunday from this - Boo Hoo!

14 comments:

Peter M said...

Nothing beats a chicken soup with real broth...the rest is up to your tastes.

Bunny said...

Who can resist homemade chicken noodle soup, nobody I know that's for sure, it looks heartwarming in this bitter cold we're having.

Christo Gonzales said...

looks good to me...real good!

Katherine Roberts Aucoin said...

Marjie you have to know your crew just loves everything you make; I keep telling you you have to get in line first sometimes and sometimes you need to stash a serving for later.

Your soup looks like a perfect comfort meal!

Tatersmama said...

Ahhhh... this looks and sounds so good! We had roast chicken for dinner last night and with only 2 of us to feed, that carcass plus the leftover chicken, should be just about perfect!

Anonymous said...

With Julia and James in the kitchen with you how could it be bad! Sounds wonderful and it definitely would take the -ing out of the ding!

Paula said...

First, I'm glad that your son wasn't injured. I bet you loved getting that phone call! Next, are you able to put chicken carcasses down your disposal? Cool! And finally, your chix soup looks great! You know, I always cook mine at a low boil; I like the cloudy broth. :-) I read on Nita's blog how she makes her chicken broth in the oven using leftover carcasses. Her's comes out a deep golden color. Are your other kids coming home for Spring break, too? Our's isn't until the last week of March. I can't wait!

The Blonde Duck said...

They stole your lunch? How rude.

Though I might have stolen it too....

Claire S. said...

Looks like we've got the same recipe. It's a great stock & an awesome soup...I use barley instead of noodles and add corn too, yummy on a cold day !

pam said...

I bet that made him feel better.

Pam said...

I bet this soup made your son feel better - it looks so delicious.

Jan said...

I can never bring myself to throw away a chicken carcass without making broth. Great looking soup, I'm sure your son felt much better after a bowl of this.

Ann Made Studio said...

The weather is still so cold here and I'd love to have a big pot of that soup waiting for me when I come home for lunch..

cidell said...

OK. Chx soup for me this weekend. I know it's starting to thaw, but this is yummy looking.