Easy homemade chicken noodle soup

When a nasty cold hits, nothing soothes and comforts like soup. Most times, we simply open a can of Campbell’s and heat it on the stove top, but a recent epiphany (not to mention the frozen whole chicken taking up way too much room in the freezer) led me to make my own chicken noodle soup. All you need is a chicken, some veggies, herbs and water. The recipe is so easy, I might even make it the next time I’m sick. Or have someone else make it. Or maybe I’ll just freeze some to heat up when a nasty cold strikes. Add additional veggies, such as corn, peas, or potato, toward the end of the cooking time.

You’ll need:

bunch of carrots or parsnips, cut into one-inch pieces
1 onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 whole chicken or cut up chicken
Egg noodles (optional)

To make, heat 1 tablespoon oil on medium heat in a large stock pot. Add carrots or parsnips, onion, and garlic, and cook until softened, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Rinse and pat dry chicken and add it to the pot. Pour water into the pot — enough to cover the chicken with water. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low and simmer about 30 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.

Add noodles and cook an additional 5-6 minutes, or until noodles are cooked.

Turn off heat and carefully remove chicken from pot. Remove chicken from bones and shred or cube meat, then return it to the pot. Stir and serve.

Freeze leftover chicken in individual servings for the next time you are ill.