Katie Jones MS, RD

The secret to making this soup so delicious and satisfying is homemade broth.  Never made your own?  It’s not as difficult as it sounds and if you buy a store bought rotisserie chicken it takes very little extra time to create this mouth watering soup.  With such an array of gluten free pasta these days, those of us who avoid gluten can still enjoy this classic chicken noodle soup!  And as if you needed another reason to try it, chicken soup has actually been shown to decrease inflammation and may help with the common cold!  Freeze leftovers (if you have any) for a quick meal in the future.

Ingredients

8 cups organic, low sodium chicken broth (make sure it’s gluten free like Pacific Foods brand)

4 cups water

1 store-bought rotisserie chicken (Look at ingredients to make sure it doesn’t have added ingredients that may contain gluten. For those very sensitive to gluten, beware that cross contamination from drippings from another chicken may occur.  Some stores will cook your chicken by itself to prevent this cross contamination.  Or you can roast your own.)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 large onions, cut into medium dice

4 large carrots, peeled and cut into rounds or half rounds, depending on size

4 large stalks  celery, sliced 1/4 inch thick

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

2 cups egg noodles (or gluten free noodles) or instant brown rice (gluten free)

1 cup frozen green peas

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring broth and water to a simmer over medium-high heat in a large soup kettle. Meanwhile, separate chicken meat from skin and bones; reserve meat from 1/2 the chicken (save the rest for another meal that week or freeze for later). Add skin and bones to the simmering broth. Reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer until bones release their flavor, 20 to 30 minutes.   Strain broth through a colander into a large container; reserve broth and discard skin and bones. Let broth cool and skim off fat from the top.  Return kettle to burner set on medium heat.  Add oil, then onions, carrots and celery. Saute until soft and starting to caramelize, about 15 minutes.  Add garlic and saute an additional 1-2 minutes.  Add chicken, broth and thyme. Bring to a simmer. (Can be refrigerated up to 3 days in advance. Return to a simmer before adding the extras of your choice).  Add noodles or rice, then simmer until tender, 8-12 minutes.  Before removing from heat, stir in: 1 cup frozen green peas and 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley.  Add salt and pepper, to taste.

Recipe based on: Copyright 2004 USA WEEKEND and columnist Pam Anderson. All rights reserved.