Chicken Soup Recipe

Prepare ingredients

Rinse the chicken and remove excess fat. Peel the onion and leave it whole (you can halve if it won't fit). Trim ends of carrots and celery; leave whole for now. Gather bay leaves, peppercorns, and salt.

Simmer the broth

Place the chicken in a large stockpot and add 10 cups of cold water. Add the whole onion, carrot stalks, celery stalks, bay leaves, peppercorns, thyme sprigs, parsley stems, and 2 tsp kosher salt. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat, then immediately reduce to a low simmer.

Skim foam and simmer gently for 35-45 minutes, partially covered, until the chicken is cooked through and tender (internal temperature 165°F / 74°C if using pieces). Avoid rapid boiling so the broth stays clear.

Remove and cool chicken

Carefully remove the chicken from the pot and place on a cutting board to cool slightly. Leave the vegetables in the pot to continue flavoring the broth.

Strain or refine broth (optional)

If you prefer a clearer broth, strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot, discarding the solids (onion, carrot, celery, stems, bay leaves and peppercorns). Alternatively, leave the vegetables in and scoop them out later to dice and return to the soup.

Shred the chicken

When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from bones and skin. Shred or chop into bite-sized pieces and discard bones and skin.

Prepare vegetables

If you reserved the cooked carrots and celery from the pot, chop them into 1/2-inch pieces. If you strained and discarded them, peel and dice 2 fresh carrots and 2 celery stalks. Finely chop 1/2 of the cooked onion (or 1/2 raw onion if using fresh). Mince the garlic cloves.

Bring broth to a simmer

Return the strained or reserved broth to medium heat. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt if necessary.

Add the chopped carrots, celery, onion, and minced garlic to the simmering broth. Cook until the vegetables are tender, about 6-8 minutes.

Add 2 cups egg noodles (or small pasta) and cook according to package directions in the broth until al dente (usually 6-8 minutes). If you prefer the noodles softer, cook an extra 1-2 minutes.

Stir the shredded chicken back into the pot to warm through for 2-3 minutes.

Finish the soup by stirring in 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice and 2 tbsp chopped parsley. Adjust seasoning with ground black pepper and additional salt to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls and serve hot. Leftovers: cool promptly and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months.