Chicken Noodle Soup - Mmm Mmm Good

Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken noodle soup is so simple, yet so fantastic. When my husband came home from a recent business trip feeling under the weather, his first request was for me to make him some chicken noodle soup. Aside from the soothing benefits of the hot, salty broth - this time I made sure to include the curative properties of garlic (anti-bacterial and anti-viral), thyme (remedy for coughing), and ginger (soothes an upset stomach).

I like to make this in a slow cooker but you could also make it in a large pot on the stove top.

Serves 6

Special equipment: 5 Quart Slow Cooker/Crock Pot

Ingredients:

2 to 2 1/2 pounds bone-in skin-on chicken breasts, salted on both sides

64 ounces chicken broth

5 large cloves garlic, chopped

1 1/2 to 2 inches of young ginger root, minced (See Cook's note)

6 stems of thyme, leaves only

4 stalks celery, including leaves, chopped

1 white onion, chopped

6 ounces egg pappardelle pasta (or any egg noodles) (I used Trader Joe's Egg Pappardelle Pasta)

kosher salt to taste

fresh cracked pepper to taste

Set slow cooker to low and add salted chicken, chicken broth, garlic, ginger, and thyme. Cover and allow to cook on low for 4 hours.

Remove chicken and set aside to allow it to cool enough to handle. Meanwhile turn slow cooker to high and add celery, onion, and pasta. Cover and cook for another 30 - 45 minutes until pasta is done.

After chicken has cooled enough to handle, remove skin and discard. Then pull breast meat from the bone and tear into bite size pieces. Add chicken back to slow cooker, stir, add salt and pepper to taste and serve with a warm French baguette.

Cook's note: If you can't find young ginger, use about half the amount of regular ginger root. Young ginger is refreshing and has the "bite" of ginger without the bitterness.

young ginger root

PS, I'm happy to report my husband's completely back to normal and feeling great. Perhaps it was my chicken soup, perhaps not ;-) Either way, I'm glad he's better and the soup was yummy.