How To Make Easy Chicken Noodle Soup Cooking Lessons from The Kitchn

Transfer the chicken to a plate with a slotted spoon. Use two forks to pull the meat apart into shreds.

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You've got the sniffles. It's chilly outside. You want nothing more than to wrap yourself in a big ol' blanket and settle down with a mug of chicken noodle soup. Am I right? Then this is the recipe for you. It's miles better than anything from a box or a can, but isn't quite so laborious as starting with a whole chicken and making stock from scratch. It's the Goldilocks of chicken soups, and it's just right.

This shortcut chicken soup gives you real shreds of meaty chicken, and a broth with delicious extra richness. But it doesn't take the hours of a full old-fashioned chicken soup, where you use a whole chicken to make stock, then take the chicken apart piece by piece for the soup. It's a quicker version, yes, but one that stays true in spirit and taste to the most old-fashioned sort of homemade chicken soup. Brothy, golden, nourishing — this is real chicken soup — just a little bit faster.

I prefer using chicken thighs for this soup. Not only do thighs stay tender and delicious when simmered, but their natural richness makes the soup more substantial. Buy bone-in thighs if you can; the bones make the broth even better. (You can use chicken breasts if you like, though I still suggest using bone-in.)

Noodles in chicken noodle soup is a deeply personal matter. Some prefer swirly egg noodles like those pictured. Others insist linguini is the way to go. Still others like to break spaghetti into little matchsticks before cooking them. Use whichever noodle feels most comforting to you.

Even if you're not feeling under the weather, this is a very satisfying soup to make if you just want something cozy. It comes together in under an hour and makes the house smell fantastic.

How to Make Chicken Soup

Makes 6-8 servings

What You Need

Ingredients
1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced
3 stalks celery, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
1-3 garlic cloves, to taste
1 1/2 pounds (about 6) chicken thighs, preferably bone-in
1 bay leaf
1-2 quarts chicken stock, store-bought or homemade
1/2 pound noodles
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1-3 teaspoons salt

Equipment
6-quart dutch oven or soup pot
Long-handled spoon
Pasta pot

Instructions

1. Cook the Vegetables: Warm a teaspoon of oil over medium heat in the dutch oven or soup pot. Add the diced onions, celery, and carrots with a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables just start to soften, 3-5 minutes. Clear a space in the middle of the pan and add the garlic. Cook until aromatic, about 30 seconds, then stir the garlic into the vegetables.

2. Sear the Chicken: Remove the skin from the chicken thighs, but leave the bone in. (Boneless chicken thighs are also fine in this recipe, but the bones add richness to the broth.) Move the vegetables to the edges of the pan and warm the remaining teaspoon of oil in the middle of the pan. When hot, add the chicken thighs, fitting them into a single layer. It's ok if they are snug. Cook without moving for about 3 minutes, until the underside is seared golden. Flip the thighs and sear the other side until golden.

3. Add the Broth and Simmer: Add the bay leaf and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the pot. Pour in one quart of the broth, reserving the remaining quart for later. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 30 minutes.

4. Shred the Chicken: Move the pot off the heat and transfer the chicken to a plate with a slotted spoon. Use two forks to pull the meat apart into shreds (or chop into cubes). Remove and discard any bones. It's ok if the meat is still a little pink in the middle at this point.

5. Cook the Pasta: Bring a separate pot of water to a boil for the pasta. When boiling, salt the water generously and add the pasta. Cook until the pasta is barely al dente and the drain. Alternatively: Add the second quart of broth to the soup, bring to a simmer, and cook the pasta in the soup itself.

6. Finish the Soup: Return the shredded chicken to the soup and bring to a simmer. If the chicken wasn't quite finished cooking, continue simmering until it has cooked through. Add the noodles to the soup. If a thinner broth is desired, add additional chicken broth. Remove the bay leaf, and taste the soup. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and serve.

Additional Notes:

• Extra-Easy Chicken Noodle Soup: Substitute 3 cup pre-cooked shredded chicken or shredded supermarket rotisserie chicken for the chicken thighs in this recipe. Reduce simmering time to 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are cooked to taste.

• Long and Slow Chicken Noodle Soup: Want to make the real thing? OK! Simmer a whole chicken in water until the meat falls off the bones. Pull off the meat and return the bones to the pot with some vegetables to complete the chicken stock. The build your soup as above, using this fresh chicken stock and the reserved chicken meat.

• To Freeze Some the Soup: Remove the portion of soup to be frozen before adding the pasta. When reheating the soup, cook the pasta separately and add it to the individual bowls.

• Avoiding Mushy Noodles: The noodles will continue absorbing liquid from the leftover soup as it cools, gradually becoming softer and mushier. If you don't like mushy noodles in your leftover soup, keep the pasta and soup separate and add the pasta to bowls individually.

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(Images: Emma Christensen)

Comments (16)

I'm a huge fan of "quick" chicken soup like this, I make it a lot, usually with chicken breasts (pref bone-in, though even boneless work OK). I like to use leeks instead of onion, and I put in a TON of chopped fresh parsley and dill. All that green adds tons of flavor and helps compensate for the fact that it's not long-cooked. I also like it best with either rice or quinoa rather than noodles.

Delicious sounding soup. I second the use chicken bones in the soup. It really does add lots of flavor to the soup. Now, about that bay leaf. When I was teaching cooking classes I reminded students to remove the bay leaf and a student raised her hand. At her house, they didn't remove the bay leaf and whoever got it in their serving had to do the dishes!!! Great idea.

@ccp mbd that's such a cute story!

Mushy noodles. Ick. Chicken Soup with Rice is definitely the way to go. I make this Peruvian Chicken Soup in under an hour, even when I'm sick. It's only one pan to wash instead of two, and it gets a flavor boost (and pretty color) from the cilantro that's added at the end and a sprinkle of lime juice. I alter the recipe by adding a 16 oz. bag of frozen vegetables rather than a half a cup and brown rice rather than white. I don't think it's any harder to take the meat off a whole chicken, but if I found a good deal on bone-in thighs, I'd certainly give them a try in this.

To be really quick, I like to use diced potatoes instead of noodles. All you have to do is simmer them in the broth with everything else.

Who needs store-bought stock? If you buy bone-in, skin-on any kind of cut up chicken and simmer it first, pull it out and pick the chicken off the bone, then add the veggies and chicken back to the water, no stock is necessary!

I love how chicken soup is universal, yet there are so many variations to this nourishing soup. I love my mom's bubur ayam (chicken congee), it's what I crave when I'm sick or just because I miss her and home. Here's my version: http://theasiangrandmotherscookbook.wordpress.com/2011/10/28/congee-recipe/

I'm going to be a royal p.i.t.a., but all these soup related posts are overkill!! Some roasts / spicy food recipes would be fun. I don't like soup at all. I must be the only person I know who isn't a fan

Sorry. Just sayin...

I love soups. I love this time of year because soups are plentiful. Though my quickie way of making chicken soup involves boiling down a rotisserie chicken from the supermarket.

I absolutely LOVE chicken soup, and this recipe looks and sounds like just what I have been looking for!
I would like to add just one idea, even though it may not be practical these days I read an article discussing chicken soup in which the author described the terrific chicken soup made by Jewish lady neighbor which had an absolute rich golden color. He begged her for her recipe for a long time. Finally she told him where the rich golden color came from. As she cooked the soup, she added - TA DA! - the feet! Now, I have no idea where you would get chicken feet these days, but if anyone knows a source, I would appreciate the info.

I make a similar chicken soup with ginger, garlic and lemongrass. It's so tasty and makes the house smell wonderful. I find I don't need to add extra stock because the chicken makes its own.

VancouverGirl, I hear you. I felt the same way about all of the pizza recipes recently probably because I don't eat pizza.

@mrtumnus, it probably depends on where you are, but look for ethnic markets or standard grocery stores in those areas. My local Met sells chicken feet, chicken hearts, tripe, tongue, oxtail, and any other odd cuts you might want.

I like to make my own chicken broth and soup. I never thought of using just chicken thighs. A great idea. A great taste. Much easier than using a whole chicken.

A solid recipe...made it tonight and we all loved it. Used orzo pasta in lieu of egg noodles.

Thanks for the recipe.

This recipe is fantastic! I made it last night for myself and my flu-ridden boyfriend... It was a big hit! I woke up this morning to an empty pot in our sink because *someone* woke up in the middle of the night with a ravenous appetite.

I normally make adjustments to a recipe as I am cooking to suit my mood or fill in where I feel it is lacking. However, I did not make any adjustments to this one, and I was extremely pleased! I did use the bone-in chicken thighs as opposed to a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken and I cooked my noodles separately from the rest of the soup... Both choices I firmly believe lent to the success of the final product. :)

Two thumbs up here!

Hubs and I are both nursing a cold, so I made this last night and it turned out great. I had homemade turkey stock from t-giving in the freezer so the soup was a good way to use that up. I like my veggies crisp so I waited until the chicken was mostly done (last 10 min of step 3) to add the carrots and celery. I also added some chopped parsley and chopped celery leaves at the end. Looking forward to the leftovers tonight!