Chicken Soup

From Sonia Rothstein

Chicken soup is the quintessential home remedy! Unfortunately, no one can give you an exact recipe. So much is decided by the chef's taste buds. But here are the basics, the way I was taught by watching my Grandmother Sonia create this golden liquid every Friday night. And I've even included a trick or two I've picked up over the years. So enjoy and be well!

1 whole chicken (about 3 1/2 pounds) (you can also use chicken pieces, legs, thighs, etc).

water

1 large whole onion, peeled

2-4 celery stalks (optional)

3-4 carrots, sliced (optional)

Seasonings (to taste - see below)

Remove any giblets from the chicken and any large pieces of fat. Rinse the chicken. If you use a whole chicken, I have found that, in the course of cooking, the chicken falls apart and can make the soup difficult to strain. So I wrap my chicken in cheesecloth and tie it with butcher string. If I use pieces, then I don't bother with the cheesecloth.

Drop the chicken in a large soup pot (mine is 8 quarts) and fill about 3/4 full with water. Add the onion.

Cover the pot and bring the soup to a boil. Once it is boiling, lower the heat until the soup is simmering. Go read a book, do the laundry, take a shower, watch TV, whatever. The point is to let it simmer a LOOOONG time. I usually put mine up in the morning and let it cook all day. And because you shouldn't be crazy enough to leave it cooking on the stove while you're sleeping, before you go to bed, remove it from the heat, let it cool a bit, and put it in the refrigerator.

Next morning, when you get up, there should be a nice layer of fat that has hardened on the surface of the soup. This you should remove. What to do with it is another story. In Sonia's day, this was used as the basis for a Jewish delicacy called Schmaltz. In deference to our arteries, I won't give the recipe. Suffice it to say today it would be called Heart Attack on a Cracker. So you can take the fat and throw it away (please don't put it down the disposal - instant clog). Or you could save it for those occasions when your recipe calls for chicken fat.

Once the fat is skimmed, put the pot back on the stove and start the simmering all over again. But now you can add the carrots, celery, etc. (etc. means you have poetic license here. I have been known to perform such heresies as adding a parsnip or turnip. But for starters, I'd stick with the more traditional vegetables).

Let it simmer for a couple of hours, then add the seasoning. For me, salt, dill and pepper are a must. Some people use thyme instead of dill. Some throw in a couple of bay leaves. The amounts are up to you. If this is your first time making the soup, start with small amounts of seasoning and then taste the broth. You can always add more later. But if you're making a large pot of soup, don't be surprised by the amount of seasoning required to achieve a nice flavor. Let it simmer for at least another two hours to give the seasonings a chance to blend.

Remove all the vegetables except the carrots. Remove the chicken (very easy if you use the cheesecloth trick). Now you have some choices to make. You can save the boiled chicken for another recipe (chicken salad, cold chicken sandwiches, etc.). Or you can shred the meat and put it back in the soup. This will turn your soup from a light broth into a more hearty meal. If you really want to add body, you can throw some rice in the soup and let that cook for about 45 minutes until the rice is soft.

Whatever you decide, you should end up with a lovely golden broth that is good for whatever ails you. Now go have seconds.

 

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