My mom made a chicken noodle recipe not too long ago during one our visits and I thought to myself – there’s something I should try to make without following a recipe. It’s a pretty basic soup actually, so even in my cooking hiatus (otherwise known as pregnancy) I knew this wouldn’t take much effort. My little bit of effort, however, paid off; I even have enough left over for dinner another night this week….I think a grilled cheese sandwich sounds like the perfect pairing! Mmmmmmm…
Normal chicken noodle soup recipes don’t call for Herbs de Provence, so this special herb does bring a unique flavor to the mix (it’s the lavender). If you don’t particularly like the flavor of Herbs de Provence, I recommend substituting some rosemary and thyme, but give it a shot and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
I also enjoy using a rotisserie chicken for my soup as well – I find that the slow roasting brings a depth of flavor that plain chicken just doesn’t seem to offer. For this particular go-round, I bought my own at the store, but if you wanted to spend the quality time to roast your chicken first, it would be a great addition and probably well worth your time. Barefoot Contessa has a GREAT roast chicken recipe that I think would be delicious to use in this soup.
Time from Prep to Eating: 1-1.5 hours
What You Need:
2 large stock pots
The Stuff:
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 tsp Herbs de Provence
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried parsley
½ tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 celery stalks, roughly chopped
4 carrots, roughly chopped into medallions
1 large onion, chopped
1 small can corn, drained
1 rotisserie chicken, skinned, and shredded into bit-sized pieces
6 cups of low sodium chicken broth
2 cups water
Here’s What You Do:
Preheat your stock pot over medium-low (more towards the lower side) heat for about 5 minutes. Add the oil, garlic and herbs (from Herbs de Provence to salt), stirring constantly to avoid burning for about 1-2 minutes. Then add the celery, carrots and onion and let them sweat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the onions become semi-translucent, add the corn, chicken broth and water and bring to a simmer for about 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and fold in the chicken, let sit for about 5 minutes to cool.
Cook your noodles separately following the instructions on the box. I find that cooking them separately makes for a less soggy noodle – especially when it comes to the leftovers. This is a VERY important piece of the recipe!
Serve with your favorite loaf of bread for dipping!
