Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Nothing like a wonderful pot of homemade chicken noodle soup on the stove on a cold winter’s day.

My mother made the best. She was a farm wife with a big family. She not only boiled the chicken, she actually went out wrung its neck, plucked its feathers and innards, cut it up, and boiled it.

By the time I came along, the family moved to town, so I do not possess the same skills my mother had for preparing a chicken.

I do have the knowledge of her easy homemade chicken noodle soup though.

No neck-wringing required. Store-bought chicken will do.

In order to know the functions of homemade chicken noodle soup, first you have to get started. Now, if you have chickens, you could do what my farm wife mother did. Personally, this town girl goes to the freezer, pulls out the already cut chicken breast, fills a pan with hot water, puts it on the stove, and brings it to a boil.

One secret my mother taught me was to boil the chicken first then turn it down to a simmer. If you want your chicken to be so tender that it falls apart, simmer it for at least an hour with no seasonings, including salt. The seasonings seem to make the chicken less tender and harder to work with when you want to slice it or tear it into pieces for your soup. Keep in mind that your tender chicken is going to continue to “fall apart” each time you stir the soup, so there is not much effort in cutting it up. Don't worry if you have big chunks at this stage.

Boiling your chicken and then simply simmering your soup, adds humidity to your house. In the winter our furnace dries the house and our skin and bodies out. What a great way to add humidity while the aroma of your chicken noodle soup can be appreciated throughout the house.

After using my paring knife (my cutlery of choice when cooking) to literally slice and tear the tender chicken into pieces while it is still in the pot, I add salt, garlic, and garlic salt. I cheat a little, too, for the sake of flavor and add a little chicken broth. Be careful of the steam if you choose to leave the chicken in the pot because it will burn you.

I am not much of one to use exact measurements in my recipes; that is a trait I did get from my farm wife mother. I will give you an easy-to-follow recipe, though. For now, I am just going to describe my steps.

I begin cutting up my vegetables. Vegetables are personal preference, but I think there are three that you must have for a tasty, homemade chicken noodle soup: one whole onion, three stalks of celery, and green pepper. I chop my onion and celery up. If you have a fresh green pepper, cut it up into bite-size squares. Another trait I inherited from my mother is money-saving flash freezing, so I use my garden green peppers and my sweet banana peppers that I flash froze. I also like to add a potato.

Okay, something my farm wife mother would not have used are frozen vegetables from the store. Well, I do use a bit of frozen mixed vegetable that I bought in the store. I know she would forgive me.

While the chicken and vegetables are blending flavors in the pot, you will want to turn your stove on low and cover it. Let it simmer on low so that you do not lose flavor or liquid. Occasionally stir.

I like egg noodles for homemade chicken noodle soup but when you forget to check before starting to cook, whatever noodles you have in the cupboard will be fine. In my pictured chicken noodle soup, I used thin spaghetti. Not as pretty, but it taste just as good. Put the noodles in about a half hour before you want to eat. Make sure you have plenty of broth. You may need to add more hot water or chicken broth if it has simmered down. Stir the noodle in, make sure your burner is on the lowest setting, or you can turn it off the soup has been simmering most of the day. Voila, you are ready to serve your homemade chicken noodle soup.

As mentioned before, the furnace tends to dry out our skin. Constantly thinking of ways to fight aging and dry skin, I want my hydrated skin. If you want a lovely, homemade steam facial, stick your head over the pot. It feels and smells wonderful while hydrating skin on your face and neck. No joke. Might as well take advantage of it while it is there.

Raw chicken, preferably boneless

1 whole chopped onion (I prefer sweet)

1 whole chopped green pepper

3 chopped celery stalks

1 potato (I prefer skin on)

1 cup chicken broth or one cube

of chicken bouillon

Season to taste with salt, garlic powder,

and garlic salt

1 pkg noodles (your choice)

Optional ingredients:

2 sliced carrots

1- 2 cans of mushrooms

Mixed frozen vegetables

(Step-by-step directions in the hub)

Now granted, every time we fix chicken noodle soup does not mean we have a cold. Some days are just soup days in the winter. There is a long-held belief that chicken noodle soup helps cure a common cold. I tend to believe it is true because during cold and flu season my pharmacist gives away a can of chicken noodle soup to anyone who comes in for common cold medicines.

So there you have it. You not only have a lovely meal, but you also are humidifying your house, giving yourself the most wonderful steam facial to hydrate skin on your face and neck, and possibly curing the common cold. I would say that homemade chicken noodle soup is amazing.