RECIPE: Chicken Soup
bc its fucking cold outside
Picture this, it’s Saturday morning and the weather is shit. It’s cold, grey and a steady drizzle of rain is soaking all the washing you left on the line. Welcome to Melbourne. Now, as miserable as it sounds, there’s something I deeply love about this time of year. Bad weather is like a universal order to do absolutely nothing and feel zero guilt for it. However, if you’re somewhat like me and constantly live with 1 million tabs open and find doing ‘nothing’ the biggest challenge of your existence, you feel guilty on these days anyway.
My days off - although still very on - are filled with things that take care of me (mind, body, soul kinda vibe). You’ll find me cooking, cleaning, rearranging my apartment, writing large to-do lists for every day in the week ahead and getting several loads of washing done. At this point, I’m self-proclaiming the trad-wife girl-boss hybrid title. lol.
So, here I am , it’s Saturday morning and I’ve already got my to-do list alive and well on a lined piece of note-pad paper. Chicken soup sits second, with a walk to the market taking first place on the list. When I cook, I go all out, never skimping on quality ingredients. I reach for organic produce at my local market and drop some cash at Hagens Butcher because everything that goes into your body either affects it or fuels it. Plus, organic produce tastes and smells WAY better - you cannot fight me on this.
ANYWAY, the weather-appropriate chicken soup I decided on cooking had me all sorts of satisfied when I slurped up two bowls later that night. And, I managed to get 4 extra meals out of this batch, which are individually tubbed, sitting in the freezer, ready for those days when i cannot be fucked thinking of what to cook, let alone cook it.
So, here it is…
Chicken soup ~ serves 6
Olive oil
1 brown onion diced
4 cloves garlic minced
2 celery ribs chopped
2 carrots chopped
2L beef stock (you can use chicken or veg stock to get a lighter broth colour)
6 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
1 cup frozen peas
1 corn cob's worth of kernels
2 -3 large handfuls of fresh baby spinach
170g spaghetti
salt and pepper to taste
Fresh parsley to serve
wedge of lemon to serve
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook onion for 2 minutes, then add garlic, celery and carrots. cook for 5 minutes
Add the chicken thighs, stock, peas and corn kernels. Top up with water if needed to cover all of the ingredients
Increase heat and bring to a boil for about 4 minutes. Reduce heat, partially cover the pot with a lid, and allow to simmer for 25 minutes
Transfer chicken to a plate and remove the meat using tongs to hold the chicken and a fork to shred off the meat. throw out the bones
Add the chicken back into the soup along with the spaghetti. Cover and cook for 6-8 minutes while stirring occasionally to separate the pasta
Stir in the spinach leaves and allow to wilt in the soup (about 3 minutes)
Taste the soup and season accordingly with salt and pepper
Serve with chopped parsley and a wedge of lemon on the side
Allow to cool for 30 minutes before tubbing and freezing