Zingy Chicken Noodle Soup

Posted on January 2, 2019 Updated on January 2, 2019

Happy New Year, folks! I totally missed doing a December post because we were gone, then gone again, then there was Christmas, and Christmas, and more Christmas. Please don’t mistake me; I LOVE Christmas; it’s just that all the festivities seem to preclude blog posts. This may be why it’s wise to have a few posts done ahead of time. Some day I hope to be wise. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, with just enough stuff happening to make you feel loved, but enough quiet time to reflect on the Child Jesus who came to this world to show us how to live and love.

Immediately after Christmas, I came down with a wicked head and chest cold that stayed and stayed and is still staying, when what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a soup entitled Flu-Fighter Chicken Noodle Soup by Baker By Nature. I decided to enlist in the battle against all flu infestations, and make it. The recipe caught my eye because it uses roasted chicken tenderloins instead of a whole chicken, and has lemon juice and dill in it. All the ingredients were here, and it seemed very doable. Plus, Flu-Fighter! Let’s kick this baby! Incidentally, this roasting method turned out to be highly revolutionary to every chicken soup in my future. I will do that every time I make ANY kind of chicken soup. I took our dog for a walk through the orchard and around the old barn to stretch both our legs and clear my foggy head, then I began chopping and roasting.

The Poultry Place is across the road from us and I keep their souvlaki chicken strips in my freezer at all times, as well as their housemade chicken broth. Having just watched the Downton Abbey Episode in which Mrs. Whats-her-name tries to make a chicken broth for the old dowager and ends up with a vile concoction that ended up being thrown out, I deemed it wise to use some premade broth. I added one gel pack of Knorr’s chicken stock for extra flavour. At least I thought I did. I like that stuff; it tastes good, and it’s gluten-free to boot. Each little pack flavours three cups of water.

I scoured my fridge and found some leeks that needed to be used. I used shallots, leeks, and onions instead of only onions. Ontario garlic is much more potent than the typically-stocked Chinese varieties, so I cut the garlic down to four cloves. I added half a tomato, chopped, because it was sitting in my fridge too, and we like tomatoes. It is soup after all; you can add what you like. Between Martin’s Family Fruit Farm, my pantry and fridge, and The Poultry Place, I had what I needed! Yay!

I made the soup and gave it to my husband to taste test because my tester is not very reliable these days. I trust him and know his language; if he tells me that it’s “okay”, it means that it’s not very good. If he says, “Wow”, it means exactly that. If he doesn’t say anything and just hums sounds of delight as he eats, it’s the best. The first taste I gave him needed more salt and pepper. Although we loved the zing of the lemon juice, the second one was still “missing something”.  Eventually, I discovered that I had forgotten to add the Knorr broth package to the soup after taking the bouillon photo. After adding it, he declared “Now, that’s good!” and ate a hearty bowlful with two slices of my homemade Mennonite-style sourdough bread. So there you have your endorsement.

By the way, do use only the amount of pasta asked for in the recipe, even if it seems skimpy. If you add more, you will end up with chicken noodle stew or chicken noodle casserole by the next day. Or even by the next hour. Trust me, I know this. Tomorrow’s recipe: Chicken Noodle Casserole. Just kidding. Gonna have to add more broth to the leftovers!

Martin’s is still well-stocked with Ontario root vegetables as well as apples. Carrots, leeks, onions, garlic, shallots…they’re all waiting to go into your next pot of soup! 

This post is sponsored by Martin’s Family Fruit Farm. Stories and viewpoints are my own. 

Zingy Chicken Noodle Soup

• Servings: 8
• Print

Ingredients

Chicken:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins (or breasts, cut in strips)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon black or mixed peppers

Soup:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 large carrots, peeled and sliced
• 3 stalks of celery, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 leek, sliced
• 1 shallot, diced
• 4 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 4 cups of water
• 1 Knorr gel pack of chicken bouillon mix
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups gluten-free or wheat-based broad noodles or pasta (I used rotini)
• juice of one lemon
• 1 small tomato,chopped (optional)
• 1/4 cup fresh or 1 teaspoon dried dill

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190C). Place chicken tenderloin strips in a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. Drizzle with the 2 Tbsp olive oil and sprinkle with the seasonings. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 – 30 minutes, flipping once. Remove and pull into bite-size chunks with two forks. Set aside until ready to add to soup. Seriously, roasting the chicken for the soup adds a whole ‘nother dimension. I’m going to roast my chicken for every soup I make from now on.

While the chicken is roasting, prepare the soup by heating the second amount of olive oil in a very large kettle. Chop and slice all the vegetables and add them (except the garlic) to the oil. Cook over medium heat for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and salt and cook for another minute. Add the bay leaf, chicken broth, water, and Knorr gel pack. Increase heat to high until boiling, then add the pasta and turn down the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are soft and the pasta is al dente. Stir in lemon juice, tomato, chicken and dill just before serving. Check for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed. Join the cold-fighting army and serve this soup.