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Serving bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup from above.
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5 from 2 votes

chicken noodle soup from scratch

Making chicken noodle soup from scratch is a labour of love but the results are so worth it.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time5 hours
Total Time5 hours 30 minutes
Course: Appetizer, Soup
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8
Calories: 430kcal
Author: romain | glebekitchen

Ingredients

  • 4 lb whole chicken air-chilled
  • 12 cups chicken stock - homemade is best but good quality store bought works too
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 cups onion diced medium fine
  • 1 1/2 cups carrots diced or cut into rings
  • 2 stalks celery diced medium fine
  • 2-3 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 6 oz broad egg noodles
  • 1 Tbsp cornstarch you may want a bit more
  • 2 tsp kosher salt to start - you will likely need more.
  • fresh thyme leaves to garnish (optional)

Instructions

Poach the chicken

  • Choose a pot large enough to hold the chicken and 12 cups of stock. Starting with stock is your first layer.
  • Heat the chicken stock to just simmering. Add one Tbsp kosher salt, then add the chicken, breast side down. Your pot is the right size if the broth almost covers the chicken.
  • Poach the chicken, covered, for about 25 minutes. Flip the chicken. Be careful. Hot liquid. Use tongs and a wooden spoon to stabilize. Continue poaching another 10-15 minutes or so.
  • You are going for about 160F in the breast and 170F in the thigh. Use your instant read thermometer. Don't have one? Get one! It's important. You'll wonder how you ever survived without one.
  • Remove the chicken from the broth. Keep in mind the cavity is full of hot stock. Be careful. Let it drain.
  • Let the chicken cool until you can handle it. This takes a surprisingly long time. Remove the chicken from the bones. Discard the skin. Store the chicken in the refrigerator.

Make the stock

  • Return the bones to the stock. Simmer for 3-4 hours, loosely covered. This adds more chicken goodness to the stock. Another layer of flavour. Maximum chicken soup goodness.
  • After 3-4 hours let cool slightly. Strain into a large container. Wipe out the pot.

Make the soup

  • Pre-heat your pot over medium low heat. Film the bottom of the pot with olive oil.
  • Add the onion, carrot and celery. Sweat until the onions are translucent. Don't let the vegetables brown. That's not a flavour you want here.
  • Add the thyme and return the stock to the pot.
  • Simmer until the carrots are tender. I can't tell you exactly - depends on how long you sweated them in oil and how big your dice is. Somewhere around 30-40 minutes is my guess.
  • While the soup simmers dice the chicken.
  • Once the carrots are tender add the noodles. Simmer until the noodles are cooked - about 8-10 minutes. Add the chicken and cook another 2-3 minutes.
  • Add salt - a tsp at a time until you have your salt in balance. It can take quite a bit. It depends on how you like your soup.
  • Add about 2 Tbsp of hot stock to the cornstarch. Mix to make an even paste then add another couple tablespoons of stock to dilute it. Return the cornstarch mixture to the pot. Stir and bring to a simmer. It will thicken just a little bit for that magic mouthfeel.
  • Taste it at this point. If you want a bit more texture in the broth repeat the cornstarch process with a second tablespoon.
  • Add a few fresh thyme leaves to add a little extra flavours if you like.
  • Serve and be ready when people ask for seconds...

Notes

If you are really pressed for time you can skip the bones in broth step. It won't be quite the same but it will still be delicious. Freeze the carcass and use it make stock.

Nutrition

Serving: 8servings | Calories: 430kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 99mg | Sodium: 794mg | Potassium: 708mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 4230IU | Vitamin C: 6.1mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 2.3mg