How to turn your chicken broth into chicken noodle soup
I know many of you black belt frugal experts can make chicken noodle soup (a classic frugal meal!) while blindfolded, so you may be slightly bored by this post.
But honestly, I wasn't too skilled at making a good homemade chicken noodle soup until sometime in the last year or two, so I figured there are probably some readers out there in the same boat.
So, this post is for you!
I learned the basic method from Cook's Illustrated (because of course), but mine is a more frugal version than theirs. 😉
This post piggybacks on two recent chicken topics, so in case you missed them:
Recently, I showed you how to salt, spatchcock, and roast a chicken.
And then we talked about how to make broth (the sort that actually tastes good!) from the bones and raw backbone left from spatchcocking.
You can use the resulting broth in any recipe that calls for chicken broth, but since it's awfully tasty, it can easily serve as the base for chicken noodle soup.
(Not-So-Spectacular broth can be disguised in rice or sauces, but for good chicken noodle soup, you really do need to have delicious broth.)
In my broth post, I mentioned that if you know you're gonna be making chicken noodle soup, you should save some of the fat that rises to the top of the broth.
If you didn't, no worries. You can still proceed. 😉
So, you'll want to take the chicken fat (or vegetable oil) and heat it in your Dutch oven. Then add in a cup each of onions, celery, and carrots.
Chicken fat tastes very chicken-y, as opposed to, say, beef fat, which mostly just tastes greasy.
So, sauteing the veggies in chicken fat ups the chicken flavor in your soup a bit more. It is not essential, though.
Cook these until they're slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Then add in ½ teaspoon of dried thyme plus your broth (the amount is flexible, but somewhere between 6 and 8 cups is good) and simmer your soup until the veggies are cooked to your liking.
Now, hopefully you had some leftover roasted chicken that you can use for your soup.
If not, then during the above broth simmering time, you could poach some chicken breasts (remove the skin before poaching). Simmer them until they're cooked through, remove them, let 'em cool a bit, and then chop the meat up into bite-sized pieces.
Luckily, I roasted a big chicken, so I had plenty of leftover meat for my soup this go-round.
Finally, add in 2 cups of dried noodles and simmer until the noodles are soft (check your noodle package directions to find out how long that might be.)
Salt and pepper the soup to your taste and serve it proudly.
Leftover soup keeps quite nicely and tastes delicious when reheated. The noodles to tend to absorb broth as the soup sits, though, so you may need to add some additional water when you reheat the soup.
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup thinly sliced carrot
2 tablespoons reserved chicken fat (or vegetable oil)
½ teaspoon dried thyme
6-8 cups of homemade broth
2 cups chopped leftover roasted chicken
2 cups (3 oz.) dried noodles
salt and pepper to taste
In a Dutch oven, heat chicken fat until melted. Add vegetables and saute about 5 minutes. Stir in broth and thyme; simmer for about 10-15 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Stir in chicken and noodles and simmer until noodles are soft (consult package directions for noodle cooking time.)
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
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P.S. Congrats to Geneva, winner of the Third Day Naturals prize.
Also, don't forget that Third Day is offering a special discount to Frugal Girl readers. Use code TDN20 to receive 20% off! This is good only through December 14th, so go place your order before it expires.
I've definitely been doing something wrong... My home made soup has never looked like that, yum!
One of my favorite soups to make especially during the cold season. We have the same ingredients except the homemade broth. I usually buy at store but I'll try next time your recipe. Looks so easy to make and tasty!
Hi Kristen,
I was wondering if you use a particular kind of noodle in your soup? I have made homemade soup before and it has been quite tasty, but if there is any leftover the noodles go mushy and gross. Is there a way to prevent this?
Thanks for all the lessons on cooking and frugal living! I am always learning something on your blog. 🙂
I'd recommend that you cook the noodles to al dente separately, then add them to the individual bowls as you serve them. Maybe other people have better tricks, but this is the most fool-proof for me! 🙂
This is a perfect idea!
Lovely! I like to use thick Amish noodles, or homemade noodles in my chicken soup. Ooh, or dumplings.
A totally frugal, nutritious, and delicious meal! Great idea to post for benefit of those who might be "soup newbies"
I leave noodles out and boil them fresh when serving. I do this because I fin the leftover noodles get too mushy for my liking upon second reheating. We also enjoy rice with this soup, though I recommend adding separately so it doesn't absorb all if that delicious broth!
I do this with tortellini soup! I leave the tortellini out and just add as I'm serving because otherwise they absorb so much liquid and ballon to three times their normal size.
Y'all - try using egg noodles, they have a bit more structure. My solution is to use rice . Particularly brown rice, as I find that even brown-rice haters can't tell when the rice is in soup.
The FG didn't do it this way, but Chicken Soup can be made almost entirely ahead; the exception is the pasta/rice. Make the stock from the scraps. Save the pan drippings from roasting the bird, that's pure gold for flavor! Freeze the meat right after Thanksgiving. Saute the onion/carrot/celery (classic ratio is 2:1:1) with a bit of garlic and thyme, and freeze that. You can do the same with minced mushrooms, too.
Make the soup with the sauteed veggies, stock, meat, pasta/rice. Then add gravy or pan drippings till it's savory enough for you. (For the 3 quarts of soup I made last night, I used about 1/2 c. drippings.) If you don't like it yet, add more drippings or spices till you do. If the problem is it tastes flat or unsalty, try a little vinegar (cider, wine, or even hot sauce, which is mostly vinegar) to brighten it up, before trying salt.
You forgot the dill, parsley, and matzah balls! 🙂
You know, I've never had a matzah ball. Does it taste like matzah itself? I have never been a big fan of matzah!
No, they don't taste like matzo. They are a thing entirely to themselves. They taste rich and chickeny and savory, and the texture is divine. But it's true that matzo ball soup needs parsnip and dill. And a parsley root!
We put tarragon, bay leaf, garlic and majoram in our soup.
The most recent edition of Cook's Illustrated, which arrived on my doorstep yesterday, pointed out differences between the chewy Japanese soba noodles and the more tender Italian ones. One point was that Italian noodles got swolen and soft with long immersion but soba noodles didn't. So maybe try soba noodles instead?
Oh, interesting! Do soba noodles taste different?
(I've asked for a sub to the print version of Cook's for Christmas this year. My library has stopped reliably having copies, so...)
I do this but then add other veggies for vegetable chicken soup. Corn, peas, edamame, Lima beans. Whatever is frozen in my freezer. Then I add one cup Bloody Mary mix to add spices and seasoning. Yummy.
I made this last night to use up some chicken breasts and mushrooms. Wow, was it good! I followed recipe exactly (same ingredients as I use for turkey soup) but wasn't sure of the proportions for a smaller pot of soup. This recipe is so versatile and can be tweaked in many ways. Thanks for sharing.
Yay! So glad it helped you use up some odds and ends!