Cookbook:Chicken Soup I

Chicken Soup

No specific quantities or measurements are described here in any detail, just ingredients and method.

Ingredients

• Chicken thighs, boneless filet (easiest)
• Carrots
• Celery
• Liquid chicken stock, or 2 to 3 veg stock cubes
• Dill (either dried dill leaf tips, or a bunch of fresh dill chopped finely)
• Water
• Salt

Method
Put chicken into cold or room-temperature water in a pot on the stove and set heat to bring it to a boil. As it heats up, a surface foam develops prior to the boil.

While the pot is heating up, or at any convenient time when not scooping off the foam,

• Chop carrots to bite size chunks and set aside
• Cross-cut celery into 5-10 mm slices and set aside

We want a clear soup broth, so use a big spoon or small strainer to skim the foam and other "debris" away into a container. Discard the foam. Remove chicken thighs from the pot and chop them into roughly bite-size pieces on a chopping board. The chicken may tend to fall apart anyway as you handle it. While chicken is out of the pot, it's a good time to clear the broth further if desired.

• Add the chicken pieces back into the pot.
• Add carrots, celery, (plenty of) dill, and stock into the pot, adjust heat to bring back to simmer.
• Simmer for at least 30 minutes (an hour is better, hours even better) to cook the chicken and mix the flavors.
• Lightly salt to taste (individual diners can add more salt to their bowls if desired).

Alternate: You can use legs, or thighs with bones, process on a cutting board by removing bones, gristle, etc., and cut meat into small chunks.

Options: Serve with noodles of choice that were cooked separately and drained, and added to individual bowls of soup. Add rice vermicelli noodles, which cook in two minutes, to bowls when serving.