Recipes #5 and #6: Chicken Noodle Soup with Roasted Chicken Broth

Did I mention I really like soup?? This is actually the third time we have eaten soup this week. In addition to the Corn Chowder I made the other night, I also made Pizza Soup. It’s Matt’s favorite thing that I make, he was feeling a little under the weather and deserved it. Soup is comfort food after all.

I decided earlier this week that I would be making these two recipes Saturday. There has been a nasty virus going around campus, people are dropping like flies across departments and staying out for about a week. Matt’s area has seen a few cases and Matt started feeling the tickle in his throat Wednesday. I figured if he had it, he’d be in the middle of it by today and I would be starting it. Chicken soup would probably be the perfect food for both of us.

Thankfully, we have both found that sometimes taking the day off when you first feel that tickle and sleeping as much as you can (not to mention a couple shots of Airborne) goes a long way to keeping you healthy. Matt took Wednesday off and slept well into the afternoon and it seemed to clear up. I am happy to report that I am also still sniffle free (::knocks on wood::). Luckily, chicken soup is good even when you’re healthy!

I am counting this as two recipes because even on the website where I found it, it is two separate recipes. This recipe comes from Foodwishes.com which is a blog I discovered about 6 months ago. The unique thing about it is that Chef John does video recipes. I have actually recommended him to some guys I know that want to learn to cook because his recipes are simple and he explains them well. He is also a fan of bad jokes and puns, so there’s that.

First up, the broth…

Recipe: Roasted Chicken Broth

(I forgot to take a picture of just the broth, so this is from the website. Honestly though, it did look just like this!)

The broth, while time consuming, is simple. I don’t think I would roast a chicken again specifically for it, but I would certainly use any leftovers to make it. I loved the “surprise ingredient”, adding a tablespoon of ketchup to the broth. Simple but brings a lot to the table. After simmering for 3.5 hours and straining it… you add a few veggies, some chicken, and pasta to get….

The Ultimate Chicken Noodle Soup

Once the broth is done, the soup comes together in about 20 minutes and is excellent. Chicken soup is a bit of a quest for me. I think I am the only one who remembers this, but when I was in High School, Jamba Juice sold soup in addition to smoothies. It was the BEST soup too, lots of veggies (including red bell pepper) and a ton of red pepper flakes. I think it was the fact it was spicy that I loved most, it was perfect when you had a cold. Ever since they did away with their soups, I have yet to find a soup that is as good as that one was. This is the closest I have found. (And yes, I added bell pepper and red pepper flakes to it.) It was delicious, so delicious in fact it achieved the highest honor that I can get from Matt, “I would say this is better than the one my Dad makes…” Something I have only achieved one other time in 8 years.

After eating most of my bowl, curiosity got the better of me and I added some Sriracha to see how it tasted. Yep! That would completely be my go-to for a cold!