Cheryl's Chicken Noodle Soup

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Making chicken noodle soup from scratch is so easy. Start by removing all of the meat from a Costco rotisserie chicken; the dark and white meat. Place it in a covered container, in the fridge, for later.


Add all of what’s left of the chicken–the bones and skin–to a large pot and all the juice in the bottom. Throw in some carrots, onion, celery, spices, and cover it with water. Bring to a simmer and cook for a few hours. This is a total “fix it and forget it” type of thing. You can throw everything together early in the morning and walk away while it simmers. So easy.


Once the broth has simmered, strain it to remove bones, and use it to make chicken noodle soup. Saute some chopped onions, diced carrots, and celery in 2 T. butter and add to the soup. Add more spices as needed. Add your rotisserie chicken meat, and noodles.

For the Soup:

• 1/2 Tablespoon butter
• 2 ribs celery , diced
• 3-4 large carrots diced
• 1 clove garlic , minced
• 10 cups Homemade chicken broths (see above , or other high-quality chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon salt , to taste
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper , to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon dried rosemary ,or more, to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 batch homemade egg noodles* , or 5 cups bite-size dry farfalle or egg noodles
• 3 cups rotisserie chicken , pulled from the chicken used to cook the homemade broth, recipe below

This is way better than boxed or canned broths. Just add a big spoonful! Cheapest at Costco in spices aisle. Also available at most grocery stores in smaller jars. Refrigerate after opening.

Instructions

1. Add butter, diced celery and carrots to a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Saute for 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. 
2. Add chicken broth and season the broth with salt (definitely TASTE the broth before adding more salt), pepper, and a tiny pinch of rosemary, sage and crushed red pepper. I may add another small spoonful of “better than bullion” chicken or chicken bouillon powder as well, if needed, to taste.
3. Bring broth to a boil. Add noodles (either the uncooked homemade egg noodles, or dry store-bought pasta) and cook just until noodles are al dente. 
4. If using store-bought noodles, be cautious not to overcook them! Remove pot from heat as soon as they are just barely tender. The noodles will continue to cook once you remove the pot from the heat, and you don’t want them mushy. 
5. Add chicken meat from the rotisserie chicken. Taste the broth again and add more seasonings, if needed.

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE EGG NOODLES:

SOO EASY! Like, four ingredients easy.

All you need is salt, flour, milk and eggs. Mix those ingredients together into a dough, roll it out with a rolling pin, and cut it into thin strips. You don’t need a special pasta maker or any special equipment, and you don’t need to wait for the dough to dry, either. You just add the raw noodles right to your pot of boiling chicken broth and they cook in 2-3 minutes. How easy is that?!

If you still feel like you’re not up to it, you can totally use store-bought noodles. My favorite ones to use are farfalle noodles.



HERE ARE MY PROS AND CONS FOR USING HOMEMADE EGG NOODLES:

Cons: It makes a little more mess, obviously, then if you use store-bought noodles.

They’re also not as “pretty” looking as store-bought noodles,

Pros: They wont absorb liquid like store-bought noodles do, so you don’t have to worry about them becoming soggy.

They’re incredibly EASY and use ingredients you already have in your pantry.

They’re delicious, and it’s very satisfying enjoying a big bowl of chicken noodle soup that you made completely from scratch.