My chicken soup recipe has been passed down through at least three generations and (at risk of sounding conceded) my friends and family have declared it the best. I think it may have even played a role in my husband’s decision to marry me. That, and my chopped liver.
Warning: this recipe is time consuming but so worth it. Give yourself about 4 hours of total cooking time. But don’t worry; it’ll make enough to freeze for future chicken soup emergencies.
A few notes before the recipe:
1. My recipe is just a guide…follow the steps but feel free to experiment with your own veggies.
2. If you can’t find chicken bones in the meat section of the grocery store, ask the butcher. They are almost always some in the back and they’re super-cheap.
3. Matzo ball soup & mix can be found in almost every grocery store in the ethnic foods section. It really is the most basic Jewish ethnic ingredient.
My (and soon to be your) Famous Chicken Soup
1. The Chicken: put 2 skinless, bone-in full chicken legs (that means the thigh too) in a large stock pot along with a whole bunch of chicken bones.
2. Fill the pot almost to the top with COLD water. Then SLOWLY bring it to a boil. Keep an eye on it the whole time. As soon as the shmutz (that is yiddish for yukky stuff) and foam start floating to the top, skim it off with a spoon. Make sure you skim it all off before letting it come to a full boil.
3. Then (and this step is a pain in the rear but so important so don’t skip it) take the chicken and bones out of the soup, rinse them off and then put them aside. Then pour your almost-broth through a few layers of cheesecloth into a clean stock pot. If you don’t have two stock pots (who does) strain it into as many smaller pots as necessary. Clean out your stockpot and return the broth and chicken and bones back into it, along with….
4. The vegetables & spices: Add one whole onion (just remove the papery outer layers), a few chopped carrots, a couple stalks celery, & one peeled and chunked good-size parsnip to the broth along with…
5. A spice packet containing dill, bay leaves, parsley, and pepper corns, and whatever your “secret ingredient” is, along with about a big tsp of salt.
6. Simmer over a very low heat for at least one hour.
7. Remove the chicken legs but leave the bones and simmer for another hour or four.
8. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred about 1/2 a cup to add to the soup when serving and use the rest for chicken salad or whatever else you like to do with boiled chicken. In the final 1/2 hour, make…
9. The matzoh ball. This is the easiest step. I promise. Buy a box of matzoh ball mix and follow the instructions. Don’t be a hero. The nice people at Manischewitz (the brand I favour) have done all the measuring for you so just say a silent “thank you”. Sometimes I go crazy and add some chopped spinach to my matzoh balls.
And remember, you don’t have to have matzoh balls. You could use noodles instead, or go crazy and have nothing at all!
That’s it! Your done! Sort of…
10. After 20 minutes of the matzoh balls boiling in the soup, remove the bones and spice pack and taste. Add more salt, pepper, and (lean in…this is my secret ingredient) a bit of powdered chicken stock, if its not flavourful enough for you. This is not cheating, BTW. When it tastes this good, who cares if its not 100% “homemade”. It’s like, 95% homemade and that’s good enough for me.
Garnish with a sprig of parsley and dill. Or not. Enjoy!
PS. When it has cooled completely and you go to freeze it, don’t freeze the matzoh balls. They are mushy and nasty when they defrost.
Whenever I roast a chicken, I always make soup from the bones. So yummy. I pack it full of veggies so it’s a meal in itself. My kids love it after swimming lessons. Must try matzoh balls – I bet they would love them!
Do you hear that sound? It’s me drooooooling!!! Thank you for this recipe! I will definitely try it!