Cold-Fighting Chicken Soup

Copyright 2007 by Cooking With The Single Guy

Ingredients:
6 oz. chicken pieces (preferably one breast and thigh with bone, skinless)
2 large carrots, chopped
1 parsnip, chopped
1 tomato, sliced into cubes
1 sweet onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
5 cups water
salt and pepper
2 T extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper both sides of your chicken pieces and set aside. In a large saucepan or pot, warm olive oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic, and saute until translucent but not brown. About 2 minutes. Add chicken thighs and lightly brown both sides (about 2 minutes for each side). Add water, carrots and parsnip, then cover and bring to a boil, immediately reducing to a low simmer. This is when you’ll also have to skim off the “foam” with a large spoon. (The foam actually looks like grayish bits floating to the top.)

Continue simmering your broth for about 35 to 45 minutes until chicken is tender and pulls easily from bone. Remove the chicken meat and bone from your pot and discard the bones. Shred your chicken meat into pieces with a fork and set aside.

Add the tomato to your broth and continue simmering for another 25 to 30 minutes. Remove pot from stove and let cool for at least 30 minutes. Then skim off excess fat floating on the top.

With hand blender, puree ingredients into a silky soup. (You can also place small batches into your blender.*) Add salt to taste. Return chicken pieces to soup and serve warm.

Makes 2 to 3 servings. Garnish with cilantro (optional).

* Do not place hot liquid in blender. Let the stock cool first. And never fill blender or food processor by more than half.

TIP: Skimming the fat can be tiring, especially if you cook the chicken with the skin still on. If you have a lot of time, you can refrigerate your cooked broth overnight. The fat will gel into pieces on top that’ll make it easier for you to skim the fat the next day. Once you’ve removed the fat, warm the soup, puree it, and then add the chicken pieces before serving.