Hearty Chicken Soup: Recipe

If you've ever looked for a chicken soup recipe, you've noticed there are a LOT of them out there. The best part about this is that there are some great ideas for variations on this classic recipe - thai chicken soup, anyone? The worst part is that there are so many recipes with unhealthy ingredients; soups loaded with vegetable oils, margarine, and refined grains. We've truly lost sight of the original benefits of chicken soup, like the minerals and fat found in homemade broth. Yes, saturated FAT is GOOD for you! Anyway, before I lose myself on another fat is phat rant, I wanted to eliminate this need to go searching for the perfect chicken soup recipe. Today I present to you THE best chicken soup recipe you'll ever come across. Now, this doesn't sound very humble, I know, but I wasn't the one who came up with the base of the recipe, so I feel like I can say that. In fact, I don't even remember who came up with this recipe. It has been tweaked and changed so many times that I'm going to share with you how I make it, and then you can continue to tweak it to your family's personal tastes. 

In my last couple of posts we learned about the benefits of homemade bone broths, and I gave you a recipe for chicken broth to start you off on your traditional foods journey. Today, you'll be using that chicken broth to make the most perfect, delicious pot of chicken soup your family has ever laid their lips on. So, without further ado...

Hearty Chicken Soup

2 tablespoons organic pastured butter (feel free to use more)

1 cup chopped organic carrots

1/2 cup diced organic onion

1/2 cup diced organic celery

1-2 cups chopped organic zucchini (optional)

6 cups homemade chicken broth

2 cups or more diced organic pastured chicken

1 - 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt (I use RealSalt)

1 t organic dried marjoram

1 t organic dried thyme

1/4 teaspoon organic pepper

1. In a medium-sized pot on low heat, sauté carrots, onion, and celery in butter for 5 - 10 minutes, or until tender.

2. Add zucchini (if using), homemade chicken broth, diced chicken, and spices. Mix and cover. Turn heat up a bit, and bring to a very low simmer. Turn off heat and allow soup to sit for about 20 minutes. 

3. Ladle into bowls and serve with homemade lacto-fermented sauerkraut, pickles, and some raw cheddar cheese.

Serves 4

As you can see, this is a very simple recipe. It doesn't need to be difficult to be delicious. The secret is in the homemade broth and the marjoram. Whenever I have served this meal, someone has always commented on how they have never tasted any soup so delicious. I truly think people have become used to the bland-tasting broths that are sold in stores and used in most restaurants. This is a tragedy... but it's not too late to remedy this problem. I guarantee you'll get smiling faces when you serve this soup.

I'd like to make one note: We are a grain-free household. That's right, not just gluten-free, we are completely grain-free. I've been following the GAPS diet for about a year in order to heal my gut, and part of the diet is eliminating stress on the intestines, which means not eating complex carbohydrates. We add zucchini to our soup as a replacement to noodles. It helps to make the soup heartier. I enjoy the zucchini, and it's much healthier than the noodles would be. Feel free to use the zucchini or throw in a different vegetable that your family enjoys. 

During this cold, winter season, it's a perfect time to make this chicken soup, and it will help to provide your family with the nutrients to stave off colds and flus. Are you ready? It's time to take your taste buds for a joy ride!

What is your favorite variation on the traditional chicken soup recipe?

This was entered into Kelly the Kitchen Kop's Real Food Wednesday, Easy Natural Food's Sunday Night Soup Night!, The Healthy Home Economist's Monday Mania and Real Food Forager's Fat Tuesday.