I’ve got some great memories of chicken soup as a kid. Maybe it’s stereotypical, but it’s the one food my mom would cook whenever I was sick. Yes, I’m old enough that I’m from the generation where parents still believed it was the best cure for a cold. I never had the benefit of cough syrup or Neo-Citran – it was chicken soup all the way.
As I’ve grown up, chicken soup has obviously moved out of the category of a cold treatment. Now it’s a wholesome food that I make whenever I want something delicious but not too heavy. There are lots of variations you can make with your own chicken soup, and finding the right combination is half the fun. The following recipe combines classic elements with a no-nonsense approach. It also happens to use a pressure cooker, and that means I can whip up a batch in no time. Best of all, one batch usually lasts a long time, and I can even freeze it to reheat for the next few weeks.
3 stalks celery
6 carrots
3 white onions
1 parsnip
5 stalks fresh parsley
1 stalk celantro
1 bay leaf
12 cups water
1 chicken, cut into quarters (add a few more bones if you have some extra laying around)
2 whole chicken breasts
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1. Add all of your vegetables into the pressure cooker.
2. Add all of your chicken into the cooker as well. I always like to add a few extra bones that I’ve saved from previous cooking to make the soup even more flavorful. It’s not necessary as long as you have the basic requirement of one whole chicken and your two breasts.
3. Add your salt, all of your water, and give it a gentle stir.
4. Now it’s pressure cooking time. Secure the lid and bring up the heat – cook under medium pressure for 15-20 minutes.
Let cool for about 15 minutes.
5. The next part is a bit like a science experiment, but it’s necessary to get clear soup without bits of stuff you don’t want.
6. In different containers, you’ll want to separate your chicken, your vegetables, and your soup. You’ll need a strainer to do this properly. Make sure to take out the parts you don’t want like the bay leaf and your parsley.
7. Chop up your chicken breasts into bite-size pieces. You can also add the cooked meat from your whole chicken, or use it for another dish that requires chicken as an ingredient.
8. Refrigerate your broth until the fat collects at the top. Remove this excess fat and discard.
9. Now it’s time to put it all back to gather, so add all of your ingredients into a pot or large saucepan. Simmer for about 10 minutes, and your chicken soup is ready to enjoy.
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