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The Best Chicken Noodle Soup

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Cold weather means soup weather. And soup weather is the best weather ever, am I right? Here in Michigan, it feels like it's cold for most of the year, so it's always time for soup. I don't know about you, but whether I'm trying to warm up on a chilly day, or I'm feeling a bit under the weather, chicken noodle soup is my go-to.


This isn't your average canned chicken noodle soup. This recipe is adapted from grandma's chicken noodle soup recipe. She has been making her chicken noodle soup for as long as I can remember, and it's seriously SO good! This soup is very similar, but kicked up with more herbs and spices.

This soup takes a bit of time to make, but it is so worth every second. It's super hearty and filling. It's packed with TONS of vegetables, egg noodles, and an entire chicken! So if you've got a few hours, I highly recommend giving it a try!


Why use a whole chicken?

Using a whole chicken might seem a little much, but it is so worth it. Only using chicken breasts would work, but they can get tough if cooked too long.

With using a whole chicken, you get a great mixture of light and dark meat in the soup. Additionally, you get so much more flavor from cooking with the bones and skin.


Tips and shortcuts


Use a precooked chicken. If you don't have time to cook a whole raw chicken, don't fret! A lot of grocery stores have freshly roasted chickens available daily for purchase. If you need to shave a bit of time off of this recipe, this is a good option you can take. You'll only need to boil it for about 30 minutes.

Prep your vegetables while the chicken cooks. All of the vegetables get added to the soup once the chicken is out of the pot. I find it makes things easier to have the carrots, celery, onion, and garlic chopped and ready to go in, so I can add it to the pot as soon as I take the chicken out. This also gives them more time to cook and get soft while the chicken is cooling.

It makes a lot of soup, so you'll have plenty of leftovers. This isn't a skimpy soup. When done, this will be a FULL pot of soup. It's perfect for feeding a big crowd. We usually have it for a few meals throughout the week, and freeze whatever's left after that to enjoy another time. Put the leftovers you want to freeze in a freezer-safe containers, and freeze up to 2 months. You can reheat it in the microwave or on the stove.

The Best Chicken Noodle Soup

Recipe by Chrissy
Servings

10-12

servings
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

2

hours 
Total time

2

hours 

30

minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken, raw

  • 5 carrots, peeled and sliced

  • 4 stalks celery, chopped

  • 1 large white onion, diced

  • 3 garlic cloves

  • 4 cups water

  • 64 oz low-sodium chicken broth

  • 8 oz wide egg noodles

  • 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon powder

  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme

  • ¼ - ½ teaspoon white pepper

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions

  • Lightly grease the bottom of a large pot. Place the raw chicken in and cover with the 4 cups of water. Turn the burner on to medium heat, cover, and cook for an hour.
  • After an hour, flip the chicken, cover, and cook on the other side for about 30-40 minutes.
  • While the chicken cooks on the second side, it's time to prep the vegetables. Chop the celery, carrots, and onion, and press or finely chop the garlic. Set aside until the chicken is done.
  • Remove the chicken from the pan and transfer to a baking sheet. Allow the chicken to rest/cool for about 20 minutes. Be sure to keep the water the chicken was cooking in in the pot. You might have to use a small strainer to remove any skin or fat that may have stayed in the pot and floated to the surface.
  • Add the chopped vegetables to the pot, as well as the bay leaves. Cover, and continue to cook the vegetables on medium heat.
  • While the vegetables cook, it's time to shred the chicken. Using your hands, pick apart the chicken, removing the skin and bones as you go. Break the chicken meat into chunks or shreds as you pick it apart. Be careful-- the chicken may still be a bit warm.
  • Once all of the chicken has been removed and chunked/shredded, add that chicken back to the pot. *Throw away the bones and skin.
  • Add the chicken broth, dried thyme, white pepper, and chicken bouillon. Stir. Continue to cook the soup on medium heat.
  • Lastly, add the uncooked egg noodles to the pot. Continue cooking on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the noodles are completely cooked (about 10 minutes).
  • Remove the bay leaves, and stir in the chopped parsley.
  • Serve with bread or crackers, and ENJOY!

Notes

  • *I like to keep a separate bowl next to the pan I'm shredding the chicken on. I throw all of the bones, fat, and skin in the bowl. It helps make sure that I don't get it mixed in with the chicken, and it's easy to throw away afterwards.

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