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Mom's Cold-Season Chicken Soup

This light chicken broth soup is perfect for cold season! It's easy to digest and made with homemade chicken stock.

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

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Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Cold Season Chicken Soup
Elise Bauer

Mom and dad are both sick this week with a "rotten cold" that is keeping them feeling pretty miserable - coughing, sneezing, grumpy, etc.

Mom made a delicious chicken soup today with just chicken broth and vegetables, no chicken meat. It was so good, I just had to get the instructions down before I forgot.

The most important thing of course is the chicken stock. If it all possible use chicken stock you've made from bones or backs (see chicken stock recipe.)

If you are looking for a more robust chicken soup, check out our Chicken Noodle Soup made with stock from a whole chicken.

Mom's Cold-Season Chicken Soup

Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 30 mins
Servings 3 to 4 servings

Ingredients

  • 4 cups of homemade chicken stock
  • Fat from the homemade chicken stock
  • 1 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
  • 2 carrots, sliced in 1/4-inch slices (about the same amount as onion)
  • 2 celery stalks, sliced in 1/4-inch slices (about the same amount as the onion)
  • 1 Tbsp fresh parsley leaves
  • 1 Tbsp of chopped greens from a green onion (green part of the green onion) or chives
  • 1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning (ground sage and thyme)
  • 1/8 teaspoon (a pinch) of crushed red pepper flakes (or a small pinch of cayenne)
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method

  1. Sauté onion, carrots, and celery:

    In a 4 qt saucepan, heat a tablespoon of chicken fat (that has risen to the surface and solidified from your homemade stock) on medium high heat. If you don't have enough chicken fat, you can add some olive oil. Sauté the vegetables in the fat until the carrots are almost done.

    cook a mirepoix of onions, carrots, and celery as the base for easy chicken soup
    Elise Bauer
    add seasonings to the vegetables for the base of easy chicken soup
    Elise Bauer
  2. Add seasonings:

    While you are sautéing the vegetables, add the seasoning - the poultry seasoning, the crushed red pepper flakes, a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper. Seasoning like this during the cooking of the vegetables brings out their flavor. According to my mother, crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne is very helpful for a cold, which is why it is part of this recipe.

  3. Add stock and simmer:

    Add the 4 cups of chicken stock. Bring to a low simmer. Cook until the carrots are just cooked through (about 5 to 10 minutes).

    add stock to make simple chicken soup
    Elise Bauer
  4. Add the fresh parsley and green onion greens:

    Check seasonings (you will likely need to add more salt) and adjust to taste.

    add parsley and onion greens to the chicken soup to help cure a cold
    Elise Bauer

    Serve with (at least) day old crusty French bread.

Note: I asked mom about why no chicken meat and she said that it muddies the flavor of this particular light soup. I think I would have to agree. This soup is absolutely delicious just the way it is. Just make sure you are starting with excellent stock.

Cold Season Chicken Soup
Elise Bauer