This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Aberdeen chapter.
Ingredients:
- 1kg chicken thighs, skin removed
- 1-2 onion(s), diced
- 3-4 carrots, cut into rounds
- Half cup of any pasta – I like penne or fusilli but noodles or even orzo work
- Half bottle dry white wine (optional)
- 1.5-2 litres chicken stock or equivalent stock cubes or pots
- 2-3 tablespoons flour
- 1 heaped tablespoon smoked paprika
- Garlic powder
- Tablespoon tomato paste
- Any fresh herb for garnish (optional)
Method:
- Sear the chicken thighs in batches with a little olive oil on medium heat until brown on both sides and a fond has developed on the bottom of the pot. Avoid overcrowding and I like to chop the veggies while this happens.
- Once the chicken is seared, remove onto a plate and saute the veggies in the same pot. You can turn the heat down if it looks like the fond might burn. Cook for a few mins until the veg softens.
- Add smoked paprika and tomato paste to toast for 30 seconds before stirring in enough flour to form a thick paste. Cook this roux for a few minutes to remove raw flour flavour.
- Deglaze with a splash of white wine and scrape the bottom of the pot to dissolve the accumulated fond. Slowly stir in the rest of the wine before switching to chicken stock. Be conservative with the amount of stock you add because you can add more later.
- Increase heat to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.
- Add black pepper, garlic powder, and the chicken. Simmer for approx 20 mins until you can push a fork into the carrots. Remove chicken onto a cutting board.
- Taste and adjust seasoning so that the broth is a bit saltier and not as thick as you want it to be in the end. This is because the pasta will leech some salt and water so have extra of both in the soup already. If you chose not to use the white wine I would recommend a squeeze of lemon or neutral vinegar to taste.
- Add the pasta and let cook in the broth until desired texture is reached. While the pasta cooks pull the chicken into bite size pieces with your hands. Add chicken back into soup and discard bones.
- Before serving, adjust seasonings and thickness, adding more salt or stock as needed.
- Optionally garnish with fresh herbs and enjoy :)
When I first met my boyfriend at the beginning of my first year, I had next to no cooking skills besides the basics of baked potatoes and pasta. He, on the other hand, had immense amounts of culinary knowledge and the fancy tools to go with it. After trying to teach me how to make all sorts of food, the one thing I was able to make using a recipe was chicken noodle soup. Before leaving to go to America for Christmas, he wrote down his method for making this soup and, despite my below average skills in cooking, I was able to make this soup. The responses were incredibly positive, even from the people in my family who don’t particularly like soup. It’s easy, relatively quick, and comfort food for any season.