You know how sometimes the day just flies by you and all of a sudden it's suppertime and you don't have a thing planned and you don't want to go to the grocery store and the budget doesn't allow for take-out?
Yeah, those days.
I had one of those recently and this is what I made: A fast, flavourful chicken soup. It comes together quickly but is oh-so-much-more-tasty than stuff from a tin.
Here's the recipe:
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I took mine straight from the freezer)
- 1/2 cup finely diced onion
- 1/4 cup sliced celery
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (I actually used frozen ginger. I peel it, wrap it in plastic wrap and then put it in a freezer bag. It grates so finely that it's like snow so the flavour spreads readily through whatever you're seasoning, and tastes wonderful.)
- 1 clove of garlic, peeled
- pepper flakes to taste
- 1 - 900 ml/1 quart box of chicken stock
- 1/2 cup carrots, cut into matchsticks
- 1/4 cup frozen peas
- 1 cup of thin rice noodles
Put the chicken breasts, onion, celery, ginger, garlic, pepper flakes, and stock in a large saucepan. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the pot.
Simmer until the chicken is cooked through. This takes surprisingly little time. Mine cooked in about 15 minutes from the time the pot came to a boil.
When the chicken is cooked through, use a slotted spoon to lift the chicken breasts from the pot, onto a cutting board. Remove the garlic clove too.
Cut one of the chicken breasts up 1/2-inch cubes.
Set the other chicken breast aside for another dish. (I used mine for chicken salad the next day.)
Add the carrots to the pot and turn up the heat enough to return the stock to a low boil.
Continue cooking until the carrots begin to get tender, but aren't cooked through.
Return the chicken to the pot and add in the noodles and peas.
Cover the pot and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
Serve the soup immediately, while it's still piping hot.