My favorite thing to eat when I’m feeling under-the-weather is a hot bowl of soup. But when I’m already feeling bad, the last thing I want to do is cook! That results in me pouring a not-so-tasty can of noodles in a microwavable bowl and settling for that over-processed flavor. That’s why, at the beginning of each winter season, I’ve started making a big batch of soup to freeze in individual servings. If it’s already made, it’s as easy as warming it up and having a tasty bowl of soup that will actually have me feeling better. This soup is filled with seasoned chicken that has a nice kick to it that will help clear your sinuses. You can adjust the seasonings to your own liking if you think it might be too hot. If you want to speed things up, you can even buy a seasoned pre-cooked rotisserie chicken to shred up for your soup! I also add lemon and dill so that my soup has an extra burst of flavor. You can skip that if it doesn’t sound like something you’d like, but I think it adds such a unique and fresh taste!
Ingredients:
CHICKEN:
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
salt & pepper to taste
SOUP:
4 cups (32 oz) chicken stock/broth (if you are doing store-bought, I recommend low sodium)
4 cups (32 oz) water
1 1/2 cups diced carrots
1 1/2 cups diced celery
2 cups (finely) diced onion
8 cloves minced garlic
1 bay leaf
2 cups noodles (of your choice)
1/4 cup fresh chopped dill
Juice from one lemon
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375. Toss Chicken tenders in the olive oil and spices before lining them in a single layer in a baking dish. Cook the chicken for 25 minutes, flipping them half way through. Once cooked, shred and set aside,
To make the soup, heat olive oil in a soup pan over medium heat. Add the carrots, onions, and celery, and sautee around 8 minutes. Then add garlic and cook a few minutes before adding the bay leaf, water, and chicken stock.
Increase the heat to high, bringing the soup to a boil before reducing the heat again to medium-low and stirring in the noodles. Let the soup and noodles simmer for 10-15 minutes until the noodles are cooked al dente. Stir in the chicken (and optional dill and lemon juice). Remove the bay leaf from the soup, and give it a taste to adjust the seasonings (I like to add extra cayenne for a sinus-clearing kick). Serve warm or freeze.
