Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Homemade chicken noodle soup is healthy and nutritious classic soup loaded with chicken and vegetables. This chicken noodle is made completely from scratch using homemade chicken stock. There is nothing that can make you feel better than a big bowl of this delicious, aromatic soup. 

 

HOMEMADE CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

There is nothing that can possibly make us feel better than a bowl of freshly made chicken noodle soup. At the first sign of a cold, all I want is a bowl of soup and my blanket. 

It’s not just the feeling of comfort that this soup brings, it’s actually loaded with vitamins and nutrient that help your body fight the virus. It all starts with homemade chicken stock, which is made with bone-in chicken and vegetables. Using chicken legs and thighs with bones to make the stock is the best way to get extra flavor and extra nutrients into the soup. 

The stock and the soup is made with vegetables plus there is always an option to add more. You can add spinach and/or kale to boost vitamin C intake and help boost your immune system. Other vegetables like zucchini, bell peppers, or green beans can provide additional vitamins and taste as well. 

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HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Homemade Chicken Stock – is the best possible base for most soups, especially chicken noodle soup. You can easily prepare it ahead of time and keep some in the freezer for those days when you want to make soup quickly. Besides making the stock, chicken noodle soup only takes 30-40 minutes. 

Choose any cut of chicken legs or even a whole chicken. Preheat a large pot over medium heat and sear chicken with a little canola oil until it’s golden brown. Add the vegetables, herbs, peppercorns, salt, and water to the pot. Bring it to boil and reduce heat to low. Cover the pot with a lid and cook slowly for 4-6 hours. 

Strain the stock through a fine strainer when it’s ready and make sure to save chicken meat for the soup. Discard leftover vegetables, herbs, chicken bones, and skin. (Stock and chicken meat can be frozen separately to be used later.)

Making Chicken Noodle Soup

Many soups, including this one, start with the same base of onions, celery, and carrots. This base is called soffritto (or mirepoix in some regions) and it consists of finely diced onions, celery, and carrots that are first sweated until softened and then remaining ingredients are added. 

Preheat a large pot over medium-low heat and oil and diced onions, celery, and carrots. Cook vegetables for about 10 minutes, until softened and raise the heat to medium. Add garlic and cook until garlic is fragrant. Shred or dice chicken meat saved from cooking the stock and add it to the pot. 

Pour in stock and season with salt and pepper. Make sure to always taste as you cook to see if the soup has enough salt. Cook the soup over medium heat for about 15 minutes and add noodles and fresh herbs. Stir and let the soup cook just until noodles are tender. 

As a finishing touch, squeeze in juice from 1 lemon, stir, and serve. 

NOTE: if planning on freezing the soup, do not add noodles.

WHAT MAKES THIS CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP THE BEST?

Homemade stock – homemade is always the best because you know exactly what goes into the dish, it can be adjusted to your personal taste, and it’s actually cheaper. Homemade stock will truly make your soups taste better and again, it’s easy to keep some in the freezer to use when needed. 

Fresh herbs – using fresh herbs over dried ones will give your soup strong, fresh taste and aroma. When possible, I always recommend using fresh herbs. (If there are leftover herbs, mince and freeze it in freezer bags. You can also keep the bunch of leftover parsley, cilantro, dill weed, and green onion in a cup of water on the counter and use through the week. Just make sure to change the water.) 

Lemon – a squeeze of fresh lemon juice is a game changer in chicken noodle soup. It enhances all the flavors in the soup and adds a fresh, citrusy touch.

HOW TO STORE CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Chicken noodle soup should be stored in an air-tight container, in the refrigerator. Properly stored, refrigerated soup will last 3-4 days. 

Some tips to remember :

Noodles – add noodles to the soup right at the end of cooking so they stay tender. If you’re not eating all the soup at one time, the noodles will soak up the broth and become softer. Most people don’t mind softer noodles but if you do, you can cook noodles in chicken stock separately and add them directly to the bowl. 

Planning on freezing the soup – if you plan to freeze all of the soup or a portion of the soup, do not add the noodles. Separate a portion of the soup or freeze all of it without noodles. Cook noodles in soup when reheating.  

CAN I FREEZE HOMEMADE CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP?

Absolutely!

You can freeze all of the soup or a portion of it, just make sure to freeze it without noodles. 

It’s best to get the soup cooled as quickly as possible before freezing it. Place the pot with stock into a larger container filled with ice and let it cool, stirring occasionally. Once it’s cooled to room temperature, portion it into freezer zip-lock bags or plastic containers with air-tight lids. Get the air out and seal. Label and date each bag and container and place it in the freezer. (If using freezer bags, lay them down on a cutting board to freeze evenly.)

Thaw soup overnight in the refrigerator. 

To reheat soup, pour it into a pot and heat it through over medium heat. Add noodles and cook until noodles are tender.

SOME MORE RECIPES TO TRY

Split Pea Soup

Lentil Soup

Vegetables Soup

Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup

Sicilian Chicken Soup

Chicken and Vegetable Soup

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Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles on October 30, 2011. Updated on August 21, 2019.