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This Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup is absolutely delicious and is a great way to help you or a loved one feel better when sick. This recipe is one that my mother made for me when I was growing up and sick, and sometimes she still brings it over when I am not feeling well (she really is the best!). This Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup is now a staple in my kitchen and is a must for cold and flu season.
ingredients:
- Bone-In, Skin-Off Split Chicken Breasts
- Water
- Celery
- Carrots
- Garlic Cloves
- Yellow Onion
- Bay Leaf
- Black Peppercorns
- Kosher Salt
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Baby Spinach
- Fusilli
step-by-step:
step one: build the broth
Place bone-in chicken breasts in a large pot. Pour 8 cups of water over the chicken breasts and make sure that the chicken is fully submerged in the water. Add 2 celery stalks, 1 carrot (halved), 1/2 yellow onion, garlic, peppercorns, and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce heat and lightly simmering for about 2 hours.
step two: remove the chicken
Once simmered, use tongs to gently remove the chicken and place it on a large cutting board. Allow the chicken to cool so that you can handle it with your hands.
step three: strain the broth
Meanwhile, set a strainer over a separate large bowl or pot. Gently pour the broth into the strainer and use a spatula to press down on the vegetables to remove every bit of broth. Discard the contents in the strainer and set the broth aside.
step four: shred the chicken
Use your hands to gently pull apart the chicken from the bone. It is very important to get all of the bones out of the chicken, which is a little tricky considering all of the tiny bones in the chicken breast. Double check your work carefully and discard all of the bones. Set the shredded chicken aside.
step five: prep the vegetables
Dice the remaining 1/2 onion, 2 stalks of celery, and 1 large carrot.
step six: sauté the vegetables
Heat the olive oil in the same stock pot set over medium-high heat. Add the diced carrots, onion, celery, salt, and pepper and cook until tender, about 8 minutes.
step seven: add the broth and chicken
Pour the broth back into the pot. Add the desired amount of the shredded chicken. Depending on the size of your chicken breasts, you may have too much. If this happens I usually reserve about a cup or so of the shredded chicken to toss onto salads for the week!
step eight: cook the pasta
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until just shy of al dente, according to package instructions.
step nine: add the spinach
Meanwhile, stir the spinach into the soup until it is wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper, if needed.
step ten: assemble and serve
Place the desired amount of cooked pasta in the bottom of a soup bowl. Ladle the soup over the noodles. Serve and enjoy!
recipe faqs:
If you have leftovers, store the broth and veggies in a separate container from the pasta to prevent the noodles from overcooking. You can store both in the fridge for up to five days.
If you plan on freezing leftovers, be sure to leave an inch or two of room to allow the soup to expand as it freezes.
Use your favorite brown rice pasta in place of the fusilli. Jovial Foods is one of my favorite brands of brown rice pasta!
Whether you’re feeling under the weather or just want to cook up a cozy batch of soup to warm you from the inside out, I hope you’ll give my Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup a try! Comment below and let me know what you think!
looking for more soup recipes? try these!
Pesto Meatball and Pastina Soup
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in, skin-off split chicken breasts
- 8 cups water
- 4 celery stalks, divided
- 2 large carrots, divided
- 1 large yellow onion, divided
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cups baby spinach
- 12 ounces fusilli pasta
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place bone-in chicken breasts in a large pot. Pour 8 cups of water over the chicken breasts and make sure that the chicken is fully submerged in the water. Add 2 celery stalks, 1 carrot (halved), 1/2 yellow onion, garlic, peppercorns, and salt. Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce heat and lightly simmering for about 2 hours.
- Once simmered, use tongs to gently remove the chicken and place it on a large cutting board. Allow the chicken to cool so that you can handle it with your hands.
- Meanwhile, set a strainer over a separate large bowl or pot. Gently pour the broth into the strainer and use a spatula to press down on the vegetables to remove every bit of broth. Discard the contents in the strainer and set the broth aside.
- Use your hands to gently pull apart the chicken from the bone. It is very important to get all of the bones out of the chicken, which is a little tricky considering all of the tiny bones in the chicken breast. Double check your work carefully and discard all of the bones. Set the shredded chicken aside.
- Dice the remaining 1/2 onion, 2 stalks of celery, and 1 large carrot.
- Heat the olive oil in the same stock pot set over medium-high heat. Add the diced carrots, onion, celery, salt, and pepper and cook until tender, about 8 minutes.
- Pour the broth back into the pot. Add the desired amount of the shredded chicken. Depending on the size of your chicken breasts, you may have too much. If this happens I usually reserve about a cup or so of the shredded chicken to toss onto salads for the week!
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until just shy of al dente, according to package instructions.
- Meanwhile, stir the spinach into the soup until it is wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper, if needed.
- Place the desired amount of cooked pasta in the bottom of a soup bowl. Ladle the soup over the noodles. Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can I use boneless chicken breast for this?
I prefer to use bone-in cuts just because it helps to prevent the meat from drying out and infuses the stock with so much more flavor. That said, if you can’t find bone-in chicken breasts, you can use a combination of boneless chicken breasts and bone-in chicken thighs, which are usually a bit easier to find!
made it tonight and it was excellent!
Can you use chicken thighs ?