On Sundays, I am trying to do more cooking so that during the week I do not have to cook as much. This Sunday I made Chicken Leek Soup. A different recipe than the one I usually do. I actually cooked the chicken in the water! I have never done that. I got two whole chickens at BJ's so I thought I will cook both and double the recipe. Make extra chicken for my Chicken Pot Pie, extra broth for my Butternut Squash Soup, save the bones (by freezing them) to use a second time to make more broth another week. I even used leeks which were in season that I got at the farm stand! I was just feeling accomplished! Here is the link to this amazing recipe. Got all thumbs up in my house! The leeks give it such a great flavor and homemade bone broth is so good for you. I just started to make my own a few months ago and cannot go back to buying store bought broth anymore.
Ingredients
1 chicken (about 4 pounds)
4 small leeks
10 black peppercorns (I just ground some pepper in there)
1 Tablespoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
1 cup rice or ¾ pound noodles
Fresh dill, chervil, or parsley for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Put the chicken in a large soup pot and cover with 12 cups of cool water. Bring to a boil.
Meanwhile, cut off the dark green sections of the leek, rinse them thoroughly, and add them to the pot with the chicken (set the white and light green parts aside for the moment). Add the peppercorns and salt. After everything in the pot comes to a boil, reduce the heat to maintain a steady simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 40 minutes.
Remove chicken from the pot and let it sit until cool enough to handle.(This is important! It is very hot!) When you can handle the chicken, remove and discard the skin. Pull the meat from the bones, shredding it as you go. I use forks but you can also use the mixing attachment on your Kitchen Aid to shred the chicken. You should have about 4 cups (or a bit more) of cooked chicken, set it aside.
Return the bones to the pot and continue to simmer for about an hour.
Meanwhile, cut off and discard the root ends of the the white and light green parts of the leek in half lengthwise and then finely slice them. Rinse them, if needed, and set aside.
Strain the broth, rinse the pot, and return the strained broth to the pot.
Add the rice or noodles (I did egg noodles and a side portion of regular noodles for my son who has an egg allergy), shredded chicken meat, and reserved leek whites and bring the broth to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until the rice or noodles are tender.
Serve soup hot, garnished with herbs if you like.
Recipe by Bair Necessity at https://bairnecessity.com/chickennoodlesoup/