The best CHICKEN SOUP recipe for winter



 Hello Friends, I'm gonna show you how to make the best chicken soup for winter. My version is packed with tender and juicy chicken, hearty and nutrient dense vegetables rather than pasta noodles and fresh herbs like thyme and tarragon that pair so beautifully with the chicken. This entire combination of ingredients is like a cozy hug for your taste buds and definitely a wellness boost for your body.


And I think we could all use that during these cold weather months. So let me show you how to make it. To get started, you'll need to peel and slice four carrots and three parsnips. And while I'm doing that, I'll tell you that I've actually had this recipe on my website for several years, almost from the very beginning when I was shooting videos in my parents' basement.


for those of you who remember those days. The recipe itself is still perfect and I haven't made any changes to it but the photos definitely needed an update in order to tantalize you into making the recipe. We always eat with our eyes first. And so with new photos and now a brand new video to walk you through the recipe step by step, I do hope that you guys will give it a try because it is a classic downshift ology soup.


I also love adding parsnips into soup recipes not only as a potato alternative, but also because they're a great fall and winter veggie that I think folks should just use more often. But if you can't find parsnips, you can of course use white potatoes or even turnips in this recipe. And when it comes to slicing them, I slice the skinny part of the parsnip into rounds and then slice the bigger part into half moons or even quarter moons depending on how wide that end is.


And then once that's done, you can add them to the prep bowl on top of the carrots. The next two ingredients are three ribs of celery and half of an onion. And these two aromatic ingredients are almost a given in any veggie forward soup recipe as they just add wonderful fresh flavor. And that sort of makes sense as anything that smells good usually tastes good as well.


I should also remind you that before you start making any recipe to always read through all of the directions. Not only will that ensure that your recipe turns out perfectly, but you'll also then notice when ingredients are added to the pot on the stove. For instance, in this chicken soup recipe, the carrots parsnips, celery and onion are all added to the pot at the same time.


So I can go ahead and add them all to the same prep bowl. And that saves me from getting four different bowls dirty, which is always a good thing. Next up is one leak. And I love how leaks have a mildly sweet flavor but they are notoriously dirty on the inside between all of their layers. So after you've sliced off the lighter portion from the top slice it in half lengthwise and then across, so all of those little pieces get separated.


And then add the leak to a colander and give it a good rinse under the faucet to remove any dirt and debris. And once that's done, just set it over by the stove.  Lastly, you'll need four garlic cloves. So go ahead and give those a good smash to remove their outer skins and then take those over to the stove as well.


All right, let's make this chicken soup. Add two tablespoons of olive oil to a large pot on medium high heat and mince the garlic clove straight into the pot. Then add the leak along with the carrots, parsnips, celery and onion and give that a stir for about four to five minutes just until the veggie soften a bit.


And this is where having an extra large pot is key so that it's easier to stir everything without creating a mess. Add one teaspoon of kosher salt and half a teaspoon of black pepper and stir that to mix it all together. Then add two boneless skinless chicken breasts along with two sprigs of fresh thyme, two sprigs of fresh tarragon and one bay leaf, which I didn't show here on video but I did remember to add it about two seconds after I turned off the camera.


For the liquid in this soup, you'll need five cups of low sodium chicken broth, but in full disclosure, what I often do is add four cups of chicken broth and one cup of water if I don't have another carton of chicken broth or veggie broth already opened in my fridge. That way I don't have a three cups of leftover chicken broth just hanging around.


Bring that to a boil then reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Simmer the soup for about 15 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked. And what you've just done is make poached chicken. I have a separate recipe on my website for poached chicken on its own with some herbs and aromatics if you'd like that healthy recipe in the future.


But for today's soup recipe, what you'll need to do is remove the chicken to a cutting board and then shred the chicken with two forks. Now many of you probably know my shredded chicken hack and that's that you can shred cooked chicken breasts in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment in about 10 seconds flat.


So you can use that method or use two forks. It's up to you. Once the chicken is shredded, add it back to the pot and simmer it for an additional minute or two just to make sure it's well combined and stirred throughout. And that my friends, is how you make one of my all time favorite chicken soup recipes.


So let's serve it up.  Remove the sprigs of thyme and tarragon, though in many cases you may just have a little sticks left and that's fine. As it means the fresh herbs are scattered throughout the soup. And then pluck out the bay leaf. Add a quarter cup of freshly chopped parsley for a pop of green and give that a stir.


I should also mention that if you don't have tarragon you can swap it for another tender herb. But I really do think the tarragon is what makes the flavor profile of this chicken soup recipe special and unique. If you guys have made my chicken salad recipe you know that tarragon pairs beautifully with chicken and I think it's also a perfect compliment to the naturally sweeter flavors of the parsnip and leek.


Scoop a few big ladles of this soup into a bowl, and if you'd like you can always sprinkle a little bit more parsley and freshly ground black pepper on top. As I mentioned at the beginning this chicken soup recipe is a cold weather favorite because it's nourishing and loaded with good for you ingredients.


And those help to keep you in tip top shape when cold and flu season strikes but also it just tastes pretty darn good. So let me dig into my portion. All right, let's give this a taste test. I can smell the tarragon right now. It smells so good. Hmm, so good. It's really just so light and fresh. It really doesn't need much of anything because the herbs really take center stage on this version of chicken soup.


But if you would like to add a little bit more brightness you could do some freshly squeezed lemon on it, similar to how I do on my lentil soup and my cabbage soup as well. If you'd like to add even more vegetables into this soup you could do some spiralized zucchini noodles, zoodles which would also be very similar to the golden chicken zoodles soup in my cookbook as well.


That one has a little bit of a turmeric gingers spin. This one is, I would say, just light and fresh and more herbaceous. In terms of storage as you guys probably can imagine this is a great meal prep option. It will last about four to five days in the fridge, and there's about four servings. So if you're one person like me, you are lucky because that means you can enjoy the soup all week long.


If you're family this will probably get eaten up in one evening. But you can also freeze it for up to three months in the freezer. I hope you guys enjoy today's chicken soup post and if you did, make sure to give it a thumbs up. Share it with your family and friends who love really warm and nourishing soup recipes during the winter.


And I will see you again in the next post.