Monday, October 1, 2012

Easy Peasy (Lee Is Sneezy) Chicken Soup

   

Actually Lee is past the sneezy part of his cold.  I wanted to make him some soup, but life interfered so I made it last night in the hopes that it will finish off the cold that has been lingering since our trip to England.

This soup is fast and easy and has just salt and pepper for seasoning.  You don't want fancy when you have a cold!  If you keep chicken broth in the pantry and some frozen chicken breasts you can make this at a drop of the hat...or at the first sneeze!

Easy Peasy Chicken Soup 

(I'm leaving out the Lee part because you may wish to make this for someone other than my husband.)

Olive Oil
1/2 cup diced onions
1/3 cup brown rice
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
salt and pepper
2 cans 14.5 oz. chicken broth (about 4 cups)
1 cup chopped, cooked chicken breasts, approximately
1 or 2 stalks celery
10-15 mini carrots, or 2 whole carrots
1/2 cup frozen peas

Heat the OO over medium heat in a large sauce pan.  add the chopped onions and the rice.  Cook until the onions soften and add the garlic.

   

Season with the salt and pepper. Remember the broth is salty, so be careful. Add the broth and bring to a boil.

   

While you are waiting for the soup to boil,  get the frozen chicken strips from the freezer and take out a handful.  I like to put them on a plate and run them through the microwave for about 40 seconds.  This makes them easier to chop.  Chop them breasts into bite sizes and drop them into the broth.  Stir.  When it boils reduce it to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.  I used this time to clean the board and cut up some fruit.

   

Slice the celery and chop the carrots on the now clean cutting board.  Put them in the soup, stir and cook for 15 minutes more.  Add the frozen peas, stir and cook for 5 minutes.

   

The part that takes the longest in this soup is the rice.  Crunchy rice is not good. So before you serve the soup take a spoon and taste the rice.  As soon as it is the consistency you like, the soup is done.  If you want a super fast soup, leave out the rice and just cook until the carrots are soft enough to suit you, about 15 minutes.

 

2 comments:

  1. I could have used some of that for my sick self! Looks yummy.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is one of our favorite homemade soups as it's virtually foolproof and using the low-sodium chicken broth ensures I don't over do with the salt shaker.

    ReplyDelete