Grandma Eleanor’s Chicken Noodle Soup, 2.0
My dad’s mom, my Grandma Eleanor, makes the best chicken noodle soup. It is the perfect thing to have when you are feeling under the weather. But, it’s not your run of the mill chicken noodle soup. First, she adds crushed, whole tomatoes. They add a different flavor, obviously, but it is a welcomed hit of vitamin C when you aren't feeling well. Also, she adds bay leaves. My grandmother loves bay leaves; she claims it is because she’s Polish, and that was a staple in all of her mother’s cooking, but whatever the reason, bay leaves add something hard to identify, but you know it is missing when it’s not there.
All in all, this soup is the best thing for a cold night or when you have a cold. I’ve modified it a little to amp up the flavor even more. I roast my chicken, use bone broth, and add a little white wine for additional flavor. But, at the core, this is my grandma’s signature chicken noodle soup, and I hope you love it as much as I do.
Also, excuse the stock thumbnail photo. I’m awful about taking pictures and don’t have one of this soup.
RECIPE
Difficulty: Easy
Time: 90 mins.
Servings: approx. 8
Ingredients
4 Tbsp avocado or olive oil, split in ½
1 stick of butter
Salt and pepper
2lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (28oz) can of whole tomatoes (decant into a bowl with its juices, then crush the tomatoes by hand)
4 large carrots, scrubbed and diced
4 stalks of celery, diced
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp of dried thyme
2 bay leaves
Approx. 1/4 cup white wine
8 cups of chicken stock or bone broth (2 cartons)
1 large bag of egg noodles
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and preheat a cast-iron skillet with 2 tbsp of oil over medium-high heat until the oil is rapidly shimmering.
Pat dry chicken breasts with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Place into the hot skillet, flipping when browned. Once the other side is browned, place the pan into the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the chicken’s internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F. Once fully cooked, take the pan out of the oven and set aside to cool. Shred or cut up chicken into pieces once cooled.
In a stockpot or Dutch oven, melt butter and the other 2 tbsp of oil together over medium heat. Once the butter stops foaming, add in the onion and cook until translucent.
Once the onion is translucent, add celery and carrots, then cook until they are soft and all vegetables start to get some color on them.
Add garlic and thyme, cooking till fragrant, then add wine to deglaze the pan. Scrape and stir to get all the brown bits off the bottom of the pan.
Add tomatoes and their liquid, stock, chicken, and bay leaves. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then leave to simmer for at least 1 hour.
While the soup is simmering, cook the noodles according to the package instructions, then drain and set aside.
When ready to serve, portion out the noodles into the bowl, then ladle the soup over top.
Enjoy!
COOK’S NOTES:
I cut up the chicken while the veggies were cooking to give you a gauge on timing.
Please don’t add the noodles into the soup directly to cook; they will absorb all of the soup's liquid.
I guessed with the white wine measurement; in reality, I eyeball enough to deglaze the pan.
