Chicken Noodle Soup

Savory, homemade chicken noodle soup is the best way to warm up on a chilly night! You can’t go wrong with simple seasonings, fresh mirepoix veggies, shredded chicken and big egg noodles. It’s a cozy, flavorful combo that can’t be beat.

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Total Time1

Course: dinner, Lunch

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken noodle soup, chicken noodle soup recipe

Servings: people

Ingredients

2 pounds skin-on bone-in chicken thighs trimmed of excess skin or fat
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium white onion chopped
2 carrots peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces
2 celery ribs cut into ¼-inch pieces
8 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons chives chopped
5 ounces 3 cups wide egg noodles

Instructions

First, season the chicken thighs well with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven, add olive oil and heat over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the chicken thighs to the pot, skin-side down, and cook for about 5 minutes on each side or until browned.
Add diced onion, carrots and celery to the same pot. Mix vegetables together with the chicken and sauté 3-5 minutes.
Add broth and increase heat to high. Stir in chopped chives and bay leaf, then cover the pot and bring ingredients to a boil. Once the mixture boils, reduce the heat to low and simmer it for 15-20 minutes until the chicken cooks fully.
Discard the bay leaf and remove chicken from the pot using tongs. Place it on a cutting board. Then, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces using 2 forks. Discard the skin and bones or save them to make chicken broth at a later time.
Bring the soup back to a boil over medium-high heat and add the egg noodles. Cook, uncovered, until noodles are al dente or according to your taste. Note that the noodles will continue to cook for a few minutes while you warm the chicken.
Add shredded chicken back to the soup and cook over medium heat for 2 or 3 minutes.
Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste, add some chopped chives and serve warm.

Video

Notes

Make this homemade chicken noodle soup recipe even quickly by buying pre-shredded or rotisserie chicken at the grocery store. It also works with leftover chicken.

Overcooking chicken can make it tough and more difficult to shred. Once you add all the ingredients and the soup boils, lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Remove the chicken as soon as it is cooked through.

Be careful not to overcook your egg noodles. They won’t take long to soften and can become mushy when boiled for too long.

To store: Allow leftovers to cool completely and transfer them to an airtight food-storage container. Refrigerate for 3-4 days.

To freeze: I don't recommend freezing this soup as the noodles will not maintain good taste or texture once thawed. What you can do is make chicken soup without noodles, add to a freezer-safe container and freeze it for up to 6 months! Then, remove from the freezer, reheat in a pot on the stovetop and add noodles once boiling.

Recipe adapted from Once Upon a Chef site.

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