Chicken Soup With vegetables - The Jewish penicillin
One of the oldest, and the tastiest, home remedies is chicken soup. The Jewish refer to chicken soup as Jewish penicillin.
This chicken soup recipe is the “Ashkenazi” version based on a homemade chicken stock with added vegetables.
Chicken stock - Chicken back
When making stock, we want to use parts of the chicken that have lots of bones. The bones and the bone marrow give the stock its taste, and this is why we want to use parts that have lots of bones.
The two leading candidates are the chicken neck and chicken back. These parts have lots of bones and are ideal for chicken stock.
If you cant, get chicken back or chicken neck, you can use parts like wings, drumsticks, or chicken thighs.
When making stock, we want to use parts of the chicken that have lots of bones. The bones and the bone marrow give the stock its taste, and this is why we want to use parts that have lots of bones.
The two leading candidates are the chicken neck and chicken back. These parts have lots of bones and are ideal for chicken stock.
If you can’t get chicken back or chicken neck, you can use parts like chicken wings, drumsticks, or thighs.
Chicken meat
The classic chicken soup is usually served without the meat. So what should we do if we want some meat in our soup?
Chicken backs and chicken necks are great for making stock, but they are very lean on the meat side because eating their meat involves picking it off the bones.
So if you want to eat some chicken meat without picking it off the bones, here are some options:
- Use chicken parts like wings, drumsticks, or chicken thighs to make the stock. That will give you a stock that is less rich but with meat.
- After making the stock, strain the stock, and get rid of all the chicken parts used to make the stock. Next, add some wings, drumsticks, or thighs to the stock and cook for additional 30 minutes before adding the vegetables.
- Add some wings, drumsticks, or thighs while making the stock and serve only these parts.
The main thing is the soup, and we are more than satisfied with picking the meat of the chicken back.
Making the chicken stock
Making chicken stock is very simple. Place the chicken parts in a large pot that is big enough to hold the soup. Add cold water until the pot is almost full, and bring the water to boil.
The chicken pieces’ cooking in the water extracts the taste out of the bones and meat into the stock.
After the stock has reached boiling, we reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cooking the stock on a high boil will make the stock cloudy and not clear.
Skimming the chicken stock
Skimming is the process in which we remove the foam that is created on the stock.
As the stock reaches a boiling point, a white-gray foam starts to create on the stock surface. As the stock continues to cook and the chicken fat start to melt a yellow layer of fat is also created on top of the stock. To get a clear stock we must get rid of the foam and the fat.
The look of the foam and the fat is not that appealing or appetizing but this is a part of making the dish.
The process of skimming is very simple. all you have to do is take a large tablespoon and start to remove the foam and fat into a bowl and discard it. Pay attention that the bowl might get warm.
After finishing skimming the stock. bring the heat up and let the stock boil again for two to three minutes. This will create new foam and fat. lower the heat and skim the foam and fat.
Repeat this process a few times until no foam is created and the stock is clear of fat.
Cleaning the stock
To get an extra clear stock I use a dense sieve to strain all the small pieces of meat that falls off the chicken parts into the stock.
Adding the vegetables to the stock
After we have finished making the stock and it is all nice and clear, we add the vegetables to the stock. It is important not to overcook the vegetables.
Different vegetables have different cooking times. Hard vegetables need longer cooking time than soft vegetables.
If you are a perfectionist, add the hard vegetable first and cook in the stock for a few minutes before adding the soft vegetables.
Personally, I think it’s a bit of overkill, and when I make this soup, I add all the vegetables together and get great results. But I wanted you to get all the information.
Seasoning the chicken soup
After adding the vegetables to the soup, we season it with kosher salt and some fine grounded black pepper.
Variations and addition to the chicken soup
This recipe is a great base for variation and adjustments that you can do to give it your personal touches. Feel free to experiment. Here are some recommendations.
Turkey neck
Turkey neck adds great meaty richness to the soup. It is very recommended. Add the turkey neck to the chicken parts while making the stock.
VEGETABLES
You can replace or add some other vegetables to the soup. You can add potatoes cubes, peas (add toward the end of the cooking), cauliflowers, etc.
EGG NOODLES
Eggs noodles are one of the most classic additions to chicken soup. Cook the noodles according to the manufacturer’s instructions and keep them in the fridge. Add the noodles before serving.
If you want to know how to keep your noodles fresh for a few days, watch the chef tip on our youtube Chanel in the movie “how to make bolognese pasta just like in Italy” I must apologize. The video is not in English, but it has English subtitles.
Shkedei marak - Soup Almonds - mandlakh
The perfect companion for chicken soup definitely and without any doubt is – Shkedei marak.
Shkedei marak in Hebrew means soup almonds. They are also known as “mandlakh” in Yiddish or as “soup mandels” in the United States.
Shkedi marak is an Israeli food product consisting of crisp mini croutons. Used as a soup accompaniment. Shkedei marak are small yellow squares made from flour and palm oil.
They are so perfect in chicken soup or many other soups that you will find that you eat the soup as an excuse for the shkedei marak.
You can order Shkedei marak on Amazon or find them in stores that are around Israeli communities.
Osem makes the best Shkedei marak. Buy them.
Chicken soup with vegetables
Chicken soup with vegetables
Ingredients
- 1½ Kg Chicken back or chicken neck
- 4 -5 Zucchini
- 4 - 5 Carrots
- 3 Onions
- 1 Piece of pumpkin around 15cm on 20cm
- 1 large parsley root
- 1 large celery root
- Salt and pepper for taste
Instructions
Making the stock:
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Place the chicken into a large pot. Cover with water almost to the top of the pot, and bring to a boil.
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While the water is heating preper the vegetables.
Preparing the vegetables:
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Peel the carrot and cut into one-centimeter thick circles.
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Cut the zucchini into one-centimeter thick circles.
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Peel the brown skin of the onions. cut the top off and cut the root part off. cut into four.
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Peel the parsley root and slice into one centimeter thick circles. If the root gets thick toward the top you can cut each circle into two or four.
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Separate the celery root from the green stalks. if the stalks look nice we can add them to the soup. Remember to wash the stalks well and remove all the sand from them.
Cut the celery root into one-centimeter on one-centimeter cubes.
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Remove the hard skin from the pumpkin. Cut into two-centimeter on two-centimeter cubes.
Skimming the soup:
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When the stock reaches boiling point, Let it boil for four to five minutes.
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At that time a grey-white foam and a layer of fat will start to create.
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Reduce the heat and skim the foam and fat with a tablespoon.
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Use a dense sive to remove small pices of meat from the stock.
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After we got rid of all the foam and fat we turn the heat up and bring the soup to a boil for three to four minutes.
Foam and fat will create again. Reduce the heat and skim the foam and fat from the stock.
Repeat the process until no foam or fat are created. This will take around half an hour,
Adding the vegetables to the stock:
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When the stock is clear we add the vegetables to it.
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Turn the heat up and bring to a boil. reduce the heat to a gentle simmer.
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Season the soup with salt. Add a small amount each time. Be careful not to over-salt the soup.
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Season the soup with fine grounded black pepper.
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Cook the vegetables for around 45 minutes until the hard vegetables become soft, but still has some bite to them.
