Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (2024)

Chicken soup is good for the soul, it’s a comforting, hearty meal to serve when the weather gets cooler. Our chicken soup recipe is streamlined, delivering maximum flavor with minimum time and effort. It simmers for just over an hour and will fill your kitchen with the most delicious aromas. It’s flavored simply with onion, celery, carrots, and garlic, which makes it endlessly adaptable.

The soup starts with a whole chicken. You’re essentially making stock and soup at the same time, and the bones and skin from the whole chicken add depth of flavor to the soup as it simmers. Not only is this technique a huge time saver, it also creates a rich chicken stock.Cutting the whole chicken into pieces helps to keep the stock concentrated: Doing this means the pieces fit more snugly into the pot without needing to add more water to cover, which would dilute the flavor. This rich, fragrant, golden soup is what you’ll want to eat all winter long.

Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (1)

27 of Our Best Chicken Soup Recipes to Warm Up to This Season

The Best Chicken for Chicken Soup:

We prefer using a whole chicken in this soup. Chicken bones contain a lot of collagen, and the skin adds fat and flavor to the stock. If you opt for using chicken breasts or thighs instead, make sure you use bone-in, skin-on pieces.

4 Ways to Customize Chicken Soup

  • Stir in cooked egg noodles, orzo, or white rice to make this soup even heartier.
  • Add even more protein—a hard-boiled egg or sliced kielbasa sausage will ensure this soup will keep you full for a long time.
  • Go heavy on the vegetables—hearty greens, like Swiss chard and spinach, or frozen vegetables like green beans and corn will add color and fiber to your soup.
  • Finish fresh—herbs like chopped dill or parsley are great for stirring into the soup at the last minute.

Directions

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  1. Bring chicken and water to a boil:

    Bring chicken, water, and 1 tablespoon salt to a boil in a large stockpot.

    Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (3)

  2. Add onions, celery, and garlic and simmer:

    Skim foam. Add onions, celery, and garlic. Reduce heat. Simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.

    Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (4)

    Skimming the soup: We recommend periodically skimming the surface of the soup. Coagulated proteins and other impurities will inevitably rise to the surface as the chicken cooks. Use a large spoon to separate these bits from the stock so you end up with a clear, appetizing soup.

  3. Remove breast, add carrots, and cook:

    Remove chicken breast, and set aside. Add carrots. Simmer, partially covered, for 40 minutes.

    Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (5)

  4. Remove rest of chicken and cut meat into pieces:

    Remove remaining chicken; discard back and wings. Let cool slightly. Remove meat from bones, and cut into bite-size pieces.

    Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (6)

  5. Add chicken to soup and season with salt:

    Stir in desired amount of chicken; reserve the rest for another use. Skim fat. Season with salt.

    Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (7)

How to Store the Soup:

Store soup in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to three days.

The soup can also be stored in the freezer for up to six months. Make an extra batch to have on hand in the freezer for when you need it.

    27 of Our Best Chicken Soup Recipes to Warm Up to This Season

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Should you use chicken stock or chicken broth?

    As a general rule, chicken stock is made using bones, while chicken broth is usually made without. Broth relies on meat and vegetables for flavor.

    This recipe uses a whole chicken to make stock, which turns into a flavorful soup.

    How do I freeze leftovers?

    Before freezing, let the soup cool completely at room temperature. Transfer to airtight containers, leaving about 1/2-inch of space at the top (the liquid will expand slightly in the freezer).

    Store for up to six months, then thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating and serving.

    How long will it keep fresh in the refrigerator?

    Chicken soup will last up to three days in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

    More Chicken Soup Recipes to Try:

    • Test Kitchen's Favorite Chicken Soup Made with a Whole Chicken
    • Peruvian Chicken Soup with Rice and Potatoes
    • Restorative Chicken Soup with Ginger
    • Italian Chicken Soup with Pasta and Tomatoes
    • Classic Chicken Vegetable Soup
    • Six-Ingredient Chicken Noodle Soup
    Basic Chicken Soup Recipe (2024)

    FAQs

    What is the secret ingredient in soup? ›

    It may sound a bit strange and unusual for some, but vinegar is a common ingredient in some soup recipes, and there is a good reason for it. If you think about it, vinegar is really a flavor-enhancer (umami). That's why it is so often used in cooking, sauces, and salad dressings. The same is true with soups.

    What is chicken soup base? ›

    Chicken base is highly concentrated, and is generally created by blending ingredients that provide the desired flavor notes, such as roasted chicken meat, vegetables including onions, celery and carrots, and various seasonings, spices and herbs. Chicken base is thicker than chicken stock or chicken broth.

    What does chicken soup contain? ›

    Chicken soup is a soup made from chicken, simmered in water, usually with various other ingredients. The classic chicken soup consists of a clear chicken broth, often with pieces of chicken or vegetables; common additions are pasta, noodles, dumplings, or carrots, and grains such as rice and barley.

    Why add vinegar to chicken soup? ›

    Whether it's white wine or vinegar, a touch of acid added to the simmering pot will create a richer finished product. That's because acid helps break down the cartilage and other connective tissues in the bones of the chicken, which helps speed up the formation of gelatin in the stock.

    What is the most important ingredient in soup? ›

    For clear, brothy soups, stock is your most important ingredient. If you want to make a good soup, you need to use an excellently flavored stock — otherwise, the entire pot could be tasteless.

    What not to do when making soup? ›

    The 7 Biggest Mistakes You Make Cooking Soup
    1. Boiling instead of simmering. You want a small bubble or two to rise to the surface of the liquid every few seconds. ...
    2. Not using enough salt. ...
    3. Ignoring water. ...
    4. Overcooking the vegetables. ...
    5. Adding tomatoes at the beginning. ...
    6. Neglecting to garnish. ...
    7. Not trying a pressure cooker.
    Nov 19, 2014

    How to add extra flavor to chicken soup? ›

    Adding a splash of acid can brighten up the flavors in your soup. Consider squeezing some fresh lemon juice or adding a splash of vinegar, such as apple cider or white wine vinegar. The acidity will help balance out the richness of the broth and add a tangy note to the overall taste.

    What gives soup more flavor? ›

    "Ground paprika, turmeric, nutmeg, ground ginger, and other powdered spices add a touch of color and spiciness to broths," she says. As a general rule, use fresh herbs at or near the end of cooking and dried herbs and spices early on. This helps you get the flavors you're looking for in the right balance.

    Should you make chicken soup with stock or broth? ›

    We like using stock for soups where the liquid is the star, like chicken and dumplings, lemony turkey rice soup and French lentil and carrot soup. Since broth is thinner, it's better suited for dishes where you want other flavors to shine, like tomato soup, chili and slow cooker sweet potato soup.

    What to add to chicken broth for flavor? ›

    Woody herbs like rosemary, thyme, oregano, sage, tarragon, and marjoram release tons of flavor as they slowly simmer in stock. Give them a rinse and toss in a big handful of sprigs per quart of store-bought stock.

    Are bouillon cubes the same as broth? ›

    The terms bouillon and broth are often used interchangeably. Both refer to the translucent, flavorful liquid that is made by simmering beef, chicken, vegetables, and other ingredients. Colloquially, bouillon is often meant to describe the resulting broth from cubed and powdered forms of bouillon.

    How to thicken chicken soup? ›

    6 ways to thicken soup:
    1. Blend all or part of it. If you've made a broth with chunks of vegetable in it, such as minestrone soup, then pour the soup through a sieve. ...
    2. Add cream or yogurt. ...
    3. Add flour or cornflour. ...
    4. Use a butter and flour paste. ...
    5. Blend in bread. ...
    6. Add lentils or rice. ...
    7. 5 of the best soup recipes to try next:

    Do you cook the chicken before putting it in soup? ›

    Yes, it is important to cook chicken before adding it to soup. Cooking the chicken beforehand ensures that it reaches a safe internal temperature, eliminates any harmful bacteria, and enhances the overall flavor of the soup.

    What are good seasonings to put in soup? ›

    To season it, we recommend starting with our Vegetable Soup Mix. It contains celery salt, parsley flakes, garlic powder, sea salt, summer savory, marjoram, thyme, black pepper, turmeric and sage, which are all excellent with root vegetables, so you can incorporate things like carrots or potatoes into the soup.

    What gives vegetable soup that depth of flavor? ›

    The first is to caramelize the vegetables, either in your soup pot or in the oven, to sweeten them and condense their juices. Next, add plenty of aromatics to the pot — herbs, spices, garlic, onions and the like — and let everything simmer for a long time to blend the flavors.

    What are the 4 components of soup? ›

    At its most basic, soup is four components: a base, a thickener, a liquid, and a main ingredient. The liquid and main ingredient can be thought of as the essence: add 3 parts liquid to 2 parts main ingredient, and it's soup.

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