Happy National Homemade Soup Day! (Jan 4) Today we are enjoying Chicken and Noodles, passed down to my children from their Grandma Sue.

This is comfort in a bowl. If ever my kids are feeling under the weather, they request this soup. Dried noodles simply will not do. They must be kneaded, rolled thick for my son, thin for my daughter, and cooked in homemade broth.

This is a wonderful pass-along-to-the-next-generation recipe. If you want a really fun time, teach noodle making to a kid. Borrow a friend’s kid if you have to. The first little people I made this soup with were my sisters. So much fun! (Just make peace with the mess.) There is nothing like making funny-shaped noodles on flour covered counters… over floured floors… with floured little smiling tiny people standing on floured chairs to reach the counter. I highly recommend it!

I have been making this for so many years now that some of my own alternations have slipped into the process, but I will try to remember how Grandma Sue makes hers, in order to share accurately.

Chicken and Broth

Grandma Susan, if I remember correctly, makes her broth with one whole chicken and one whole onion. That’s it. Clean and simple. Her soup is always delicious. Just to bump up the nutrition and add a bit more flavor, I like to add carrots, celery, garlic, and bay leaves. Bay leaves work to break down the veggies so your body gets even more nutrients from them. More about broth and stock making here.

Cover with water. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer. Simmer until chicken is fully cooked. Add more water if needed. Depending upon the size of your chicken, this will take a good 45 min. to 1 hour, or so.

Remove chicken from the pot. I like to allow broth to continue simmering, coaxing out more flavor and nutrition from the veggies.

Being careful not to burn your fingers, remove chicken from bones. Two forks will help make quick work of this job. Or, the more sensible thing to do would be to just allow chicken to cool first. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and set aside. If chicken has cooled, it is best to refrigerate it until you need it.

Skim fat from the top of your broth. Strain the broth. Discard cooked veggies. You should have a good 6-8 cups broth. Add water, if needed. Keep the broth warm.

Grandma’s Noodle Method

You can make your dough while your chicken simmers.

Sift flour into a bowl and set aside.

Crack 3 eggs into a mixing bowl and whisk them. If you want more noodles, you can start with more eggs. Of course, then you will also need more flour.

Grandma Sue likes to add salt and pepper directly into the egg for added flavor.

Add sifted flour a little at a time, fully combining with the eggs.

After a bit, a whisk or a spoon will not do. You will have to flour your hands and get them in there.

 

Add flour until you have a nice firm dough. Knead the dough just long enough for it to come together nicely and form a ball.

 

Cover and rest dough for about 1/2 hour.

Cut off a piece of dough. If you would like, refrigerate the remaining dough. Sometimes it is easier to manipulate when slightly chilled.

On a floured surface, flatten your dough and roll it out very thin. Be sure to keep everything floured so that dough does not stick to your surface, hands or rolling pin.

Using a knife or pizza cutter (I prefer a pizza cutter), cut noodles into whatever length and width you like. We like nice wide noodles.

With the broth heated to almost a boil, drop in noodles one or two at a time so they do not stick together. They will cook quickly.

Repeat this process with the remaining dough until it is all gone. You are now a noodle-making machine! The last noodles will be cooked in only a couple of minutes. And the flour that stuck to the noodles should be thickening the broth slightly.

You can use a spoon yo gently push noodles sitting on top into the water, so that you can add more without them sticking together.

Add in chopped chicken. Salt and pepper, to taste.

Now all you need is a warm blanket, a comfy chair, and a good book.

Mmmmmmm

Grandma Sue’s Homemade Chicken and Noodles

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken
• 1 whole onion
• 1-2 carrots
• 1 stalk celery
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1-2 bay leaves
• 3 eggs
• 2 c ap flour
• salt and pepper, to taste
• optional: parsley garnish

Method

Into a stock pot, add chicken and onion, with a little salt. (I also add carrots, celery, garlic, and bay leaves.) Cover with water. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer. Simmer until chicken is fully cooked. Add water if needed. Depending upon the size of your chicken, this will take a good 45 min. to 1 hour, or so. Remove chicken from the pot. I like to allow broth to continue simmering, coaxing out more flavor and nutrition from the veggies.

Being careful not to burn your fingers, remove chicken from bones. Two forks will help make quick work of this job. Or, the more sensible thing to do would be to just allow chicken to cool first. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and set aside. If chicken has cooled, it is best to refrigerate it until you need it.

Skim fat from the top of your broth. Strain the broth. Discard cooked veggies. You should have a good 6-8 cups broth. Add water, if needed. Keep the broth warm.

To make noodles:

You can make your dough while your chicken simmers.

Sift flour into a bowl and set aside. Crack 3 eggs into a mixing bowl and whisk them. Grandma Sue likes to add salt and pepper directly into the egg for added flavor. Add sifted flour a little at a time, fully combining with the eggs. You may not need all 2 cups. After a bit, a whisk or a spoon will not do. You will have to flour your hands and get them in there. Add flour until you have a nice firm dough. Knead the dough just long enough for it to come together nicely and form a ball. Cover and rest dough for about 1/2 hour.

Cut off a piece of dough. If you would like, refrigerate the remaining dough. Sometimes it is easier to manipulate when slightly chilled. On a floured surface, flatten your dough and roll it out very thin. Be sure to keep everything floured so that dough does not stick to your surface, hands or rolling pin. Using a knife or pizza cutter (I prefer a pizza cutter), cut noodles into whatever length and width you like. We like nice wide noodles.

With the broth heated to almost a boil, drop in noodles one or two at a time so they do not stick together. They will cook quickly. Repeat this process with the remaining dough until it is all gone. You are now a noodle-making machine! The last noodles will be cooked in only a couple of minutes. And the flour that stuck to the noodles should be thickening the broth slightly. Add in chopped chicken. Salt and pepper, to taste.

Sit in a comfy chair, wrapped in a blanket, with a good book, and enjoy your soup.

Leftovers: Grandma’s family loved leftover soup the next day after the refrigerated noodles had absorbed all the broth and it is really no longer “soup”… it is chicken and flavorful dumplings. If you want it to remain soupy the next day, you can strain off the broth and just store it in a separate container. Then pour it back in when you want more soup.

Enjoy!

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