LIQUID LOVE

Frontiersman

MAT-SU — If a cold or flu hasn’t hit your home yet, there’s a good chance, as winter wears on, that one or both could come your way.

Chicken soup probably won’t cure you, but it’s certainly one of those standbys we find comforting while we’re under the comforter.

Sometimes called Jewish penicillin, some researchers believe there is truth to grandma’s insistence that a bowl of chicken soup can help cure what ails you. And you don’t have to be Jewish to get the benefits from a warm cup of goodness.

Science says it’s the vapors and aroma from the soup that make your nose run and soothes a sore throat. That, researchers say, helps relieve symptoms for a short time. Adding a little cayenne, curry powder or your favorite hot sauce to the soup will advance that cause.

Scientists have noted there is an abundance of protein and vitamins in chicken soup, but they also say it has amino acids that help the healing process.

Hold your horses, say the ancient Orientals.

Only eat chicken soup before you are ill or after you have recovered. Otherwise, they say, all you’re doing is feeding the disease and prolonging it as it nurtures itself on grandma’s recipe.

In some cases, chicken soup may not be good for you in another way. If you have a sickness that causes an upset stomach, chicken soup, especially if it has a lot of fat in it, may not be the best thing. A good cook will skim the fat scum off the top of the soup as the chicken simmers. That’s the best way to lower the fat content and make it more of a broth.

In addition to providing nutrients, chicken soup helps re-hydrate your body during a time when you may have a fever and haven’t been taking in enough liquids. Other research indicates that starting out with soup will eventually lead to trying other foods and nutrients, further hastening your improvement.

Science and nutrition aside, there’s a more important reason chicken soup helps in the healing process. The soup reminds people of warm memories from their childhood when their mom or grandmother stirred a pot on the stove and the aroma filled the house. Love is, after all, the best medicine.

Recipes are just guidelines

Everybody knows garlic is a wonder food. It rarely shows up in chicken soup recipes, but adding two or three chopped cloves might add to the healing because its believed to stimulate the immune system. If you don’t want to bite into the garlic, slice it and it will strain out.

Ginger is another addition that should be considered. It gives the soup a distinct flavor and it’s believed to help with digestion and ease an upset stomach.

Want more taste? Chop up some lemongrass for the simmering process and then strain it out with the other ingredients later.

If you don’t have egg noodles on hand, any pasta works well. Break up lasagna noodles. The shape won’t matter. Or, if you are a Mexican food fan, cut tortilla strips and add those to the soup.

One recipe says if you want to up the flavor, try using smoked chicken. One would also think those rotisserie chickens might be good as well.

Nobody thinks about turkey soup, but why not if that’s what you prefer?

And don’t worry about butchering a whole bird as some recipes dictate. You can buy chickens already cut up in pieces. Skinless breasts will eliminate most of the fat, but the fact is, bone-in pieces add more flavor. Just make sure you eliminate all the bones, some of them can be quite small and would not be good to find in an otherwise soft food.

Grandma’s Chicken

Noodle Soup

2 1/2 cups wide egg noodles

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

12 cups chicken broth

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup water

3 cups diced, cooked chicken

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add egg noodles and oil, and boil for 8 minutes, or until tender. Drain, and rinse under cool running water.

In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, combine broth, salt, and poultry seasoning. Bring to a boil. Stir in celery and onion. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix cornstarch and water together until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Gradually add to soup, stirring constantly. Stir in noodles and chicken, and heat through.

Makes 12 servings.

—from allrecipes.com

Awesome Chicken Noodle Soup

1 gallon water

4-pound whole chicken, cut in pieces

1 large onion, peeled and halved

3 bay leaves

10 whole black peppercorns

2/3 bunch celery, leaves removed

1 pound carrots

3 tablespoons chopped lemongrass (optional)

1/4 cup chicken soup base

1 pound carrots, peeled and sliced

1/3 bunch celery, chopped and leaves removed

8-ounce package of dry egg noodles

Place chicken and water In a large pot over High heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer, skimming fat as needed, 30 minutes.

Place whole, peeled onion, bay leaves, peppercorns, whole celery, whole carrots and lemon grass in the pot and simmer, covered 1 hour.

Strain broth and reserve chicken. When chicken is cool enough to handle, remove skin and cut meat into bite-size pieces.

Return strained stock to pot over high heat, and stir in chicken base, chopped celery and chopped carrots. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes, or until carrots are tender.

Chop celery leaves and stir into pot with the noodles.

Simmer until noodles are cooked, about 10 minutes more. Stir in chicken and heat through.

Makes 12 servings.

—from allrecipes.com

Poached-Chicken Soup

2 tablespoons cooking oil

1 onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 rib celery, chopped

2 teaspoons salt

3- to 3 1/2-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces, skin removed

4 small red potatoes, peeled and quartered

2 medium turnips, peeled and cut into eighths

1 cup low-salt chicken broth

1 teaspoon red- or white-wine vinegar

2 quarts water

1 sprig fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

1 cup chopped fresh parsley

In a large pot, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and 1 teaspoon of the salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, about 10 minutes.

Add the chicken, potatoes, turnips, broth, vinegar, water, thyme, bay leaf, and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the chicken is just done, about 10 minutes for the breasts and 15 minutes for the legs and thighs; remove each piece as it is done.

Continue simmering the soup until the potatoes and turnips are tender, about 5 minutes longer. Stir in the pepper and parsley. Remove the thyme sprig and bay leaf. To serve, divide the chicken pieces among four shallow bowls and ladle the broth and vegetables over them.

Makes 4 servings.

—from allrecipes.com