My Thoughts:
I learned this recipe during a "Knife Skills" class. We learned techniques for cutting up a whole chicken, various cuts for vegetables, and proper care and sharpening. As a result, we had piles of vegies that went into our soup.
This is a great, fresh tasting soup. Use fresh cilantro, and fresh lemon juice (it's a lot of lemons). I used an organic, bottled lemon juice, and it was good, but I think it would be better with fresh juice. Adjust the amount of tamari to suit your taste.
This recipe makes a lot of soup. I ended up splitting it into two pots halfway through; I didn't have a big enough pot for the whole batch. That will have to go onto the "this would help in the kitchen" list. Make sure you use a vary large soup pot, or Dutch oven.
If you don't plan on eating all the soup right away, don't add the cilantro yet. Just add some to each batch or bowl you reheat, and let it "steep" a bit. This soup seems to freeze and reheat well.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken, cut into pieces
- 8 cups cold water
- 6 T. olive oil
- 1 T. plus 1 t. sea salt
- olive oil for sauteing
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- 1 head garlic, minced
- 4 carrots, chopped or sliced
- 4 stalks celery, chopped or sliced
- 2 red bell peppers, optional
- 2 medium zucchini, sliced lengthwise into quarters, then sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 bunch cilantro, washed well and chopped
- 2 T. tamari
Instructions
In a covered pot, bring water and chicken to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about an hour, until chicken is cooked through and tender. Remove chicken from broth and set aside.
Skin and bone chicken, breaking meat into bite-size pieces. Set aside.
In another pot, over medium high heat, saute the onions in olive oil with 1 teaspoon of the sea salt, stirring occasionally until onions begin to soften.
Add the garlic, stir and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the garlic becomes fragrant.
Mix in the carrots, celery and bell peppers, if using, and saute, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften and become brightly colored.
Add the reserved cooking liquid and stir in the chicken. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes, until vegetables are to desired tenderness.
Stir in the zucchini, lemon juice, cilantro, tamari, and remaining 1 Tablespoon sea salt.
Season to taste with additional lemon juice, salt and/or tamari and serve immediately.