There are few things as comforting as a piping hot bowl of delicious soup!
My dad was usually the soup maker in the house growing up. I can remember us coming home from an icy cold, Free State winters day, starving – as always, and walking in the house and smelling the soup that dad’s got brewing. Oooh man – the best!
The best part about this chicken soup is just how easy it is to make. Once everything is cooking away, you can be busy with something else.
You will need:
· Large pot
· Measuring jug or cups and spoons
· Chopping board, knives, and a vegetable peeler
· Zester
Yields: 6-8 servings
Ingredients:
500g Boneless, Skinless Chicken thighs
2-3 Tbsp Chicken Spice (Robertson’s)
3-4 Tbsp Olive oil
4 Large Cloves of Fresh Garlic
½ tsp Ground Turmeric
1 Medium Brown Onion, diced
3 Large Carrots
4-5 Sprigs of fresh Thyme or Rosemary
3 Fresh Red Chilies, finely diced and deseeded (optional)
2 L (8 cups) Chicken stock (Ina Paarman, Chicken Stock Sachets x 8)
¼ C Lemon juice (± the juice of one lemon)
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Lemon Zest
Salt and pepper to taste
A handful of Freshly Chopped Coriander Leaves
To serve:
Fresh Coriander leaves
Plain Sour Cream
Garlic & Herb Croutons
Crispy Onion Bits (Woolworths)
Fresh Chilies (Optional)
Method:
Start by preparing your vegetables. You can dice or rough chop your veggies, it's up to you, keep in mind what texture you would like the soup to be. For a chunkier soup, give your veg a rough chop. Whichever way you go, just don’t leave the carrots too chunky, cause then they will take way too long to cook. If you want the soup to have a “lekker” kick, chop the chilies with seeds in tacked, if not remove the seeds before chopping. Remember to zest your lemon before juicing.
In a large pot, heat up half the oil and spice and fry the chicken thighs, just searing the outside to a golden-brown color. The chicken will continue to cook in the soup mixture. Once browned and sealed all around, remove, and set aside.
Turn down the heat slightly, add the rest of the oil and add in the onions, garlic, carrots, thyme, chilies, and turmeric. Sautee for about 5 minutes, add the warm chicken stock, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and the seared chicken thighs.
Bring the soup to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium-low heat and allow to simmer for about 25 minutes. Check the chicken thighs, if it is cooked through, remove all the thighs, allow a few minutes to cool, and pull the meat apart using a fork. At this stage, you can also remove the stems from the thyme.
Add the chicken back, stir through to combine. Turn the heat down as low as possible and add the lemon zest, fresh coriander, and salt and pepper to taste.
Once everything is combined, remove from the heat, and serve. Heat up your serving bowls, either in the oven, or let boiling water sit in them for a few minutes, this is the trick to having your soup stay hot until the last mouthful.
Top with a dollop of sour cream, fresh coriander, chilies, and some crispy onion bits and croutons.
If you want to freeze the leftovers. Allow the soup to cool down completely before transferring it to either plastic containers with lids or large Ziploc bags.
When you’re ready to use it again, allow it to defrost at room temperature, overnight in the fridge works great. Simply heat up and enjoy.
Ps. If you try this recipe and enjoy it, please take a photo and tag me on Facebook or Instagram at @cheryls_table 😊
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