Classic Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Steps

1. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft.
   ⏱ Soften veggies: 7 min
2. Add the garlic and stir 30 seconds, until fragrant.
   ⏱ Garlic: 30 sec
3. Pour in the broth and add the whole chicken pieces, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a

   boil (how to boil)

   Boil Heat liquid until big bubbles rise and break all over the surface. 1. Use a pot big enough that the water fills it no more than three quarters.2. Cover it to boil faster, over high heat.3. Salt pasta or vegetable water once it boils.4. Add the food, stir, and bring it back to a boil before you start timing. Done when: A rolling boil keeps bubbling hard even when you stir. Safety: Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove, and drain pasta into a colander in the sink, pouring away from you. Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to boil water for pasta and vegetables: mistakes to avoid

   , then lower to a gentle

   simmer (how to simmer)

   Simmer Cook liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles breaking the surface now and then. 1. Bring the liquid up over medium-high heat.2. As soon as bubbles rise steadily, turn the heat down.3. Adjust until only a few small bubbles break the surface every second or two.4. Stir now and then and check that it hasn't crept back to a boil. Done when: You see lazy, small bubbles, not a rolling boil. A "bare" simmer has just a bubble here and there. Safety: Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to simmer: mistakes to avoid

   .
4. Simmer, partly covered, until the chicken reaches 165°F (74°C) in the thickest part.
   165°F⏱ Simmer chicken: 18 min
5. Lift out the chicken onto a cutting board and

   shred (how to shred)

   Shred Pull cooked meat (or cabbage and other vegetables) into thin strands. 1. Let cooked meat cool just until you can handle it, and take out any bones.2. Hold the piece in place with one fork.3. Drag a second fork through it, following the grain, so it pulls apart in strands.4. Toss the strands with a spoonful of the cooking juices so they stay moist. Done when: The meat pulls apart with almost no effort. If it fights you, it needs more cooking time. Safety: Meat straight from the pot holds steam inside; open it up and let it cool for a few minutes first.How to shred cooked meat with two forks: mistakes to avoid

   it with two forks. Remove the bay leaf.
6. Bring the broth back to a boil, add the noodles and cook until tender.
   ⏱ Cook noodles: 7 min
7. Stir the chicken back in with the parsley and lemon juice. Taste and add more salt if needed, then ladle into bowls.

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Tips

• Short on time? Leave out the raw chicken, simmer the broth and vegetables for 10 minutes, then stir in 3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken with the noodles.
• Noodles keep soaking up broth. If you plan on leftovers, cook the noodles separately and add them to each bowl.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 4 days. Freeze the soup without noodles up to 3 months.

Make ahead

Make the soup through step 5 up to 2 days ahead, then reheat and cook the noodles just before serving.

Cook once, eat twice: Double it (12 servings instead of 6), eat half and freeze the other half. It keeps 3 months frozen, by the storage note above. Print a freezer label · More freezer meals

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage. In season: carrots (September to March).