Chicken and rice soup is one of my favorite comfort foods.
Each time we would drive down to see my Grandmother, she would have chicken
soup waiting for us. There was nothing better than sitting down to eat with her
and chat about everything new that had happened since we saw each other.
Now, her chicken and rice soup was very basic; it was
chicken, rice, and broth and that was about it. But I loved eating it with a
few pieces of Italian bread, sloshing up the left over broth after I had eaten
all of the chicken and rice.
The recipe that I’ve given here is a bit heartier; I’ve
added some lots of root vegetables and herbs to the mix. It is a wonderful
broth soup and it is really nice to have on a brisk day, or during a winter
storm.
However, this is no difficult recipe. You probably would
have thought up something very similar on your own. But what I wanted to show
you was how to begin a hearty and delicious broth. From there, you can
practically make any broth soup that you wish to make, whether it is chicken noodle
to wanton to minestrone to Italian wedding.
You have three basic ingredients that will be your base;
chicken or beef stock, tomato paste, and garlic. I have yet to find a broth
soup that isn’t perfected with these three ingredients, even if traditionally
the soup you are making does not typically start with them. Beef or chicken
stock is essential. I particularly like to use a beef broth for a chicken soup
and vice versa. I think it gives it an extra level of meatiness and I have yet
to find where the flavor complete with each other.
Now I am not a huge garlic fan; sure I like it, but I don’t
feel a need to use have a bulb in all of my dishes, as I find some people do.
Garlic adds amazing flavor, but it packs a lot of punch. Two minced or pressed
(or minced and pressed) cloves
of garlic is plenty for any recipe, in my opinion.
Now the kicker is the tomato paste. You don’t typically
think of the tomato paste in traditional broth soups, especially simple
American soups like chicken noodle or chicken and rice. But I guarantee it is
what will take it from a drab soup to an amazing meal. One can of tomato paste
is perfect in any situation.
Now, the one thing that I add to all of my soups, that I
think is essential to creating the perfect flavor, is some bone marrow. I
always have a container full of marrow, since I make my broth with marrow
bones. Marrow adds to the meatiness and rounds out that full-bodied flavor of
the broth. While it is not essential, I really encourage you to add it to your broths.
I add about two tablespoons of marrow to the mix.
You can put all of your ingredients in right at the
beginning (the exception being mushrooms – see below). Just throw everything in
as I show you in the video. If you do this before you head off to work and put
the pot on low heat, your meal will be ready for you when you get home. If you
need a faster prep time, put it on high and cook for at least three hours (or
until the chicken or other meat is cooked through).
A note on the allspice…I haven’t found a broth recipe yet
that isn’t somehow made bed with allspice. Take it or leave it as you like, but
I think you will like the results.
If you are home, add the mushrooms about an hour before you
serve, as well as a final flavoring of salt and pepper to adjust for taste. If
you are hitting home just before you eat, have some mushrooms that you have
cooked the night before ready and add it about 5 minutes before you serve. If
you add mushrooms at the beginning, they will turn rubbery and the flavor will
be gone.
Finally, be creative with your soups. Remember that as long
as you keep those base three (or four – I always use the marrow) ingredients
you can make any soup you would like. Make it your own and come up with your
own new favorite soup recipes, or enjoy the wonderful chicken and rice soup
that I demonstrate!
Enjoy!
