Thursday, November 21, 2013
Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken Noodle Soup
So I know a lot of people have childhood memories of food their parents made when they were sick. And I just can't think of any comfort food my Mom made consistently when I was ailing. I remember when I was sick I wasn't allowed to have any dairy products, so not being allowed to have cheese, pretty much felt like torture. I also remember that I got the Chicken Pox when I was approximately 12yrs old and it sucked horribly. But I don't have childhood ill food memories. I don't have memories of saltines, 7-up, chicken noodle soup or grilled cheese sandwiches. But I guess most importantly I do remember being loved and cuddled when I was sick, and truly that is what is most important.
However, as an adult I have created a few ill food traditions of my own. When I am sick I love the following:
However, as an adult I have created a few ill food traditions of my own. When I am sick I love the following:
- Hot tea-any type just love how it feels on an ouchie throat.
- Hot and Sour Soup-the spice clears up your sinuses and just feels healthy. And probably because it is so spicy you can taste it.
- Ice cold Gatorade-again I love the feel of super cold beverages on my throat when it is scratchy feeling....especially after drinking hot tea.
- Miso soup-love the salt!!!
Today I feel achy, I have lost my voice and I have a slight fever, hence the super sexy attire I am currently wearing-pink fuzzy slippers, cut off sweat shorts and a surf shop sweatshirt...yes, I know eat your heart out!! But the most valuable lesson is that when you are sick you truly never feel too old for Mom...definitely wishing my Mom lived closer on days like today. However, since she doesn't I opted to take matters into my own hands and make some chicken noodle soup.
So I made Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken Noodle Soup. It was an overcast drizzly day and it just sounded warm and cozy. I have no voice and I was looking for some comfort food that would be easy and for those requirements this recipe is perfect, as it seriously only requires chopping.
I do have to say it is slightly odd writing a food blog when you aren't sure of your taste buds. So I can tell you that I enjoyed the soup, but I can't really describe the specific flavors to you. Generically, I enjoyed the herbs and the salt of the chicken broth. I loved how well cooked the chicken thighs were and the vegetables just felt healthy. It did make the house smell amazing and it was a strong enough aroma that I could smell it, so that is saying something.
So to make this soup all you have to do is follow a few simple steps:
1. Combine the following in a slow cooker: 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs that are cut into 1" pieces, 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 2 stalks celery that are sliced, 2 chopped carrots, 1 chopped onion, 1 can sliced mushrooms, 1 clove garlic minced and dried sage, thyme and rosemary.
2. Cover the above ingredients with 28oz chicken broth and cook for 7 hours on low or 3 hours on high.
3. Add 8 oz egg noodles and cook on low for another hour. On side note, I couldn't find the frozen egg noodles that the recipe called for so I used dried, but that seemed to work fine.
4. Eat!! #4 is always my favorite part!!
I did some research as to why chicken noodle soup is a go-to for all of us when we are ailing. And there are a variety of theories ranging from urban legend to it just being comfort food to it actually having medicinal properties. One article I read said that chicken releases an amino acid when cooked that resembles the drug acetlycysteine, which is prescribed for bronchitis and other respiratory problems. The same article also said that the spices in chicken soup, such as garlic and pepper have similarities to cough medicines which thin mucus and makes breathing easier. And finally, it is believed that chicken soup acts as an anti-inflammatory which aides with cold like symptoms. If you want some additional reading on the subject here is an interesting article: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=117888
However, what I have decided is that if it is good enough for generations of Grandmas it is good enough for me.
Stay healthy and cheers!
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