Chicken Soup

Teefus

My “go to” chicken soup recipe starts with a rotisserie chicken from our local market. I strip off all the meat and boil the skin and bones to make a broth. After straining off the broth, I add chopped celery, onion, carrot, garlic, salt, black pepper, and a little cayenne. Simmer for 30 minutes then add the chopped chicken meat and dry noodles. Simmer another 30 minutes, adding chicken stock as required to balance broth and solids. Shut off and leave covered for a couple hours. The magic happens in the reheating. It’s awesome soup.

I’ve thought about spatchcocking a chicken on the Egg to use as a base, but the precooked rotisserie birds are cheaper than raw and certainly speed up the process. Anyone use BGE roasted chicken to make soup? Is it worth the extra effort?

gdenby

"The magic happens in the reheating. It’s awesome soup."

Yes. One of the dishes that are better the next day. Tho' I've had some where the noodles soaked up so much broth, I had a noodle stew.

'There are no poultry carcasses that I don't use for soup, Egg'd or otherwise. From the Egg, the gamut. Cornish Hens, regular chix, duck, turkey, goose. Tho' I love duck in all other forms, the soups were not so good. The hint of smoke didn't work well.

As far as I can tell, once poultry meat has been put into stock, fine roasting chicken and weird factory grown turns out about the same texture. Unlike if roasted.

I certainly do use rotisserie chicken, but often wonder what the flavorings are, and why the thigh and leg bones have no marrow to speak of.

I've tried recipes listed as "Jewish grandma" that add parsnip. For me, too sweet except when just few slices. I like to add an inch of sliced parsley root.  There are varieties that are grown for the root, not the leaves, but I don't find them very often. From my garden, I use the roots from my own Italian parsley but they are somewhat more bitter than the kinds grown just for the roots.

Teefus

A little minced parsley is a good adder. I've made the noodle stew a couple of times too. Just add a can of chicken broth and you're back in business. I like thick soup anyway so not a problem!

When you use Egg roasted birds, do you find the smoky taste sits too far forward in the mix? I like a mild smoky flavor on chicken, but my bride prefers just a hint.

Theophan

I've only used raw whole chickens, and love the result so much I just haven't felt like trying different ways.  But as much as I love smoky stuff from my Eggs, I'm not sure I want smoky chicken soup.  Maybe if I tried it I'd love it, but it doesn't sound good to me.  But as always, it's what tastes good to YOU that matters -- if it sounds good to you, give it a shot, and tell the rest of us how it was!

buzd504

I've used egged chickens for both chicken soup and gumbo, and it works great.  I'm not sure where the smoke goes, but I don't find it overwhelming in the soups and stocks.  I'm not sure it's significantly better than using the rotisserie chickens, but it's certainly not worse.

kl8ton

Teefus said:

My “go to” chicken soup recipe starts with a rotisserie chicken from our local market. I strip off all the meat and boil the skin and bones to make a broth. After straining off the broth, I add chopped celery, onion, carrot, garlic, salt, black pepper, and a little cayenne. Simmer for 30 minutes then add the chopped chicken meat and dry noodles. Simmer another 30 minutes, adding chicken stock as required to balance broth and solids. Shut off and leave covered for a couple hours. The magic happens in the reheating. It’s awesome soup.

I’ve thought about spatchcocking a chicken on the Egg to use as a base, but the precooked rotisserie birds are cheaper than raw and certainly speed up the process. Anyone use BGE roasted chicken to make soup? Is it worth the extra effort?

Yes, and yes.

We have some broth simmering right now - that is more my wife's department.  I cook 2 organic chickens from costco (can be found in view of the $3.99 birds on the rotisserie except the price is staggering in comparison).  I rub them down with Oakridge chicken and game rub courtesy of @HofstraJet from our most recent exchange - thanks again (new favorite chicken rub).  When the chicken is ready, i snack on the chicken as I cut it all off the bone.  Bones go in the pot with the backbone that was already in there, celery, carrots, onions, burdock root, astragalus root, and whatever other veggies we may have laying around.  That simmers for 24 hours.  We strain and refrigerate.  This makes about 3 gallons of broth.  She then uses it throughout the next week(s) to add to soups or rice dishes.  Delicious.  We freeze off what doesn't get used.  Sometimes she will leave a gallon in the pot, add her chicken soup ingredients and simmer some more. 

I highly recommend anyone to make their own broth.  It is very simple and healthy.  You will never go back to soup in a can.  

Soon we will be using our own homegrown chicken.  Next year it will be our chicken and our veggies!  Raising chickens on a small scale makes me wonder how they can get the prices down to $4.00 per bird.  I have concluded they are taking a loss on them and you are likely to buy a bunch of other stuff while in there.  You can't even feed one bird to maturity for that cost.