GET WELL CHICKEN SOUP RECIPES

Steps:

• Heat the bacon fat, butter, or olive oil in the bottom of a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic. Season the vegetables well with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir to coat the vegetables. Cook until the tomato paste darkens and sticks a bit to the bottom of the pot, about 2 minutes more.
• Add the chicken broth or water and lentils and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a very gentle simmer and add the chicken. Cover and continue cooking for 1 hour, checking periodically to make sure the soup isn't bubbling too vigorously. Transfer the chicken thighs to a plate to cool.
• Working in batches, blend about half of the lentil soup until it's thick and creamy. (You can blend all of it if you like a creamy lentil soup, or none of it if you want it completely broth-y. I like it somewhere in the middle.) Stir the puréed soup back into the pot. Using 2 forks, shred the chicken and return it to the pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve with cheese sprinkled over the top if desired.

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring every few minutes until the vegetables begin to soften; 5 to 6 minutes.
• Stir in the garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Cook, while stirring the garlic around the pan, for about 1 minute.
• Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a low simmer. Taste the soup then adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Depending on the stock used, you might need to add 1 or more teaspoons of salt.
• Submerge the chicken thighs into the soup so that the broth covers them. Bring the soup back to a low simmer then partially cover the pot with a lid and cook, stirring a few times until the chicken thighs are cooked through; about 20 minutes.
• If, during this time, the broth seems low, add a splash more stock or a bit of water. Turn the heat to medium-low.
• Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate. Stir the noodles into the soup and cook until done, 6 to 10 minutes depending on the type of noodles used.
• While the noodles cook, shred the chicken into strips or dice into cubes. Slide the chicken back into the pot and then taste the soup once more for seasoning. Adjust with more salt and pepper, as needed. Stir in the parsley and serve.