OK the chicken doesn’t need to be Jewish. But this soup will cure any cold, which is why it’s called Jewish penicillin.
Ingredients:
Bones, skin, herbs and vegetables from roasted chicken
add 2 more cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
3 stalks celery, leaves also, coarsely chopped
2 carrots chopped, or a handful of baby carrots
1 onion, coarsely chopped with skin
green part of leeks, coarsely chopped
2 tsp. salt, or to taste
black pepper
Water, about 1 gallon
After serving and boning chicken, reserve bones and skin and herbs. Discard lemon, or it will give a bitter flavor to your broth. Fill roasting pan with water, add more celery, garlic, salt and pepper, the green part of leeks and onions. Keep onion skin on for a golden color to your broth.
Directions:
Boil for at least an hour; two hours is better. Stir to get the drippings in the pan into your soup. They add a delicious flavor.
Let cool until you can handle the pan. Strain through a strainer and store in refrigerator. The next day you can skim the fat off with a slotted spoon and adjust seasonings. This broth can be used as a base for various soups. Serve topped with fresh dill.
Add kneydlekh-(matzo balls) for special occasions like Passover and Rosh Hashanah or just to help the healing process.
You can also add rice or noodles to the broth.
My mother-in-law, the beautiful Conchita, immigrated from Mexico to the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas with a flair for making meals that were bién rica. I have adapted some of her recipes such as sopa de fideo, which is Mexican chicken-noodle soup. She fries the fideo, which is short vermicelli, and adds onions, tomatoes and salsa.
Vegan Version: Omit the chicken. Add 3 sprigs of rosemary, 5 sprigs thyme, 10 cilantro sprigs, a handful of parsley, 3 sage leaves, and 3 garlic cloves to ingredients. Boil the vegetables and herbs for an hour, then strain and use as a base for vegetable soups.
