It’s sickness season, and I’m a little sick. It’s not COVID, but this is the first head cold I’ve had in over two years, and it’s not going away. I suspect there might be others in a similar boat. What we all need, besides cold medicine and rest, is good chicken soup, and the best chicken soup starts with gently poach a whole chicken.
Tender pieces of poached chicken floating in a clear, golden broth is my personal platonic ideal of what chicken soup should be. Noodles and vegetables are also important, but even the best-cooked noodles can’t save mediocre broth.
Why poach instead of boil
Gently poaching a whole chicken gives you a broth with a clean, pronounced chicken flavor – and when I say “gently” I mean it. This bird doesn’t see a hard boil for more than a few seconds, which means you don’t extract any of the scummy bits (or, in turn, have to skim them).
Boiling a chicken, or chicken bones, gives you a broth with a deeper, almost earthy flavor and a darker, murkier aspect—and you run the risk of overcooking your chicken. Broth is great for sauces, stews, and even other soups, but in a chicken noodle or matzo ball situation, I want a golden elixir that can only be obtained by a long steep. I have used this method countless times; the chicken is always sumptuous and the broth is always delicious.
How to poach a chicken
We have covered this method before (and I often refer to it), but it deserves a full recap. While most poached chicken recipes will have you lightly boil the bird over medium-high heat, we simmer ours over low heat for just 25 minutes before covering and soaking for at least two hours, extracting with love as much chicken flavor as possible, without imparting those dark flavors you get from boiling. (The chicken itself is also amazing.)
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Start by letting your bird come to room temperature. Cover it with plastic wrap if it didn’t come in shrink wrap and let it sit on the counter for an hour. Remove the giblets and cut the tail, along the excess skin around the cavity. As AA Newton explained in his treatise on poached chickenthis preheating step is not optional: “Starting a ambient temperature chicken in ambient temperature water ensures complete cooking, so don’t skip this step! »
Then put the chicken in a colander and rub it, inside and out, with a handful of coarse salt to remove any bits of gunk, especially on the skin. Rinse it, then place it in a large saucepan, cavity side up, and fill it with room temperature water. Keep adding water until the bird is covered by a few inches, gently rotating the bird so that it is breast-side up. (About a gallon should be enough for you.)
Add the aromatics and seasonings you want to the pan. If you’re going for a classic chicken noodle vibe, an onion or two (with the skin on for extra rich color), a few coarsely chopped carrots, a few stalks of celery (also coarsely chopped), and a halved head of garlic the trick will do, especially if you include a tablespoon of peppercorns and a few sprigs of dill. I crave ginger when I’m sick, so I usually opt for a thinly sliced piece of aromatic root, with a head of garlic (cut off the top) and a handful of green onions. (Some slices of fresh chili are also appreciated, especially if I’m treating a cold.) Whatever aromatics you choose, you’ll also need salt. and a little sugar. I use 1 1/2 teaspoons of coarse salt and a tablespoon of table sugar, but feel free to play around to your taste. (A pinch or two of MSG wouldn’t hurt either.)
Cover the pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for 25 minutes. Turn off the heat (turn off the burner if using an electric stove) and steep for at least two hours, or up to four. (I rarely go over two, and that always seems like a long time.)
Remove the chicken from the pot. The easiest way to do this is to stick a sturdy spoon handle into the cavity, then lift it with the support of an additional spoon, letting the broth inside the cavity drain into the pan . Let your chicken sit while you strain your broth.
Assemble your soup
Now you can add whatever vegetables you want to eat (the first batch will be way too mushy), along with your noodles, so bring your strained broth to a boil. When you add each ingredient to the pot will be determined by the cooking time of each. Finely chopped or sliced carrots and celery will be succulent but tender after just five minutes of boiling, while most pasta shapes take 7-12 minutes to cook, depending on their circumference. Add the noodles first, then add the vegetables when you have five minutes of cooking time left. While these cook, shred or cut your chicken into bite-size pieces. Add the chicken once the noodles and vegetables are cooked through. Ladle into bowls and garnish with green onion, dill, or whatever else you fancy. Sip, sip and be soothed.
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