CROCKPOT CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP NEW ORLEANS STYLE
1 lg Whole fryer
1/2 c Diced celery
4 ea Cloves minced garlic
3 ea Bay leaves
4 ea Qts water
2 tb Butter
1 c Sliced mushrooms
1/4 c Cream sherry
Green onions for garnish
1 c Diced onions
1/2 c Minced parsley
1 c Chopped carrots
1 ts Poultry seasoning
12 oz Broad egg noodles
1 c Sliced onion rings
1 c Diced carrots
Salt and pepper to taste
First, take the chicken and wash it thoroughly - that means both inside
and out! Remove the giblets, scrub out the internal cavity under cold
running water, and scrape away anything that doesn't look edible. (But
DO NOT remove the chicken skin or any of the fat! You need the skin
to make a rich stock.) Next, take a crock pot and place the chicken
and giblets into it. Then drop in the diced onions, the ½ cup of
chopped carrots and bay leaves, poultry seasoning and *2* quarts of
water. Then, with a spoon, evenly distribute the seasoning mixture
around the chicken, turn the crock pot to high, and cook for at least six
hours (or better still, OVERNIGHT). Remember, the longer you cook,
the richer the base stock and the more tender the chicken. (I cooked it
overnight) While the chicken is slow-cooking, it's a good time to
prepare your noodles. Go ahead and boil them according to package
directions... but DO NOT COOK THEM UNTIL DONE! Keep in mind that
you're going to drop them into a soup, so you want them el dente
(firm), otherwise they'll turn to pure mush by the time you eat them.
Furthermore, you want a small percent of the starch in the noodles to
cook into the soup to thicken it slightly - if you cook the noodles all the
way, the soup's consistency will be flat and thin. After the noodles are
cooked, butter them slightly and set them aside. When the chicken is
tender, take a set of tongs or a strainer spoon, remove it from the
crock pot (it may tend to fall apart, but that's okay), and set it on a
platter to cool. At this point, strain out all the seasoning vegetables
from the stock, place the stock into a metal bowl, and place the bowl
into the refrigerator or freezer until the chicken fat congeals (which
should take about 1 hour). Meanwhile, pick the chicken off the bones
and, with a sharp knife, chop it into bite-sized pieces. Then, in a heavy
12- inch skillet, melt the butter and saute the sliced onions,
mushrooms, and carrots until they're tender. Then drop in the chopped
chicken meat. And over medium-low heat, cook it into the vegetables
for about 10 minutes. While the chicken and vegetables are sauteing,
remove the chicken stock from the refrigerator, skim off all the fat,
and place the skimmed stock into a soup pot, along with the remaining
2 quarts of water. At this point, you should season the soup stock to
taste with salt and pepper. Now drop in the sauteed chicken,
mushrooms, onion rings and diced carrots - along with the sherry, the
Tabasco, and as soon as it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and
simmer the soup about 30 minutes to allow all the flavors to
thoroughly blend. When you're ready to eat, ladle out heaping helpings
of the piping hot soup into bowls, garnish with a sprinkling of thinly
sliced green onions, and serve with crunch saltines. I used several
generous shakes of Tabasco. It was spicy, but not overwhelmingly hot
and fiery. And it was HEAVENLY!
1 lg Whole fryer
1/2 c Diced celery
4 ea Cloves minced garlic
3 ea Bay leaves
4 ea Qts water
2 tb Butter
1 c Sliced mushrooms
1/4 c Cream sherry
Green onions for garnish
1 c Diced onions
1/2 c Minced parsley
1 c Chopped carrots
1 ts Poultry seasoning
12 oz Broad egg noodles
1 c Sliced onion rings
1 c Diced carrots
Salt and pepper to taste
First, take the chicken and wash it thoroughly - that means both inside
and out! Remove the giblets, scrub out the internal cavity under cold
running water, and scrape away anything that doesn't look edible. (But
DO NOT remove the chicken skin or any of the fat! You need the skin
to make a rich stock.) Next, take a crock pot and place the chicken
and giblets into it. Then drop in the diced onions, the ½ cup of
chopped carrots and bay leaves, poultry seasoning and *2* quarts of
water. Then, with a spoon, evenly distribute the seasoning mixture
around the chicken, turn the crock pot to high, and cook for at least six
hours (or better still, OVERNIGHT). Remember, the longer you cook,
the richer the base stock and the more tender the chicken. (I cooked it
overnight) While the chicken is slow-cooking, it's a good time to
prepare your noodles. Go ahead and boil them according to package
directions... but DO NOT COOK THEM UNTIL DONE! Keep in mind that
you're going to drop them into a soup, so you want them el dente
(firm), otherwise they'll turn to pure mush by the time you eat them.
Furthermore, you want a small percent of the starch in the noodles to
cook into the soup to thicken it slightly - if you cook the noodles all the
way, the soup's consistency will be flat and thin. After the noodles are
cooked, butter them slightly and set them aside. When the chicken is
tender, take a set of tongs or a strainer spoon, remove it from the
crock pot (it may tend to fall apart, but that's okay), and set it on a
platter to cool. At this point, strain out all the seasoning vegetables
from the stock, place the stock into a metal bowl, and place the bowl
into the refrigerator or freezer until the chicken fat congeals (which
should take about 1 hour). Meanwhile, pick the chicken off the bones
and, with a sharp knife, chop it into bite-sized pieces. Then, in a heavy
12- inch skillet, melt the butter and saute the sliced onions,
mushrooms, and carrots until they're tender. Then drop in the chopped
chicken meat. And over medium-low heat, cook it into the vegetables
for about 10 minutes. While the chicken and vegetables are sauteing,
remove the chicken stock from the refrigerator, skim off all the fat,
and place the skimmed stock into a soup pot, along with the remaining
2 quarts of water. At this point, you should season the soup stock to
taste with salt and pepper. Now drop in the sauteed chicken,
mushrooms, onion rings and diced carrots - along with the sherry, the
Tabasco, and as soon as it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and
simmer the soup about 30 minutes to allow all the flavors to
thoroughly blend. When you're ready to eat, ladle out heaping helpings
of the piping hot soup into bowls, garnish with a sprinkling of thinly
sliced green onions, and serve with crunch saltines. I used several
generous shakes of Tabasco. It was spicy, but not overwhelmingly hot
and fiery. And it was HEAVENLY!
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