Chicken Noodle Soup (when you’re too sick to go to the grocery store)

I have the flu.  The kind of flu where you think 5 viruses must have converged on your body all at once, because no one has ever suffered this badly with a simple case of the flu.  The kind of flu where you can’t remember what life felt like before you were sick.  And, if you are like me, already just a tad bit dramatic, you can’t even begin to hope that you will someday resume your jogs in the hills.  Because walking across the house to the kitchen feels like a marathon – not that I’d exactly know what that feels like.

To be perfectly honest, I grew up on Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup and 7-Up for sick days.  And, in spite of the fact that I cook way more than a little, it’s only in the last few years that I have stopped keeping a soup can handy for unexpected illness.  That super-tinny, salty taste meant I was being taken care of.  But somewhere along the way, I came to my senses and just couldn’t eat it anymore.  Now it’s easier to make my own, even when I’m barely able to stand.  Plus, I usually have homemade chicken broth in the freezer, or the makings thereof, which means I can have chicken soup made in a very short time.

This time, I had the remains of a roast chicken in the refrigerator.  You know the drill: some onion, carrot, celery, chicken bones, parsley, salt, pepper, bay leaf, peppercorns, and a couple of cloves, or not.  Maybe, if you’re feeling fancy, soften the vegetables in a teaspoon or so of olive oil before adding the rest of the ingredients and then covering with water.  Bring to a boil and then lower the heat and let it all simmer until the house smells wonderful.  This, I could do in my sleep, and most of it can happen while I rest, if need be.  Strain the resulting broth and there you have it – the base for a very nourishing soup for someone with the flu.

Then the “work” of turning the broth into soup begins.  Chop an onion, slice some celery, peel and slice a couple of carrots.  Throw them all into the hot broth and return it to a boil.  Toss in the chopped leftover chicken from the roast.  Either add in some dried noodles from the pantry, or, if the flu hasn’t fully settled in yet, make your own like I did this time.  (I’ve found that basic bot boi noodle recipe to be endlessly adaptable, as you can see.  I cut the noodle dough into wide strips instead of squares, and they made the best get-well chicken soup I’ve ever had.)  Adjust seasonings, and when the noodles are done, eat a bowl of yummy comfort medicine before collapsing, knowing full well that you’ve got a potful to see you through your illness.

So there you have it – my “no-recipe” recipe.  I hope you never need it for an illness; I wouldn’t wish this flu on anyone.  But you know where to find it if you do.  Best wishes for everyone’s health as we move toward spring!

Tagged as: bot boi noodles, chicken noodle soup, comfort food