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Does Chicken Soup make you feel better?

17 years ago

Does chicken soup really make you feel any better?

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Comments (16)

mcmann
17 years ago
I can't answer that scientifically but I know when I have a cold I always heat up a can of Campbell's Chicken Noodle soup just like my Mom did when I was a kid. It's one of my fondest memories and reminds me of my Mother's nurturing.
OklaMoni
17 years ago
But of course it does. Specially the home made kind... you know, chicken, garlic, carrot, a bit of onion, some noodles and a WHOLE lot of love just does!

:)

Moni... a firm believer
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I want to make chicken matzo ball soup
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Here is Bubbe's recipe. I use the mix....got enough on my plate as is. *** Recipe from RenÃ©e Adler AscherÂs kitchen *** Matzoh Balls (Judy LaneÂs Grandmother TillieÂs recipe) R.A.Âs Comments: These are heavenly, light as a feather. I refer to them as "floaters" VS sinkers. Families have preferences. This is ours by way of a dear, dear friend. Ingredients: (For 8 - 10, makes 20 medium size) 1 1/2 cups Matzoh meal + 1 Tbs. 8 Tbs. Chicken fat (1/2 cup) (soup fat is wonderful, may use 1/2 oil to cut back on cholestrol) 8 Tbs. Chicken stock (1/2 cup) 6 eggs separated at room temp. 2 tsp. salt Scant 1/2 tsp. pepper (1 1/2 times the recipe, enough for 12 to14) 2 1/4 .cup s Matzoh meal plus 1 1/2 Tbs. 12 Tbs. Chicken fat (3/4 cup) 12 Tbs. Chicken stock (3/4 cup) 9 large eggs separated at room temp. 3 tsp. salt 1/2 + tsp. pepper Equipment: 2 large mixing bowls, Electric hand or stand mixer, 1 or 2 large pots, a small ice cream scooper with a scraper works wonders for shaping the matzoh balls Instructions: Â Beat egg yokes with whisk, add stock, salt, pepper, and chicken fat (melted, but cool). (I use a Kitchenaid electric mixer, but a hand mixer will work for the single recipe Â Add the matzoh meal 1/4-cup at a time and blend thoroughly. Note: mixture will be somewhat dry and difficult to mix. An electric mixer helps. Â Beat egg whites almost stiff but still glossy and not dry. Fold 1/4 of the whites into matzoh mixture to soften the mass. This will be difficult to do because of the stiffness of the matzoh mixture unless using an electric stand mixer. Then gently fold in the rest of the whites two to three stages Â Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour, two is better. Â Meanwhile, put one or two large pot of water up to boil. Â Using an ice cream scoop or with oiled hands, roll 1 Tbs. of mixture into sphere shape. These will expand quite a bit, so donÂt make them too big. Note: The mixture will be soft, but if it is very loose. . Â Drop into boiling water as you go. If using one pot, cook in batches making sure not to over crowd pot or the matzoh balls will not expand properly and will be hard inside. I put 20 at a time in both my 13 and 16 Qt. stockpots. Â When water returns to a boil, cover boil for 25 minutes then reduce heat slightly [medium high] and keep at a boil for 40 minutes. Â Remove with slotted spoon to a large bowl of ice water. Cool. Â Store in water until ready to use. Refrigerate for longer storage (up to 3 days). Â Drain well on kitchen towels or a few thicknesses of paper toweling; add to chicken soup to heat thoroughly. Notes on freezing: Matzoh balls can be made ahead of time and frozen in water. Just remove from freezer in enough time to defrost. In a pinch, you may microwave carefully to aid in defrosting. Drain well before adding to soup to reheat.
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Dill in chicken soup? And other soup comments.
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Comments (8)
I like to put basil in chicken soup. If I don't have noodles I scramble eggs and add a little salt and mix in flour until thick but still pourable. Pour into the boiling chicken broth while stirring. Make it as thick as you want it and it does get thicker as it boils or sets. We have always added cinnamon to our chicken soup after we dish it up. My friends family always added nutmeg but I don't like nutmeg.
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RECIPE: Chicken Soup -can you subsitute chicken parts?
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You can use any part of a chicken that you find on sale for making chicken broth. I buy packages of chicken necks & backs just for making broth. Not a whole lot of meat, but it really doesn't matter if you simmer the broth for several hours. By the time you're done, the meat has pretty much given up all its flavor. If your goal is to make broth & use the meat for soup, I think legs, and especially thighs, are a good choice. They are more flavorful than breasts and hold up to long cooking. As far as too much broth, you don't need to fill your dutch oven. Just make the amount of water equal to what you want to finally end up with. Or, you could make a larger amount and freeze the extra broth. However, there's absolutely no reason why you can't use a smaller saucepan with just a few pieces of chicken. I think browning the chicken pieces either in the stock pot or in the oven adds a richer flavor to the chicken broth. I always include a chunked up carrot, onion, and celery stalk, along with a bay leaf, some whole black peppercorns, and a couple of whole allspice. The longer you simmer the broth, the deeper and fuller the flavor. I usually strain the broth using a strainer lined with some cheesecloth & toss all the solids. However, if I have used some really meaty chicken pieces, I remove the bones & skin and set the meat aside for use later. Then I refrigerate the broth overnight & scrape off the congealed fat. If I'm making soup with the strained & de-fatted broth, I'll use fresh vegetables.
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recipe for medicinal chicken soup
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Comments (38)
Packaged broth, tinned corn, ? come on, you are a great cook. : ) Costco rotis can be picked of the meat, chill that separately, then make stock from the carcass. But you have an HMart. Add good meaty bones to the chicken carcass. I stopped by HM on the way home tonight. DH hit the Italian butcher. We have so many meaty bones I'll have to freeze some. Pork necks, beef bones, chicken paws...so much natural gelatin I can cut it with a butter knife. We are making kimchi, krauts, and bone broth this weekend for the holidays...a quarter cup minced kimchi and gingered miso, rich bone stock, is all I want in my sipping broth if feeling weak. Some protein and veg solids on the way-to-recovery-days. Might be the flu. Sounds miserable. Make the best, don't compromise. I would not bother freezing experiments with misc veg, cabbage.. Freeze the good stuff. Good broths. Add fresh veg to a sautéed mirepoix, then good bone broth.
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marlingardener
17 years ago
Yes, but not to eat, to make. I went to the funeral of a friend yesterday, and came home and started some chicken soup. Something about chopping the vegetables, stirring the pot and smelling the aroma is very comforting. When troubled, cook.
bigack
17 years ago
Yep, love to make it, love to eat it.
heather_on
17 years ago
It sure does. The other thing that gives me comfort when I have a cold is hot apple juice or cider.
jannie
17 years ago
Yes, and it has to be Campbell's chicken noodle. I had a can last night for dinner. Not the can, the soup inside!
paula_pa
17 years ago
I don't know. When I'm sick, no one ever gives me soup anymore.

When I'm sick, the first thing I want to eat is usually McDonald's (cheeseburger and fries) or farina with lots of milk, butter and sugar. The farina is from my childhood but I'm not sure why the McD's. We rarely ate fast food when I was growing up. It's something DH can easily run out and grab for me, maybe that's why.
Terri_PacNW
17 years ago
Yes it does. But have to go with Moni...homemade is best!

Here is a link that might be useful: Chicken soups healing powers
rachelacey
17 years ago
It really does. The taste, the smell - it's just comforting.
peoniesandposies
17 years ago
Definitely!

However, in our house homemade potato soup made thick is also a comforting soup. (It must be all those bland carbs and the warmth that spreads in you as you eat it.)
marilyn_c
17 years ago
I dunno....I haven't been sick in so long and when I am sick, I am too sick to make chicken soup. However, I had some canned soup when I had pneumonia. It didn't make me feel better but I had to eat something.
susan_on
17 years ago
Yeah, I like chicken soup when I'm sick, but I need lots of crackers.
deemarie5500
17 years ago
We always keep the house stocked with canned Progress chicken soup, tissues, and bottle water during the winter. When we get a cold, that last thing I want to do is run out to the store!
wildchild
17 years ago
I can't stand to eat chicken soup when I'm sick. It's blah and warm.

I usually live on OJ and toast and honey at first. When my appetite returns I want something either cold and crunchy like a sandwich piled high with veggies or hot and spicy like chili or ravioli. As a child I loved tripe in HOT red sauce when I got sick.
cheryl_ok
17 years ago
Yummy! Yes, I believe it makes me feel better. Homemade here also, but when I'm too sick to make it, Campbell's is just fine!
OklaMoni
17 years ago
I cheat! I make a BIG pot ever so often, and then freeze some. All except the noodles.

Thus, when I am sick, I can just put on a pot of water, boil some noodles (me thinks, noodles cooked and then added tastes way better, than cooked in the broth), and thaw and heat my chicken soup. Add the noodles and wa la, yummy comfort food.

Moni

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