The Least Imaginative Soup Out There: Chicken Noodle

As mentioned in my last entry "The Soup Prerequisite: Stock", I said I would show you how the basic stock recipe can be modified. I also started to explain how stock is the foundation for more complicated soups. Well, this next soup isn't complicated at all. On the other hand, I've seen it messed up in all sorts of ways. Yet it remains probably the most popular soup out there, and different variations of this soup appear in cultures across the world. Likewise, it had to be my next recipe.

Ingredients:

1 quart of prepared homemade Chicken Stock

1 1/2 cups of cooked soup vegetables (see previous entry)

1/2 cup of cooked chicken (see previous entry)

1 quart water

salt

2 tsp. of vegetable oil

2 handfulls of dried egg noodles (or any leftover pasta)

fresh ground black pepper

2 tbsp. chopped flat leaf parsley, or dill

Start by bringing the water to a boil in a small pot. At the same time, begin heating the stock, whole vegetables and chicken in a small soup pot. When the water comes to a boil, add the salt, oil, and then the pasta. Stir often. (If using leftover pasta that's already cooked, skip this part and add the pasta when the soup is hot so the noodles get warm)

When the soup gets hot enough, add enough pepper to your liking. (I like it HOT, it makes my nose run) When the noodles are tender, drain them in a colander and rinse them lightly with warm water in the sink (you want to prevent them from sticking to each other). Cut the whole vegetables to a desired size, by just slicing real quick with a butter knife. Add a desired amount of noodles to each bowl, ladel the soup into the bowls, and top with a pinch of parsley. Dill is also an interesting flavor, but make sure that whatever you put on top is FRESH and not DRY. Dry herbs defeat the purpose and don't really brighten the flavors.

(serves 4)

*You can substitute pasta for rice. Just make the rice according to the directions on the package.