As the weather starts to cool down, a little homemade soup can sure hit the spot. But who has time to make chicken soup from scratch? The answer is your old reliable Crockpot. This was nice and easy and minimal preparation. We started out with a 3 to 4lbs. whole chicken, that was washed and the giblets and neck removed. We then got a combo pack of pre diced onions and celery, a half a bag of small carrots, about 4 cups of chicken stock (I prefer the low sodium kind), some sprigs of rosemary and thyme, 1/2 a cup of margarita mix, a splash of lemon, 2 tsp. diced garlic, 2 tbs. of Goya Recaito (a cilantro based seasoning, used to flavor rice, soup and sauce dishes) and salt and pepper lightly. I use about 4 or 5 sprigs of rosemary and thyme and tie them up with butcher's twine. Throw it in the pot. It is easier to get them out at the end.
At this point you can also add a shot of Tequila, if you wish to make a more authentic Mexican flair chicken soup.
Put the lid and set the Crockpot on low for at least 8 hours or longer, if you are short on time, set it on high for about 6 hours. You could even start it overnight, this is the easy of cooking with the Crockpot.
After about 8 hours on low, or 6 on high, I like to test the chicken with my instant read thermometer, you are looking for a temperature of 180 degrees in the thigh or 160-170 in the breast area. The reality is that you will probably have a higher temperature, but these are the safe minimums. The higher the temperature, the easier it will be to pull apart the chicken, if it hasn't started to fall apart already. At this point, I remove the chicken onto a large cutting board, and let it cool off or a few minutes. I also remove my bundle of herbs and toss them out. I like to thicken my soup and grab the immersion blender and carefully start to pulse the liquid, in the pot to get a thicker consistence. After I have reached the desired thickness, I add a cup of whole grain rice and taste and re season, with salt and pepper, if needed. If you are looking for more of chowder type soup, if could also add a little heavy cream or milk. The Crockpot is set to low and covered, while I start to pull the skin and pull apart the chicken, this whole process can be done about 30 minutes, before serving. Once the chicken is pulled and the bones removed, return to pot and give it about 30 minutes, for the rice to cook.
Serve nice and warm and add your favorite garnish. We like to top it with grated Parmesan cheese and some store bought biscuits and you can see why this is called comfort food. Hope you try it soon, enjoy!
As the weather starts to cool down, a little homemade soup can sure hit the spot. But who has time to make chicken soup from scratch? The answer is your old reliable Crockpot. This was nice and easy and minimal preparation. We started out with a 3 to 4lbs. whole chicken, that was washed and the giblets and neck removed. We then got a combo pack of pre diced onions and celery, a half a bag of small carrots, about 4 cups of chicken stock (I prefer the low sodium kind), some sprigs of rosemary and thyme, 1/2 a cup of margarita mix, a splash of lemon, 2 tsp. diced garlic, 2 tbs. of Goya Recaito (a cilantro based seasoning, used to flavor rice, soup and sauce dishes) and salt and pepper lightly. I use about 4 or 5 sprigs of rosemary and thyme and tie them up with butcher's twine. Throw it in the pot. It is easier to get them out at the end.
At this point you can also add a shot of Tequila, if you wish to make a more authentic Mexican flair chicken soup.
Put the lid and set the Crockpot on low for at least 8 hours or longer, if you are short on time, set it on high for about 6 hours. You could even start it overnight, this is the easy of cooking with the Crockpot.
After about 8 hours on low, or 6 on high, I like to test the chicken with my instant read thermometer, you are looking for a temperature of 180 degrees in the thigh or 160-170 in the breast area. The reality is that you will probably have a higher temperature, but these are the safe minimums. The higher the temperature, the easier it will be to pull apart the chicken, if it hasn't started to fall apart already. At this point, I remove the chicken onto a large cutting board, and let it cool off or a few minutes. I also remove my bundle of herbs and toss them out. I like to thicken my soup and grab the immersion blender and carefully start to pulse the liquid, in the pot to get a thicker consistence. After I have reached the desired thickness, I add a cup of whole grain rice and taste and re season, with salt and pepper, if needed. If you are looking for more of chowder type soup, if could also add a little heavy cream or milk. The Crockpot is set to low and covered, while I start to pull the skin and pull apart the chicken, this whole process can be done about 30 minutes, before serving. Once the chicken is pulled and the bones removed, return to pot and give it about 30 minutes, for the rice to cook.
Serve nice and warm and add your favorite garnish. We like to top it with grated Parmesan cheese and some store bought biscuits and you can see why this is called comfort food. Hope you try it soon, enjoy!
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