.jpg)
Roasted chicken (includes rotisserie). Leftovers (from a nice big bird) are perfect and help avoid an over abundance of breast meat.
Simmering all the chicken lefotovers - don't forget any congealed juices at the bottom of the pan (or bag if it comes from the store that way), gristle, necks, you name it, for a an hour or more.
Youve' got to eventually pick out the the bones, remove any skin floating about and whatever chicken parts you's rather not see in your soup. I leave in gristle as by the time I've stoped cooking it's gone from view.
No fat. Use a fat separator to get as much of the fat pff as possible. You don't add anything to the soup until you've done this so as not to lose any fat soluble flovors (at least that's my theory).
White wine. It's makes a important but other than avoiding too oak-y or too sweet I don't think the variety matters. Enough will come through the cooking process so I know it's there but not enough to know if it was cheap or your finest reserve (so go cheap). Probably a cup and a half to a large saucepan with one leftover chicken, 2 or so to a big ol' soup pot with 2 carcasses or 1 untouched pre-roasted bird.
Chopped up celery, leaves and stalks. At least a cup (the top 1/3 of a new bunch should do it -but the use whatever parts you have) to that large saucepan. You could skip the wine but you CAN NOT skip this!
A couple cups of chopped up onion.
Simmer along as long as you like but at least until celery and onions all translucent.
NOW you can add whatever suits your fancy -as long as it includes some salt. Don't add rice until last, don't add any kind of noodles until very last. Carrots and potatoes go in sooner than later (and just one white starch, OK?). Herbs can go in sooner and/or later depending on the flavor you are going for and myself I think this goes for dried or fresh.
Nice extras: olive oil sauteed mushrooms added ~ 30 minutes before serving*.
wild rice added about 1 hour before serving
squash added about 15 minutes before serving
sun dried tomatoes, early on, but after the celery and onion is cooked
a handful (measuring is sooo important) of freshly chopped
parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage -in that order of proportions, added 15-20
minutes before it's showtime.
And don't tell but I leave this on the stove for days sometimes as I go through the steps. I just bring it to a boil everytime I take the lid off to mess with it and then just turn it off (lid on) if I have to leave or go to bed or shop or whatever will take me away too long. No one has to know.
* I assume it simmers at least up to "serving" time.
