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Chicken soup has always been a classic and comforting soup, however, it can sometimes be bland or underwhelming. This version of chicken soup is flavorful, nutritious, delicious, and full of veggies and tender, fall apart chicken!

I have made so many chicken soups over the years, and finally feel like I landed on one that is absolutely perfect! It still has the light and healing feeling of a good bowl of chicken soup, but has more complex and deep flavors.

The Chicken

For this chicken soup, it’s important to use bone in, skin on, chicken legs and thighs. You can use all legs if you prefer. But it is important to use this cut for the full flavor and experience. The fat from the skin, and the bones in the chicken all flavor the broth and make it more nutritious.

Using a different cut like chicken breast or skinless, boneless thighs will not have the same effect in this soup. The texture and flavor will not be as robust. Chicken breast will overcook, and even shredded the texture will be stringy and chewy. Cut up thighs will not be as tender as satisfying to eat as a bone in, skin on thigh (or leg).

To prepare the chicken, simple clean it and set it aside. Then get to work on the vegetables.

The Vegetables

The chicken soup is full of vegetables. But they’re all super tender, flavor the broth, and melt in your mouth as you eat them!

Start with the basics: onion, carrot, and celery. I like to dice these vegetables to keep the size small and even.

First, cut the onion in half, peel the skin off, and dice evenly.

Skin the carrots, then slice in half (and half again for the larger chunks), and then dice into small pieces.

For the celery, slice down the length then dice across to get small pieces the same size as the carrots and onions.

Once these veggies are ready, melt some butter in a heavy bottom pot on medium heat and add in all the vegetables. Season with salt, then sauté, covered, until translucent and tender.

Adding in the Chicken

At this point, it’s time to add in the bone in, skin on chicken legs and thighs. I used 12 pieces altogether. Cover the chicken in water, then season with either Vegeta seasoning or chicken stock cubes. I would usually do chicken stock cubes but used Vegeta since I ran out and now I’ll always use Vegeta because it came out delicious!

The Other Vegetables

In the meantime, prep the rest of the vegetables. These are prepared separately because if added in at the beginning they will fall apart in the soup.

Chop half a cabbage into large chunks. Peel and chop 3 medium russet potatoes into similar sized chunks, and finally, chop two large tomatoes in the same size too.

Once the pot comes up to a simmer add in the vegetables and mix gently. Cover the pot with its lid and turn the heat all the way down to low. Let it simmer as gently as possible for several hours—low and slow is the trick here to keep the vegetables intact and tenderize the chicken.

After about three and a half hours the soup should be ready. Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro and a dash of toasted sesame oil. Serve over a little rice for a heartier meal and enjoy!

Ingredients

Time: 4 hours

Serves: 6-8

• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 celery sticks, diced
• Salt to taste
• 12 bone in, skin on chicken legs and thighs
• 12 cups water
• 2 tablespoon Vegeta
• 1/2 cabbage, chopped
• 3 medium russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• Cilantro to garnish

Directions

1. Melt butter in a heavy bottom pot on medium heat. Add onions, carrot, celery, and salt. Mix and sauté, covered, until translucent and tender

2. Add in chicken and cover with water. Season with Vegeta and bring to simmer

3. Add in cabbage, potatoes, and tomatoes. Bring to a simmer again, then turn heat down to low, cover, and simmer gently for 3-3.5 hours

4. Once the chicken is tender, finish with sesame oil and garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice and enjoy!