A homemade Chicken Noodle Soup recipe made from scratch using a whole chicken. With a beautifully flavoured golden chicken broth, this is a classic everyoneย should know!
Made the old fashioned way by boiling a whole chicken, you can toss in any vegetables, noodles or pasta and itโs going to be amazing. And everybody knowns Chicken Soup is theย best soup for a cold!
Homemade Chickenย Noodle Soup โ from scratch!
Simmering a whole chicken with root vegetables and herbs creates a delicious homemade stock for the soup, into which the chicken meat is shredded alongside chopped and sauteed vegetables.ย This is a Chicken Noodle Soup made the old fashioned way!
Regular readers know that โcoolโ is certainly not my middle name. Iโm not one for following food trends. I just like good food done right. Iโll give foam and cauliflower crust pizza a miss thanks! ๐
The BEST soup for a cold??
โEveryoneโ knows that when youโre struck down with Man Flu*, the only thing that will nurse you back to health isย Chicken soupโฆ.
While itโs questionable whether itโs beenย conclusively scientifically proven that Chicken soup is even better than medicine, hereโs 3 reasons why Chicken soup (noodle or otherwise) is a great remedy for a cold:
- Hydration from the natural salt in chicken;
- Warm non-creamy soup broth and steam helps clear nasal and throat passageways; and
- Immune boosting antioxidants and nutrition from carrots, celery, onion and garlic.
From a practical perspective, itโs light so itโs easy to stomach, doesnโt require much effort to chew or (heaven forbid!) the effort of a knife and fork. And even when youโre sick, you can still appreciate the tastiness of a beautiful Chicken Noodle soup!
* Man Flu official definition according to Dictionary.com: โa case of the common cold as suffered by a man, implying that he is exaggerating the debilitatingย effects of the illnessโ Just sayingโโฆ..
How to make this good old fashioned chicken noodle soup
Yes thereโs more steps than quick and easy chicken noodle soup recipes, but it is so worth it because this broth is something money canโt buy!
Simmer (donโt boil!) a whole chicken with broth flavourings (celery, carrot, garlic, peppercorns, herbs) for 1.5 hours to 2 hours until the flesh is tender enough to shred without effort;
Remove scumย that floats to the surfaceย once or twice;
Remove the chickenย and the carrot etc;
Shred the chicken. Youโll need just under half for this recipe, save the rest for other uses;
Make it even healthier โ and the broth even clearer! Refrigerate the broth so the fat hardens on the surface, then scoop it off.
Sautรฉย onion, garlic, carrot and celery slowly โ The slower, the better! The vegetables become sweeter with a more intense flavour;
Add homemade broth and noodles. Once the noodles are almost cooked, toss the chicken back in just to heat up;
Serve!
Best pasta for Chicken Noodle Soup
You can use any type of noodles or pasta for Chicken Noodle Soup.ย Short twisted egg noodles and pasta shapes are ideal โ for ease of eating.
I tend to use whatever I have. For long straight pastas like fettuccine (which is what I used because I had it), just break them into 3 or 4 pieces for ease of eating.
How to ensure your soup broth is clear
One of the things we all love about a great chicken noodle soup is how clear the broth is. Transparent โ yet full of flavour! Thereโs a few tricks to the clear broth:
Simmer the chicken really gently. Harder boil gets the chicken jiggling around = murkier broth
Scoop the scum off the surface (#2 in photo below);
Let the broth settle (or refrigerate overnight). Youโll find that the bottom of the broth becomes darker as โstuffโ settles on the base of the pot. Then gently pour the broth into the soup pot, leaving behind the darker broth that settled to the bottom of the pot;
Donโtย brown theย sautรฉed onion,ย carrots and celery. Brown veggies = brown broth!
Donโt stir the pasta while it boils. That activates the starch in the pasta, making the broth cloudier.
What to do with leftover chicken
You probably wonโt even use half the meat on the chicken for this Chicken Noodle Soup. So hereโs a few ideas for things to make with the leftover cooked chicken:
White Chicken Enchiladasย orย Quesadillasย (just pan fry shredded chicken briefly with Quesadilla seasoning)
Chineseย Fried Riceย or try THAI Fried Rice!
Make aย Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup!
I kept the veggies in the soup fairly classic, using just onion, carrots and celery. But donโt let my lack of imagination deter you โ add whatever you want! โ Nagi xx
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup โ fromย scratch!
Watch how to make it
Homemade chicken noodle soup recipe video!
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup (from scratch!)
Ingredients
Homemade Broth:
- 1.8 kg / 3.5 lb whole chicken , rinsed and cleaned, the best quality you can afford (Note 1)
- 1 head of garlic , cut in half horiztonally
- 2 carrots , cut into chunks
- 2 celery ribs , cut into chunks
- 2 onions , peeled and cut into quarters
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 2 bay leaves , fresh or dried
- 4 thyme sprigs (or 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves)
- 9 โ 10 cups water (enough to just cover chicken)
Soup:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion , diced
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 medium carrots , cut in quarters lengthwise then chopped
- 2 celery ribs , cut into 1 cm/ 1/2โณ thick pieces
- 2 cups shredded chicken (from homemade broth)
- 2 litres / 2 quarts homemade chicken broth (above)
- 200 g/ 6 oz egg noodles or pasta of choice (Note 3)
- 2 โ 3 tsp Vegeta or other stock powder (Note 4)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 4 thyme sprigs , optional
- 1 bay leaf , optional
- Finely chopped parsley , for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Broth:
- Place the chicken in a large pot. Add remaining Broth ingredients, then add enough water so the chicken is just covered (too much water = weak broth).ย
- Cover with lid, bring the water to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Then adjust heat so itโs simmering GENTLY with the lid on. Simmer 1.5 hours until chicken is tender and easily comes off the bone. (Or 8 hours on low in a slow cooker)
- Scoop scum off surface once or twice during first 30 minutes.
- Transfer chicken to pan. Shred meat and discard bones. You'll only need half the chicken meat, save the rest for another purpose.
- Remove carrots, celery etc from broth, and discard. Optional: Chop carrot and celery, add back into soup with chicken. (Note 5)
- Optional: Refrigerate soup for a few hours until the fat sets, then scoop the fat off the surface (I do this, healthier & makes soup clearer).
Soup:
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium meat. Add onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots, cook for 5 minutes until softened and a bit sweet, donโt let them brown.
- Turn heat up to medium high. Gently pour 8 cups broth in (top up with water if necessary), leaving behind residue settled in the bottom of the broth pot.ย
- Add Vegeta (stock powder), thyme, bay leaf and pepper. Stir.
- When it starts bubbling, add noodles/pasta. Cook for time per packet MINUS 2 minutes. Stir gently only once or twice (Note 6).
- Add half the chicken, stir (it warms quickly), then season with salt and pepper to taste โ season well!
- Serve soup immediately, garnished with fresh parsley.
Recipe Notes:
1. Chicken size: This recipe will work fine for any chicken larger than 1.5kg/3lb. Any smaller and the broth flavour may be slightly lacking but you can just top up flavour with Vegeta, or chicken or vegetable stock powder/crumbled bouillon cube.ย Will also work with: drumsticks, bone in skin on thighs. 3. Noodles: Any pasta or noodles work perfectly here. Short, wide twisted noodles/pasta are ideal for ease of eating. Break Lon strand pasta into 3 or 4. I typically use whatever I have โ I used fettuccine in the photos/video. 4. Vegeta โ Vegeta is a brand of vegetable stock powder, labelled โGourmet Seasoningโ and โAll Purpose Seasoningโ in the US & Canada. See here for a photo, video, and here it is on Amazon US. Read in this post about Vegeta and MSG misconceptions! Itโs my favourite stock powder to use in soup broths because of the flavour, colour, clarity and that you get little โbitsโ in the soup.ย Itโs sold in the herb & spice aisle of supermarkets here in Australia. You can use stock powder (same amount)or crumbled bouillon cube (1 for each teaspoon)ย โ use chicken or vegetable.ย 5. Cooked carrots & celery โ I tend to discard because stove simmering for this long makes them extremely soft, bordering on mushy. If using slow cooker, they tend to have a better texture so I chop and toss them in (like in Slow Cooker Ham Bone Soup). But you can add them if you want โ extra veg! 6. Stirring lotsย = activates pasta starch = cloudy broth 7. How to store Chicken Noodle Soup: Noodles bloat! So best to separate the noodles and veggies from the soup, then store separately. Will keep for 3 โ 4 days in the fridge. Broth will freeze for months. Things to make with Leftover Chicken: Youโll only use 1/2 the chicken, if that. See in post for a list of suggestions of things to make! 8. Nutrition per serving.
Nutrition Information:
Originally published May 2017. Updated with new words, new photos, a better video. Very minor changes to recipe to streamline / improve flavour slightly!
Life of Dozer
When I take him to a park, all I have to do is find a bird in a tree. Then he exercises himself.
Can one use a frozen chicken for this?
Absolutely yes Paul! Just thaw it out first! N x
Perfect comfort food for this time of year! The soup was delicious and so easy to make. It was my first time making homemade broth, and it was so much better than the boxed stuff! (I didnโt end up adding any stick powder)
Hi Nagi! Iโll be making your chicken noodle soup tomorrow. You indicate to season the soup well with salt and pepper however you didnโt indicate how much salt. Would the salt be in addition to the Vegeta? Thanks, Tanja
I cooked this for my husband and kids tonight as my husband has a sore throat. He normally hates soup and he said to me โthis soup is very good!โ Thanks for the recipe!!! I canโt wait to try your other recipes now!!
Youโve done it again! You always help make my family think Iโm a great cook. I couldnโt believe everyone went back for seconds.
Do you not use any salt at all?
Such a great recipe! I just recently found your recipeโs and I am so Looking forward to trying them all! But I will say this soup was absolutely delicious and definitely reminded me of my grammomโs chicken soup!! Thank you for sharing! ~XXX~
I bought a whole chicken today โ first time ever for a whole one. While searching for how to turn it into chicken soup I found your recipe. Looking forward to giving it a try tomorrow. I do not have the garlic so hoping that is not a problem.
Good luck cooking one for the first time! I am sure it will be great! N x
This is my favorite chicken noodle soup recipe and my son loves it!
We made this soup as part of recovery from a tummy bug. It was perfect! So delicious and so simple. Itโs a keeper. Thank you!
Outstandingโjust like every other recipe of yours that Iโve tried. Thank you for such wonderful and thorough instructions. This soup was so much fun to make and the entire house smells incredible! Thank you.
This soup was perfect for my partner & I as weโre in iso fighting off a bug & awaiting covid test results! Delicious, gentle on a sore throat & the ultimate comfort food. Thank you!
Feel better Belinda!! N x
Making soup now and notice garlic is crossed outโฆ.why? Should I use the garlic, half or none?
Hi Patricia โ I think you might have ticked the shopping list box which crosses off the ingredient! The garlic is still in the recipe on my version! N x
I absolutely love all your recipes you post. Making your chicken soup todayโฆagain!!!
Hi Nagi
When you move the serves per person scale it still says add 8 cups of water would this be correct or a glitch in technology?
We love all of your recipes !
I will look into that! Thanks N x
Hi Jo! I just added a note in the recipe about scaling. If you change the scaling to account for chicken size, it does change the water but please ignore it. You want to use enough water to JUST cover the chicken but aim for 2.25 litres/quarts at most because if you use much more than this, the flavour in the broth will be too diluted. The scaler unfortunately isnโt smart enough to cater for this constant in a recipe like this! Luckily I donโt have too many recipes like this. ๐ N x
Is there a way to make this into a creamy chicken noodle soup?
Iโve made a roux to thicken chicken noodle soup before and it has worked well.
Great recipe I have made per instructions many times. Occasionally for a change instead of noodles I add mini cheese tortellini and just before serving a bit of fresh torn baby spinach. This is the only recipe I found that suggests refrigerating the broth overnight to remove the fat. Good for you!!! I personally do not like the feel of greasy chicken broth in soup.
Great recipe! Added about 5 more cups of water and a small pack of chicken nibbles along with the 1.8kg whole chicken. Added slightly more veg as well. Used Ramen noodles. Very comforting. Thank you for another 5-star recipe, Nagi! x
Your recipes are always spot on and yes, they make us all better cooks. Love your accuracy/reliable.
Good morning Nagi
I love all your recipie and all the notes you provide. Your recipies are the best Iโve come across ever. Thank you for making me a good cook.
Cheers Christina