Healing Chicken Soup

I was not sure what to call this soup recipe - healing, savory, soothing, satisfying or amazing.  It is all of these things.  I love it when a food can be so nourishing and healing, while also delicious.  This is definitely a recipe you need to try and make a regular part of your diet.  If you have a chronic infection or bowel problems, you need to have this soup or something similar with homemade broth daily, while also eating 100% God's foods for complete healing.  The key to this soup's healing power is the homemade bone broth and the fresh herbs.  Don't skip either if you are using this soup for medicinal purposes and not just enjoying as a lunch or dinner meal.  It is also a great meal choice when you are under a lot of stress or feel your immune system is low.

Ingredients (I use all organic vegetables):

1 yellow onion, diced
2 - 6 cloves garlic, minced (use more when fighting an illness)
1 tsp grated fresh ginger (optional)
4 - 6 carrots, diced
4 - 6 celery stalks, diced
1 - 2 Tbl extra virgin olive oil

a batch of homemade bone broth (~ 10 cups)
baked chicken, shredded
2/3 - 1 cup long grain brown rice

Dry herbs and spices:
1 tsp organic poultry seasoning
1 tsp coarse sea salt
1 tsp parsley
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp thyme

Fresh basil, parsley, oregano, thyme or cilantro

Dice the onion, celery, carrots (get a good quality knife if you don't have one).  Mince the garlic and shred the ginger.  In a glass or heavy stainless steel pot (don't use aluminum or non-stick), heat the pot and then coat the bottom with olive oil.  Add the diced vegetables and the garlic and ginger.  Saute for a couple minutes until the onions are translucent.

 

Then add the homemade bone broth and the dry herbs and spices.  Cover tightly with lid and bring to a simmer. 

Add the rice and the shredded chicken and turn heat down to low. 





Cook covered at a low temperature setting until the rice is done, typically 1 - 2 hours, stirring occasionally.  You can shred the chicken after it bakes by hand or with a fork.  You can also chop up the chicken into bite size pieces by hand.

You can vary the quantity of vegetables, broth, chicken and rice that you use.  Use more chicken for a hearty meal (I use less when fixing for a person who is sick), use more rice for a filling stew type soup, and use lots of vegetables (slowly build up the quantity and size of the pieces of the vegetables you use if your family is not receptive yet to vegetables in their diet).



When the rice is done, chop up fresh herbs that you have on-hand.  You use a much larger quantity of fresh herbs than dry herbs.  I like to use several tablespoons of basil and parsley (or cilantro), a teaspoon or two of oregano, and about 1/2 teaspoon of thyme leaves per pot of soup.  If you add finely chopped rosemary, just use a little (1/4 tsp.)  Fresh rosemary and thyme are very strong and are two fresh herbs to use sparingly in dishes.

Turn off the heat and move the pot off the hot burner.  You can then add the fresh herbs to the whole pot or dish individual bowls and top each with the a little of each fresh herb.