A warm bowl of comfort. That’s exactly what this is. But it’s not only that! It’s also healing, delicious and packed with nutrient dense veggies and plenty of immune-boosting ingredients such as turmeric, lemon, onion, garlic and bone broth, to help you fight, or fight off, winter colds and flu naturally! But don’t save this for when you’re feeling funky. It’s a warm and cozy winter meal any night of the week!
The bone broth makes this soup extra healing (and great for your gut!), but you can also use regular chicken broth or stock. You can find my recipe for healing bone broth here or choose a store bought version.
I make this soup 2 ways, sometimes with gluten free egg noodles, sometimes with zucchini noodles (for extra nutrition!), and I highly recommend it both ways! If you want to replace the egg noodles with zucchini , use 2 small/medium size zucchini and spiralize them. Add them to the soup toward the end of the cooking time (when you add the chicken), just so they get heated through.
I hope you don’t get sick this winter, but if so, fight back with food! This is one of the most delicious ways to use food as medicine. Enjoy!
Immune Boosting Chicken Noodle Soup
Serves 6
Ingredients
1 pound chicken breast (cooked, shredded)
2 tablespoons avocado or olive oil
1 onion, diced
6 carrots, sliced
4 stalks celery, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon turmeric
8 cups chicken bone broth
8 oz. egg noodles (I use Jovial brand gluten-free)
1 tablespoon lemon zest
juice of one lemon
½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
Sea salt
Fresh pepper
Directions
To cook chicken: Bring a small pot of water to boil. Add chicken breasts. Poach until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken from pot, then shred. Set aside. (While chicken is poaching, prepare the rest of the ingredients and make the soup. The chicken gets added at the end.)
In a large soup pot, heat avocado or olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for about 5 minutes until softened. Add carrots and celery and saute for another 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute 1 minute. Add bay leaves, onion powder, oregano, thyme, and turmeric and saute 30 seconds before adding chicken broth.
When the broth begins to simmer, add the egg noodles and cook until al dente (cooked, but still firm). Add the shredded chicken to the pot and cook until heated through, about 2-3 more minutes. Turn off the heat and remove the bay leaves. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and parsley. Season with sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
