Wishing you a warm pot of healing chicken soup

It seems like the world could use some extra warm hugs and healing right now. We have a tradition in our home that when we’re feeling under the weather, we make, what our Nana Shirley calls, “liquid gold,” or chicken soup! Taking care of ourselves is the Jewish value Shmirat HaGuf (caring for the body).

how to make jewish chicken soup — (Photo credit Henrique Felix)

I never really loved chicken soup until after I got married and tasted my mother-in-law’s delicious recipe. The broth is a rich golden color, full of chunks of chicken and vegetables. When my girls were young, we had a tradition to make it each time Nana visited from Maryland. Watching her work is like magic, she knows just the right amount of everything to add (a schtickle - small amount in yiddish - of this and a schtickle of that) without even measuring. I discovered over the years that she added a secret ingredient. It was a sweet potato!

Nana’s secret ingredient in her chicken soup is a whole sweet potato! Shhh. Don’t tell anyone! :) (Photo Credit Andre Guerra)

Here’s the way I make Nana Shirley’s chicken soup!

You will need:

6-quart soup pot
4-quarts water
4 split chicken breasts (or 2 whole chicken breasts) with skin and bones attached (about 4 pounds)
1 medium sweet potato (a sweet potato, not a yam)
5 medium carrots
3 medium parsnips
4 or 5 stalks of celery
2 whole onions
6 cloves of garlic
Handful of fresh parsley and dill
4 teaspoons of salt
2 teaspoons of pepper
2 tablespoons sugar

First open your package of chicken. I like to remove the very thick congealed fat that’s attached to the skin. Place the breasts bone side down in the pot. Wash your hands and then add 3 quarts of water. Place the pot on the stove and set to medium high until it starts to boils.

While you’re waiting for the water to boil, peel the sweet potato, carrots, onions, parsnips and garlic. Kids can help - there’s a lot to peel! (I like to leave all the vegetables whole so they don’t get mushy while the soup simmers). Take the celery and remove 4 or 5 pieces that still have leaves on the stalks and rinse, along with the parsley and dill. Measure the salt, pepper and sugar in a small bowl and set aside. Kids are great at measuring too.

Go back and check on your pot. By now, the water should be gently boiling. You’ll notice some foam on top of the water. This is the fat on the chicken that’s melting away. Take a spoon and carefully scoop the foam out into a small cup. Keep skimming away for about 15 minutes or so until almost all the top of the broth is clear. Don’t worry if there’s a little left. It will eventually dissolve into the top of the soup.

Now it’s time to add the vegetables, salt, pepper and sugar. Add one additional quart of water to cover all the veggies and place the celery and herbs on top. Bring the broth to a boil, then place the lid loosely on top and lower the heat to a gentle bubbling simmer for about 2 ½ to 3 hours.

When your soup is ready, take a slotted spoon and remove the chicken pieces, vegetables and herbs. I like to put it all in a big bowl. When it’s cool, take the chicken and transfer to a plate. Remove the skin and bones and shred the chicken with your fingers or two forks. Put half the chicken in the soup pot and save the other half for something else, like chicken salad. Or you can use it all in the soup too (if you like a lot of chicken in your soup - it’s up to you)!

Now cut the carrots, parsnips and onion into chunks, and put it back into the pot of soup. I like to discard the celery, herbs, garlic and the sweet potato. I’ve found that once cut, the sweet potato crumbles very easily in the soup. If you’d like to include it, cut it up and put it directly into the soup bowls. After the chicken and veggies have been added back to the soup, taste it and see if it needs any additional salt. If you think so, add 1/4 of a teaspoon at a time (you can do this with the pepper too).

Chicken soup is wonderful for Shabbat and Jewish holidays, but don’t forget to make some when you’re feeling under the weather. It’s like getting a warm delicious hug from Nana - and she’s a registered nurse too, so she knows how to take care of everyone.

There is a beautiful Jewish healing prayer called the Mi Shebeirach. For everyone who is in need of healing, I am sending you a r'fuah sh'leimah - the renewal of body and the renewal of spirit.

For more Shabbat activities, click here to make mini challah, magical unicorn challah, DIY Shabbat flowers and DIY kid-friendly Shabbat candle lighting set. We also have a special activity to “I spy” a sweet Shabbat and to do an act of kindness by delivering little loaves of love.

Shabbat shalom and be well. <3

~Jennifer