This is the season for soups and there are so many ways to make them. I like to make broths, use a bit and stick the rest in the freezer. Those broths serve as a base for soups or can be used for sipping, cooking rice or sauteeing vegetables. Bone broths can be very nourishing for those who are willing and there are also great veggie and vegan options. Consider this a soup recipe smorgasbord.
Old Fashioned Chicken Soup
Ingredients
1 whole chicken
1 TBSP fat of choice for cooking (olive oil, coconut oil, butter, ghee, rendered lard)
3 cloves of garlic
1 onion
2 carrots
1 parsnip
3 to 4 quarts of water
Herbs of your choice (parsley, rosemary and thyme are some of my favorites)
Add 1 TBSP of fat (olive oil, coconut oil, butter, ghee, lard) to your pot and sautee the garlic and onions in it. Place the chicken and vegetables in the pot, cover it with water and put the lid on. Bring the soup to a boil and then turn it down to a simmer and let it cook for a couple of hours.
When the soup is ready strip the meat of off the bones and store the bones for making bone broth. My mother still makes this when any of us are under the weather. It’s called “Jewish Mom’s penicillin” for good reason.
Basic Chicken Bone Broth with Options to Upgrade
This is your medicinal “gold”. It can be a base for another soup or simply used to provide minerals and amino acids. I sometimes sip this broth when I’m feeling under the weather. It was of great importance to me when I was working on healing my intestinal lining. I also love to freeze it in ice cube trays to be used for cooking greens or as the liquid in a stir fry. Of course you can use other bones (pork and beef for example) in the same way.
Ingredients
Bones
About 3 quarts of water
Splash of vinegar (this is said to assist in leaching minerals from the bones)
Upgrade Options (to be added in the last couple of hours of cooking)
Seaweed such as kombu or arame
Reishi mushroom slices
Astragalus Slices
Codonopsis Slices
*Reishi, astragalus and codonopsis are herbal adaptogens that have the ability to aid in immune building and nourishing your whole system. I often bundle them up in a bag made from cheesecloth that can be easily removed before serving.
Take the chicken bones from your “Old Fashioned Chicken Soup” and put them in a crockpot. Another option is to save the bones each time you eat chicken, you don’t necessarily have to make soup first. Add 3 quarts of water (or as much as you need to cover the bones) and a splash of vinegar. Cook on low for 10-12 hours. I like to add seaweed and adaptogens for the last couple of hours to impart additional essential minerals.
Veggie Mineral Broth
There are a couple of ways to do this. One option is to save your vegetable clippings and peels, carrot tops, etc and put in the freezer. When you have a whole bag full it is time to make both. Another option is to get fresh vegetables and cook them to make a broth, and of course a combination works well too. Here’s a sample recipe, but as usual run with it, tweek it, make it yours!
Ingredients
3 unpeeled potatoes of any or every color (since we are using the peel it is important to go organic here)
2 unpeeled onions
1 bunch of celery
5 large and unpeeled carrots
1 unpeeled sweet potato
6 unpeeled cloves of garlic
1 bunch of cilantro or parsley
A small handful or a few strips of seaweed (depending on the kind you use)
Upgrade Options (to be added in the last couple of hours of cooking)
Reishi mushroom slices
Astragalus Slices
Codonopsis Slices
Rinse and chop the vegetables. Add them to a large stockpot and fill to about four inches below the rim. Cover the pot and bring it to a boil. Once the soup boils remove the lid, decrease the heat to low and let simmer for another two hours. This is the time to add any of your upgrades. When the soup starts to taste delicious and rich you’ll know it’s ready. Strain out the vegetables and enjoy!
My Favorite Immune Boosting Soup
Use any of the above broths as a base. This is the soup that brings me comfort in the winter while at the same time tantalizing my taste buds and making me feel strong. It’s become popular with my clients and they’ve offered suggestions that make it into a meal. One woman adds cooked rice noodles to please her kids and another puts a fried egg on top for added protein. I imagine that noodles, an egg and a sprinkling of cilantro would be a perfect winter meal.
Ingredients
3 or 4 cloves of garlic
about an inch of peeled and chopped ginger root
2 or 3 potatoes
some carrots
shitake mushrooms
1 TBSP fat of your choosing (ghee, butter, coconut or olive oil)
3 slices of astragalus root
2 chunks of dried reishi mushroom
3 TBSP miso paste (I love South River’s Adzuki Bean Miso)
4 quarts liquid (preferably one of the broths from above but you can also use a combination of broth and water)
Saute garlic, onions and ginger (if you like) in your fat of choice. Once they are soft and it starts to smell good add the other vegetables. When they are soft add your liquid. Let the whole mixture simmer for 1-2 hours. In the last 45 minutes add your adaptogens (astragalus and reishi mushroom). For easy retrieval you can wrap these in cheesecloth or a muslin bag. This is not necessary however, if they wind up in your bowl just don’t eat them as they are very woody. When you take it off the heat you can add 2-3 TBSP miso for flavor and the benefits of fermented goodness.
Have fun with these recipes. They are yours to run with. My recipes have morphed and changed over the years as influenced by taste, client feedback and the suggestions of other herbalists and nutrition enthusiasts. The main goal is to nourish yourself and have fun along the way!
To Your Health,
