Cold Fighting Chicken Noodle Soup
by Chungah
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
This cold fighting chicken noodle soup is the most soothing, nourishing soup for cold and flu season. It’s easy to make and freezer-friendly!
Featured Comment
As flu season is upon us, this chicken soup has been an absolute lifesaver. The veggies and garlic, ginger, lemongrass, lemon juice combo here does absolute wonders and has you feeling better and back on your feet in no time. It’s just so darn cozy and soothing, and it just warms your soul in so many ways.
why you’ll love this cold fighting chicken noodle soup
- Shortcut chicken noodle soup. This is the best kind of time-saving shortcut chicken soup that doesn’t require an entire chicken or hours of simmering, perfect for those busy weeknights or when you’re short on time.
- Soothing and reduces inflammation. Even when you’re not sick, the warm broth is incredibly nourishing, soothing and so satisfying, especially when your appetite is low, packed with so many cozy, healing, anti-inflammatory ingredients.
- Amazingly freezer-friendly. This soup is perfect to have stashed in the freezer ready for the next time you’re feeling under the weather, giving you the necessary fuel to fight off the virus and get you on your feet in no time!
How to make cold fighting chicken noodle soup
- Sauté the vegetables. Cook the onion, carrots, and celery in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat, until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Add the aromatics. Stir in the garlic, ginger, lemongrass, thyme, and rosemary until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the liquids. Stir in the chicken stock, water and bay leaves.
- Simmer. Add the chicken and let it simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 10-12 minutes. Carefully remove the chicken and shred using two forks.
- Add the pasta. Stir in the pasta and cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes.
- Return the chicken. Stir in the shredded chicken until the chicken is warmed through. Then add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
- Serve. Garnish with chives (or parsley) and serve warm with crusty bread.
pro tip
Planning ahead: cook the noodles separately for leftovers.
If you are planning for leftovers or freezing for later, cook and store the noodles separately.
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Cold Fighting Chicken Noodle Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Chicken breasts can absolutely be used here but chicken thighs have more dark meat and a higher fat content which will yield juicier, more flavorful chicken.
Yes! Add the shredded chicken towards the end of cooking time, letting the soup simmer until the chicken is warmed through.
Lemongrass paste will do wonders here.
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent and concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. For example, the correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh thyme = 1 teaspoon dried thyme.
Orzo, rotini or even elbow macaroni are excellent substitutes for the ditalini pasta.
Yes! Freeze the leftovers without the pasta (or else they will get mushy) in individual freezer bags. Label, date, and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight and reheat gently on the stovetop, stirring in freshly cooked pasta until warmed through.
Cold Fighting Chicken Noodle Soup
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon minced lemongrass
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 5 cups chicken stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- ¾ cup ditalini pasta
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in garlic, ginger, lemongrass, thyme and rosemary until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in chicken stock, bay leaves and 1 cup water. Add chicken and bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 10-12 minutes. Remove chicken and shred, using two forks; set aside.
- Stir in pasta and cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes.
- Stir in chicken and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately, garnished with chives, if desired.
Equipment
Notes
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your soup. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety. Homemade stock is even better.
- Use ginger and lemongrass. Ginger and lemongrass are a powerhouse for colds. Both have anti-inflammatory properties, soothing sore throats and alleviating cold symptoms.
- Fresh herbs are best. Although you can certainly substitute dried herbs, fresh herbs are ideal here, delivering the best kind of flavor.
- Repurpose leftover rotisserie chicken. Leftover rotisserie chicken is one of the best shortcut hacks to speed up prep time and maximize leftovers. Shred or dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces, adding the chicken to the soup at the very end of cooking just until warmed through. Pro tip: save the carcass of the rotisserie chicken for homemade chicken stock!
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice. Lemon juice will elevate your chicken noodle soup, adding a fresh, bright flavor and balancing out all the saltiness and richness of the soup.
- Freeze without the pasta. Freeze the leftover soup without the ditalini pasta in individual freezer bags for portioning and easy thawing overnight, reheating gently on the stovetop until warmed through and stirring in freshly cooked pasta just before serving.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
My husband said it was the best chicken noodle soup I have made before, thanks for the recipe!
So delicious,
Have been trying to find something aromatic hearty and warming for the past few weeks and this hit the spot! Can’t wait until I have it again. I found the inclusion of lemongrass and ginger added so much flavour without overpowering the rest of the subtle soup and made me feel like I could fight off any cold or flu. I hadn’t read this blog before but look forward to finding more recipes in future.
This soup was a total lifesaver. Both kids became sick the day my husband was scheduled for surgery. We couldn’t cancel it. So I had to drag them to the hospital. Thankfully it was a small short procedure. When we got home I made this chicken noodle soup, it was a big hit. The most my kids had eaten in a few days. Then, two days afterward, once my children were better, I was still caring for my husband post-op. And I caught my kids illness. I was in tears I was so mad. Two sick kids for a week. One temporarily disabled husband. And now I am sick while my husband is still in recovery. If there was ever a time to be ill, not was NOT the time. Thankfully, I had plenty of this soup leftover and I almost cried when I remembered it in the fridge. So I’m currently banished to my bed, cup of soup in hand (I put mine in a mug for easy eating), and watching National Geographic. I hate being sick with ever fiber of my being, what mother doesn’t?! But this soup has made a very very long week/weekend a bit less horrible. I’ve sent the recipe to everyone I know. And Pinterest. Thank you for this recipe!
I made this recipe as written except I substituted chicken breast for the chicken thighs. It was absolutely delicious. My favorite chicken noodle soup ever.
Amazing! The lemon makes it perfect! Whole family loved it!!
I was so skeptical about ginger and lemon in chicken noodle soup but I’m so glad I tried it! My bf is so sick and I know ginger helps so much with colds. It’s awesome! I left out the salt and used low-sodium broth. But put more garlic in it. There are so many flavors in this that it really doesn’t need the salt. I also used those frozen egg noodles and they thickened it up a little on their own. I’m def saving this recipe!
Delicious! I didn’t add the lemon and bought the chives but forgot to add them haha. This soup is really simple, but a nice spin on chicken soup due to the grated ginger. Very yummy!
I made this for my husband who has come down with a cold and having a loss of appetite. He loved it! (We both did). I doubled the recipe to have leftovers, but used elbow pasta. We also dipped torn pieces of a sourdough bread, which enhanced the delightful lemon flavor. The fresh herbs from our garden made this soup wonderfully aromatic and healing. Thank you for the recipe!
So yummy!
I’ve made this for my sick girlfriend. Typically, she’s picky, but she loved this chicken noodle recipe. She was sick, I was bored, and love to cook. So win, win chicken dinner. I would definitely rate this a five star rating. Thank you for sharing your recipe. Hope the rest of you enjoy it too. Cheers!
This a good receipt. I would highly advice not to put in a full amount of lemon. For me it was great tasting Proerty to the lemon add. With the lemon it become over powered with lemon taste. Next time I will for go the lemon.
Good luck.
Ken
Just made this tonight for my husband who’s fighting a cold. Used a combination of no salt and regular chicken stock to reduce the sodium content a bit since he has high blood pressure issues but still very good! Thanks for another great recipe!
Thank you for sharing, it took the basic chicken noodle soup to another level. I loved the ginger in there.
I will be using this recipe over and over! I actually love cooking and chopping veggies and such, but out of necessity this time I did everything the easy way… shredded carrots, frozen chopped onions, pre-chopped celery, and tubes of ginger and lemongrass, jarred garlic, dried herbs Can’t imagine how much more I would’ve loved it if I did it the “right” way. I also added a TB of turmeric and 2-3 TB of nutritional yeast flakes (didnt measure). It’s amazing, came together fast And my husband with the flu is loving it.
When I’m sick, I typically go for canned chicken noddle soup. After trying this recipe, I won’t be buying another can again! It is so good and the flavors come together so well. As other reviewers suggested, I added some turmeric as well to boost the healing properties. Also, I used orzo since I already had a box in the pantry, and used the same quantity as the recipe stated for the other pasta shape. I found that the orzo absorbed a lot of the broth, so I added an additional cup of water to get it back to the brothy consistency I was looking for.
Excellent soup and very simple to make. Slight deviation on my part. This time I roasted and used a whole head of garlic in addition to using the cloves of garlic as called for in the recipe. But also perfect as written.
This was so YUM! So many flavors!
We are vegetarian, so instead of chicken, I used a can of white beans. It was delishhhhh!
Thanks for your recipe.
Made this delicious soup tonight for my husband who has the sniffles and a cough. It smelled great from the start and so darn good the hubby wanted seconds. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Really love this soup. I used bone broth and little star pasta. Super easy to put together once all the chopping is done. Thank you for the recipe!
This soup is SO, so good. I have a horrible cold and it’s exactly what i needed. Only downside is having to make it for myself because my husband (allegedly) can’t read a recipe. Thanks for sharing!