Cold Fighting Chicken Noodle Soup
by Chungah
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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?
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Delicious! Love the flavours of the fresh rosemary and thyme combined with the lemongrass and lemon. My partner who isn’t a soup fan even went back for seconds.
Excellent! And I’ve been making soups for a long time.
The rosemary and thyme add an interesting finish on the back end. As did the hint of lemon.
Didn’t have lemongrass but will try next time.
Also used large bok choy stems in lieu of celery (as I often do)
then thre in ripped pieces of the leaf the last 5 minutes.
This will be my go-to chicken soup now! Really flavorful !!
Wow wow wow!! This recipe is a game changer! All the fresh ingredients really bumped up this classic recipe! The lemongrass was a challenge to find, but I found it at sprouts in the herbs section. And I didn’t find fresh chives so I excluded that. But this soup was still amazing! I will be sure to find fresh chives next time I make this!
Is there a substitute if you can’t find lemongrass?
I can get fresh lemongrass easily, but still always opt for the lemongrass purée, sold in a tube. I think the brand is Gourmet Garden. Fresh lemongrass is notoriously fibrous & difficult to work with.
This is a fantastic soup! I add more chicken, but that is just our preference.
This quickly became my go to recipe for when I’m feeling under the weather! I found it one day when I had a bit of an upset stomach, I was craving a nice chicken and vegetable soup that wasn’t too rich and wasn’t creamy. I tried this soup and fell in love instantly, not only does it taste DELICIOUS, but it’s light and easy on an upset stomach. Now I make this whenever anyone in the family isn’t feeling well, we all love it!
This soup is so delicious and satisfying and comforting, and has become a family-favorite recipe.
HOLY COW!!!! This is the MOST delicious soup I’ve EVER made❤️❤️. Made for a friend sick with Covid but had a taster bowl, as the chef should……wow. Will be putting this one in the family cookbook.
This is my go-to recipe for chicken noodle soup. The lemon at the end makes it simply perfect. I also like the use of thighs instead of breasts – my kids prefer this recipe to any other recipe option!
Incredible taste! My family loved it!
I did not have noodles, so I added chickpeas instead and was very comforting and nourishing 🙂
Absolutely wonderful soup. My boyfriend has been sick for over two weeks and couldn’t kick it. Runny nose, congestion, fever. Felt 100% better next day. Currently making it now for a sick family member.
This is a phenomenal soup recipe! Truly, people who eat it say, “damn this is delicious!” I add twice as much fresh garlic and a level tablespoon Of fresh rosemary and a slightly less than a tablespoon if I use ground thyme. Sometimes I add more chicken if it is for a main dish. Otherwise this is a perfect recipe!
Just made a batch and the home has a wonderful aroma. The fresh herbs, garlic, onion, carrots, celery, ginger and lemon are a wonderful combination. Sure to cure! Great Chicken Soup Recipe/ a keeper just the was it is.
I needed a relatively quicker than usual yet still hearty recipe for chicken soup for a sick kid. Ummm… this is the best thing I’ve made all month, probably. I had a cup for myself without pasta, or salt and pepper and it was amazing. I will make this again and again.
I found this recipe in 2018 and have been making it ever since! My husband gets sore throats a lot and whenever he’s sick, I make this soup and he loves it. It’s the most comforting thing when you’re sick and it’s packed with flavor!
Can you freeze it? I do – but freeze it without the pasta!
Otherwise, the pasta gets soggy and soaks up all the broth. I just add and cook the pasta while I’m heating up the soup.
Thanks for this great recipe!
My favorite soup recipe ever! The absolute perfect amount of brightness in a salty classic.
I came across your recipe last year when one of my littles was sick! We ended up eating the whole pot that night! This soup helped us all through winter! Now one of my littles is sick again with a fever, and we’ve all had a cough for a few weeks! First thing that came to mind was making your soup!!! Not an hour after eating and I’m having coughing fits and sinus drainage…..which although annoying is just what I need to get this cough to go away! Plus my littles have both also been having healing symptoms! We have leftovers for tomorrow and I prepped for an additional 2 pots for next time we need help getting back on the mend!!I I just love how balanced this is, and the lemon juice at the end totally brings it all together! I tend to use ginger and lemongrass paste, and add some chicken bullion paste!! Other than that and Salt/Pep there is no reason to add anything as this is the perfect soup!
I ate the entire pot of soup myself
So yummy! How would I freeze this or does it freeze well? I’d love to have this on hand for when we get sick like we are right now and I need a healthy soup!
This is great! I cooked a whole chicken all night in the crockpot (I’m a believer some of the healing qualities come from the bone marrow too) and wanted a new chicken soup idea. This was perfect. The lemongrass, ginger and lemon were an interesting twist that gave the soup a little punch without losing that delicious traditional comfort chicken soup I crave. I didn’t have fresh ginger so I used a little dried/ground. I also prefer the wide noodles for that more traditional comfort food feeling. I added some of my stewed chicken broth with the store-bought and poof… delicious homemade healing chicken soup that checks all the boxes. My daughter (the one who is currently sick) loved it too and said the recipe is a keeper! I’ll probably be making a second batch tomorrow. I will probably make step 1 & 2 and freeze some.