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It’s pretty darn cold here and everyone knows how bad this season has been with colds and flu so I try to do everything I can to help fight off those pesky germs. This good for you soup is loaded with vitamin rich vegetables and goodness and has just enough of a kick to scare that nasty cold and flu bug out! I cannot take all the credit for this delicious soup – that would go to my beautiful friend, Carmen. She has a blog foodigen1.blogspot.com where she shares recipes, book reviews, gardening, entertaining, and much more. I came across her recipe for Thai Inspired Chicken Noodle Soup last winter and made it and loved it. I’ve added my own little touches to the soup, but the staples are the same. You can see Carmen’s original recipe here. Be sure to check out her blog!

This soup is light, but packs a punch with flavor. The combination of flavors from the hearty vegetables to the fresh green onions and cilantro at the end really compliment each other well. I just can’t seem to get enough of the flavor melody of lime and cilantro. The freshness and bright taste of those two ingredients awaken your tired taste buds and are just what the doctor ordered!  Even the salon where I get my hair cut by the super talented Clint is called Cilantro! Hmmmm, Coincidence??? What ties this soup all together is the deliciously light broth base with that hint of a kick from the cayenne that you feel in the back of your throat. Don’t worry if you are not a fan of spicy flavors, you can reduce the spice level down to your liking, or kick it up a notch if you are feeling feisty!

Thai Fusion Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

2 C Cooked Chicken, chopped or shredded. I shredded leftover white and dark meat chicken from a whole oven roasted chicken I made earlier in the week.

2 C Carrots –  sliced

2 C Celery – sliced

1 large onion – diced fine

2 cloves of garlic – minced

3 Quarts of chicken stock or chicken broth. This could be homemade from scratch or with chicken soup base, or store-bought. I made it with 3 TBS Chicken Soup Base mixed in 4 C of boiling water and then added an additional 8 C of water to the soup for a total of 3 quarts.

8-10 oz of Asian style noodles. I use 3 bundles of Somen noodles.

1 TBS Olive Oil

Ground Cayenne pepper to taste. I use about 1/8 teas

Kosher or Sea Salt and pepper to taste. I use about 1 teas of each

 

Garnish:

A squeeze of fresh lime

Chopped green onions (white and green parts)

Chopped cilantro

Sriracha Hot Sauce

 

Directions:

Heat oil in a large pot. Add in diced onion and sauté over medium heat, stirring occasionally for a few minutes until onions soften and become translucent.

In the meantime, chop the carrots and celery and add them to the pot with the onions.

Stir and cook vegetables for 3-4 minutes more and then add in garlic and cooked chicken and cook for another minute. Add in the 3 Qts of chicken stock and bring soup to a boil. Boil for a few minutes until vegetables are a little tender. Add in cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper to taste. Turn heat down to low and let soup simmer. In the meantime, chop up your cilantro, green onions and have the lime ready.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and boil the noodles per package directions. Drain the noodles and rinse with cold water.

To serve, add some noodles to a serving bowl, and then ladle the hot soup over the noodles.

Garnish with chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, and a squeeze of lime.

I like to finish with a bit of Sriracha as a final garnish for this soup.

Breath it in, take a sip.  Doesn’t that make you feel better?

This makes about 5 quarts of soup.

For leftovers, I combine the noodles into the soup, but save the chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, and lime wedges to use as garnish plus Sriracha when heating up individual bowls.

Enjoy and thanks again to Carmen for sharing her wonderful recipe and inspiring this one!