Kosher Korner: Omi’s Amazing Chicken Soup

This Friday night, I’m going to host an intimate (and crowded) Shabbat dinner in my apartment as part of Hillel’s quarterly Shabbat Around Westwood (nicknamed ShabbAW). While I could just get it catered with Hillel’s help, I’ve decided midterms be damned, I’m going to cook! Looking through the recipes folder I keep in my Google Drive to plan my menu, I came across the classic dish necessary for any proper Shabbat dinner: chicken soup.

Now, I know every Jew will say that her grandmother makes the best chicken soup in the world, but… this one actually is the best. Passed down from my Omi (the German term of endearment for “grandma”) to my mom, and onward to my sister — the chef of our generation — this staple is something I’ve come to anticipate and love every Friday night and holiday I spend at home. My sister finally got around to teaching it to me last year, and now I have the distinct pleasure of passing this special recipe on to you, fine reader. So, whether you’re preparing a Shabbat meal of your own, coming down with the sniffles, or just wanting something warm and delicious to sip on as the season turns from summer to slightly-less-summer, this chicken soup recipe will serve you well. Make some matzah balls from the Manischewitz mix and maybe some noodles if you’re in the mood, and you’re in business! If you can wait the four hours it takes to make, that is.

Omi‘s Amazing Chicken Soup Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 8-piece package of chicken
Optional: chicken necks (or bones if necks not available) — sounds gross, but makes flavor ah-mazing!!!
2 onions, quartered (white is preferred, but red works too)
6-8 garlic cloves
1 package of carrots (about 6-8)
2 inner celery stocks (remove outer dark green pieces and only use inner light green pieces. Be sure to keep the leaves!)
2-3 parsnips
Fresh Italian parsley (about a handful or package)
Fresh dill (about a handful or package)
Optional: leeks (2-4)

Directions:

Take skin off chicken and rinse meat.
In a big pot put chicken (and necks/bones), onions, garlic, and 14 cups of water.
Bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn down heat to tiny itsy bitsy bubbles boiling. Skim off nasty scum.
Cook for 1.5 hours, uncovered.
Add vegetables and herbs. Cover with lid.
Cook for additional 2+ hours.
Take out large pieces of chicken and vegetables and strain the broth.
Serving suggestions: enjoy with a matzah ball, noodles, and/or some sliced soup-vegetables and soup-chicken pieces.

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Hillel’s ShabbAW is Friday, November 7, and is hosted by various students in their apartments around Westwood. To find out who is hosting, and RSVP, click here.

Elyssa Schlossberg

After a successful year serving as Ha’am’s freelance advisor and spiritual guide, bringing you such things as the back of the Ha’Am T-shirt, Elyssa decided to actually join Ha’Am in Fall 2013. After a year exercising her love for nit-picky grammar and spending money as copy editor and business manager, respectively, Elyssa decided to go all in. Tessa thwarted her coup attempt, however, so Elyssa settled for external managing editor. Elyssa is a fourth-year, pre-dental psychobiology major. Her other involvements include serving as vice president of the Hillel Student Board, volunteering at Venice Family Clinic, and membership in Global Brigades and the Pre-Dental Student Outreach Program. In her free time, Elyssa enjoys skateboarding, sleeping, spending way too much time at Hillel, and sharing the rich history of the forgotten orange Crispy M&M character.