O’Charley’s Chicken Harvest Soup
¼ lb butter
¾ cup flour
2 ½ to 3 quarts water
2 tbsp chicken base
2 quarts chicken stock (refer chicken tenders recipe below )
1 lb fresh carrots, diced
6 to 7 ribs celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
¾ tspn white pepper
¾ tspn garlic powder
cooked chicken tenders (see recipe below)
10 oz egg noodles
In a large pot, melt butter. Add flour and cook 3 to 4 minutes.
Slowly add the 2½ to 3 quarts of water, stirring constantly. (The amount of water used depends on how thick you want the soup.)
Simmer 20 minutes. Add chicken base and chicken stock.
While chicken stock mixture is cooking, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a separate pot. Add carrots, celery and onion. Cook 6 minutes. Drain.
Add to chicken stock mixture along with white pepper and garlic powder. Simmer 10 minutes. Add diced cooked chicken tenders.
Cook noodles in a separate pan of boiling water for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Add to soup. (Noodles will continue cooking in the soup.) Simmer soup 2 or 3 minutes more and serve. Makes 8 to 10 servings.
For Chicken Tenders :
2 quarts water
2 tbsp chicken base
1 small onion, cut into quarters
½ rib celery, cut into 2" segments
2 ½ lbs chicken tenders, thawed
In a large pot, bring water, chicken base, onion and celery to simmer. Add chicken. Gently simmer until done, about 5 to 6 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain chicken and reserve stock. (This can be used for the stock in the preceding recipe.) Place chicken in the freezer to stop the cooking process.
When cool, use a sharp knife to dice into ½" cubes. Add to soup.