“Chicken” Noodle Soup

February 28, 2024

Chicken soup is the number one soup in American hearts and tummies. But all that salt and saturated fat can weigh you down and compromise your health. My version of this fave is certainly not the same; there’s not a chicken within a hundred miles of this pot but it’s satisfying and just might help you make the leap away from soup in a can.

Makes 5-6 servings

Ingredient List:

  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium red onion, finely diced
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, smashed, finely minced
  • Sea salt
  • 2 stalks celery, diced
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 6 cups spring or filtered water
  • 1 lb. ‘chicken style’ seitan
  • 1 tablespoon white miso
  • 8 ounces flat noodles, like linguine or pappardelle, broken into small pieces
  • 3-4 sprigs fresh flatleaf parsley, finely minced for garnish
  • 2 sprigs fresh sage, finely minced for garnish

Step By Step Instructions:

Place oil, onion and garlic in a large pot over medium heat. When the onion begins to sizzle, add a pinch of salt and sauté until translucent, 2-3 minutes. Stir in celery, a pinch of salt and sauté for 1 minute. Stir in carrot, a pinch of salt and sauté for 1 minute. Add bay leaves and water.

Using a sharp knife, shred the seitan so it resembles shredded chicken in texture. Stir into soup. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.

Remove a small amount of broth and puree miso. Stir dissolved miso and noodles and cook over very low heat (taking care not to boil) until noodles are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaves. Serve garnished with parsley and sage.