A flavourful Asian-style vegetable soup with chicken, spinach and noodles.
Asian chicken soup with spinach and noodles – a truly flavourful soup with tender chicken, plenty of vegetables, fresh ginger and lemongrass. It has a lovely full-bodied flavour and a smooth, velvety consistency, and it is just the thing on a cold day when you want something warm, nourishing and comforting.
I make my Asian chicken soup with a whole chicken, which I first simmer with stock cubes, peppercorns and, if I have some lying around, a few vegetable trimmings. That gives the soup the best possible base, and at the same time I get plenty of juicy chicken meat, which goes back into the pot later.
Once the chicken is cooked, I lift it out and let it rest while I strain the stock and measure out the amount I need for the soup. Then I add onion, garlic, carrots, celery, fresh ginger and lemongrass, which I first bash well so it releases plenty of flavour and aroma into the stock.
The vegetables simmer for about 25 minutes, until they are completely tender. Then I remove the lemongrass and blend the vegetables with the stock into a smooth soup. I actually prefer to use a jug blender rather than a stick blender, as it gives an extra fine, even consistency. If you like, you can simply blend the vegetables with some of the stock and then stir everything back together in the pot.
Once the soup is blended, the tender chicken goes back into the pot and everything is heated through. I cook the noodles separately and rinse them briefly in cold water so they don’t stick together. Finally I stir fresh spinach and sliced spring onions into the hot soup, where they only need a moment to wilt.
I serve the soup with the noodles and plenty of the chicken. If you like a little extra heat, I can really recommend topping it with crispy chilli oil. It tastes wonderful with the aromatic soup and gives it a pleasant little kick.
The lemongrass gives the soup a fresh, aromatic flavour, but if you don’t have any, you can season the soup with a little freshly squeezed lime juice instead. It isn’t quite the same, but it adds a lovely freshness that goes really well with the ginger and the other ingredients.
A delicious Asian-inspired chicken soup with noodles and spinach that is both filling and warms you right through. Perfect for the colder months, when a big bowl of homemade soup is hard to beat.
Can the soup be made with chicken breast?
If you want to save a little time, you can use chicken breast instead of a whole chicken.
Just remember that the flavour of the soup depends on the stock – so make a strong base. For about 1.8 litres of liquid I recommend 4 stock cubes, so you still get the deep, rounded flavour that otherwise comes naturally from a simmered chicken.
You will still get a lovely, mild and creamy soup – but the flavour gets that extra lift when the stock is given a little extra care.
Asian chicken soup with spinach and noodles
Ingredients
- 1 large fresh chicken
- (or 600 g chicken breast – see intro)
- 10 peppercorns
- 2-3 chicken stock cubes
- Vegetable trimmings, e.g. spring onions, carrots, celery
- Salt
- Water
For the soup
- 1,8 l stock from the chicken
- 2 onions, halved
- 6 cloves garlic
- 150 g carrots, sliced
- 100 g celery, sliced
- 5 cm fresh ginger, sliced
- 1 stalk lemongrass (optional)*
- 1 lime – if omitting the lemongrass
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
To serve
- 200 g noodles
- 100 g fresh spinach
- 2-3 spring onions, finely sliced
- Crispy chilli oil, optional
Method
- Put the chicken in a large pot and cover it with water. Bring to the boil and skim the surface well.
- Add the peppercorns, stock cubes, a handful of mixed vegetables and salt – turn down the heat, cover and let the chicken simmer gently for about 45 minutes, depending on its size. *Use vegetable trimmings or whatever you have lying around – they are only there to give the stock more flavour.
- *If you are using chicken breasts for the recipe, you can simply poach them in a little stock – they need about 10-15 minutes, depending on size. In that case I recommend making a fresh batch of stock for the soup.
- Lift out the chicken and strain the stock to remove the vegetables, peppercorns and so on. Measure out the amount of stock given in the ingredient list.
- Let the chicken rest while you prepare the soup – then pick the meat from the chicken and cut or shred it into smaller pieces.
- Halve the lemongrass and bash it with the back of a knife to release the essential oils and aroma. Tie the pieces together with a little kitchen string if you like – that makes them easier to fish out.
- If you are leaving out the lemongrass, simply season the soup with lime juice before serving.
- Pour the stock into a pot and add the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, ginger and lemongrass. Bring to the boil and let it cook for about 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are completely tender.
- Remove the lemongrass from the pot and blend the soup until smooth with a stick blender, or lift out the vegetables with a slotted spoon and blend them with a little of the stock until you have a completely smooth purée. Pour it back into the pot.
- Add the chicken to the soup, heat it through thoroughly and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Meanwhile, cook the noodles according to the packet instructions, then rinse them in cold water so they don’t stick together.
- Once the soup is piping hot, stir in the spinach and spring onions until the spinach wilts.
- Season with lime juice as well – if you have left out the lemongrass.
- Divide the noodles between 4 deep bowls – ladle the soup over the top and finish with a little crispy chilli oil if you like.
Nutrition
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