Hearty Chicken & Vegetable Soup

A very simple to make, hearty soupy stew, that is warming and rich, and full of delicious full flavours. Feel free to add other stew/soup veggies to this soup! Swede and turnip work great. You can also add more chicken if you prefer, doubling the amount makes for a more stew like dish, rather than a soup. (Notes: for my stock I used 4 chicken Oxo cubes dissolved in 1.5l water.) Additional ingredients could include (only if needed) chicken flavour bisto gravy granules- add at the very end of the cooking time to thicken the soup if desired- but it shouldn’t need them at all. This dish can be frozen, and reheated easily on the stove.

Good

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

1: Cut onions, carrots, & leeks, into small/medium sized pieces

Step 2

2: Cut your chicken breast into bite size chunks or strips, and season with salt and pepper

Step 3

3: Peel your potatoes and cut into quarters/eighths. Store potatoes in cold water until ready to use.

Step 4

4: Heat olive oil in a large pan, or stovetop pressure cooker and sauté onions, minced garlic and chicken breast until golden in colour. Feel free to deglaze the pan if you need to, with a splash of the stock.

Step 5

5: Once chicken is browned, add carrots and leeks into the pan.

Step 6

6: Add Worcester sauce and liquid hickory smoke to the pan.

Step 7

7: Add your 1.5 liter of chicken/vegetable stock to the pan.

Step 8

8: Once simmering, add garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, parsley, thyme, and sage.

Step 9

Taste the broth, and if needed, add more salt and black pepper.

Step 10

9: Add pearl barley and potatoes to the pan.

Step 11

10: Cook on a low heat for 1 hour until the barley is plump and the potatoes are soft. Use a potato masher to break up the potatoes and shred the chicken pieces to thicken the soup.

Step 12

Alternatively if using a stovetop pressure cooker: Put the lid on your pressure cooker and cook on low for 20 mins. Release pressure, remove lid and continue to cook on low for 30 mins, or until potatoes are soft. Use a potato masher to break up the potatoes and shred the chicken pieces to thicken the soup.