Brodo Homemade Chicken Broth Recipes

BRODO DI POLLO ~ ITALIAN CHICKEN SOUP

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add the onion, carrots, celery, and passata. Place the chicken drumsticks or legs in the saucepan, add the water, cover with a lid, and bring to a boil.
• Remove the lid, add the half stock cube, if using, and season with Sea salt. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 45 to 60 minutes, until the broth reduces slightly, concentrating its flavor.
• Meanwhile, bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil and cook the pasta until al dente or according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
• Strain the broth into a large, clean bowl and reserve the chicken and vegetables for another meal (such as adding them to some rewarmed leftover broth the next day when you're feeling stronger and able to tolerate solid foods).
• Divide the pasta among 4 shallow bowls and ladle the hot chicken broth over it. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and serve. [Editor's Note: As one of our recipe testers said to us, "You may not think such a small amount of Parmesan would matter. It does."]

BRODO DI POLLO CON PASTINA (CHICKEN SOUP WITH PASTINA)

Steps:

• Place the chicken and 10 cups of water in a large pot. Partly cover and bring to a boil over high heat, keeping a close eye so that it doesn't overflow and skimming off any foam that rises to the top.
• Add the onion, olive oil, salt, garlic powder and pepper; stir and allow to come back up to a gentle boil. Cover completely, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, garlic and tomato paste, stirring to incorporate the tomato paste. I ncrease the heat to high and allow to come back up to a gentle boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and season with more salt and pepper as desired.
• Remove the cooked chicken and place in a large bowl. Add the pastina to the soup, stir and increase the heat to high and allow to come back up to a gentle boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook the pasta according to the package instructions for al dente, stirring occasionally.
• While the pasta cooks, shred the chicken with a fork. Add the shredded chicken and parsley to the soup, stir, cover and simmer for 2 minutes. Serve topped with grated Parmesan.

OLD HEN PASTINA BRODO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Rinse the chicken well with cold water and place in a deep ovenproof roasting pan with the onion, carrot, celery, tomato and bay leaf. Add enough cold water to come up about 2/3 the sides of the bird. Bring to a simmer on top of the stove, straddling two burners if necessary. Cover, place in the oven and braise until the chicken is completely cooked (about 1-1/2 hours).
• Remove from the oven and turn the chicken over in the broth to cool. Remove the cooled chicken from the broth. Shred the chicken and strain the broth into a stockpot. Reserve.
• Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Add the Pastina and cook for about 15 minutes or until done. Drain and set aside. Bring the reserved broth to a simmer, season with salt and pepper and add the cooked Pastina. Add the chicken and greens in order to wilt the greens and heat the chicken. Ladle into bowls. Grate Parmesan over the soup and finish with freshly-cracked pepper.

CAPELLINI SOUP WITH RICH CHICKEN BRODO

Steps:

• Generously season each piece of chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over high heat until it begins to smoke. Carefully add chicken pieces in a single layer, skin side down, to brown each piece. After about 8 minutes, turn each piece and brown them on the second side. When the chicken pieces are a deep brown on both sides, place the onions, celery, and carrots in the pot and cook until deeply browned, about 15 minutes, stirring only occasionally.
• Add the mushrooms, if using. Add the wine and bay leaves. With a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pot to remove any caramelized bits. Cook over high heat until about 1/4 cup of wine remains, about 5 minutes. Add the water. When the water comes up to a simmer, skim off any foam or impurities that rise to the top. Lower heat to maintain a simmer, but do not let the broth boil.
• Simmer the broth uncovered for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, occasionally skimming any foam and impurities that rise to the top. The chicken meat will be tender and falling off of the bone. Remove the chicken pieces from the broth and reserve. Pour the broth through a colander lined with a tea towel (or a triple thickness cheese cloth) and set over a large, clean pot (or strain the broth into a large bowl and return the broth to the pot). Discard the vegetables. You should have about 8 cups of broth. Keep the broth warm. Taste and season really well (this is a simple dish that requires plenty of salt and pepper).
• When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred the chicken meat from the bones. Discard the bones. Place the shredded chicken in a large bowl.
• Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water for about 5 minutes, until just shy of al dente, and then drain it through a colander. Pour the warm pasta directly into the bowl with the shredded chicken. Add the parsley and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and stir. Add 1 cup of reserved broth to moisten the mixture.
• Mix well and divide evenly among 8 serving bowls. Ladle 1 cup of warm broth into the bowl. Scatter some Parmesan over each bowl of soup. Pass chili flakes for extra flavor. Serve warm with both a spoon and a fork.