Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
Roast chicken. If pressed for time, skip this step and use a rotisserie chicken and make broth from it or use rotisserie chicken and store-bought broth.
Chicken and broth
1 chicken
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
1 apple, cut in half, then quarters
3 tbsp (45 mL) fresh mixed herbs, chopped (thyme, rosemary, sage)
3 tbsp (45 mL) butter
2 tsp (10 mL) salt
2 tsp (10 mL) pepper
Soup
1 whole chicken (meat removed from bones, bite-sized pieces)
8 cups (2 l) broth
1 cup (250 mL) wild rice
2 cups (500 mL) carrots, peeled and diced
1 leek, washed and chopped
3 cups (750 mL) kale, de-stemmed, washed and chopped
1 cup (250 mL) heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 450F/230C. In a casserole dish scatter chopped up veggies (no need to peel anything). Melt butter with chopped herbs, salt and pepper. Place chicken on top of veggies and cover with the butter and herb mixture, including under the skin of the breasts. Roast for 15-20 minutes or until the skin has browned then lower the heat to 350F/177C and cook for 45 minutes to an hour or until chicken registers at least 165F/75C all over and the juices are running clear.
Allow to cool before removing meat from bones and separating the meat into a container and refrigerate. Place bones along with any juices, veggies from the casserole dish in a 6.7L pot. Cover and fill with water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and allow to simmer for 1-2 hours. Strain into another bowl to separate broth from bones and set aside.
In the empty pot, on medium-high heat, add butter, carrots and leeks, and sauté for 10 minutes until they start to brown and leeks soften. Add in rice and toast for 2 minutes, then add the broth, bring to a boil on high, then lower to medium heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes until the carrots are soft to bite and the rice is cooked through. Add the chicken.
If cooking to freeze, pack into airtight containers and place in freezer. To reheat, thaw in refrigerator overnight, return to a pot and reheat, stirring in the cream and kale.
To serve fresh, stir in the cream and kale until the kale is wilted and bright green.
Makes 5 litres.