This creamy chicken soup is great the best!
It can easily be stretched to 12 servings.
The Best Creamy Chicken Soup
Ingredients
Soup:
2 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil
1 ½ - 2 cups peeled diced carrots (about 3-6 medium carrots)
1 ½ - 2 cups chopped potatoes (about 3 medium potatoes)
1 cup diced celery, or about 3 - 5 stalks
1 diced onion, 1 medium to large onion
4 - 8 cups chicken broth, not low sodium
2 cubes chicken bouillon or 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon paste
3 bay leaves
1 -2 tablespoons dried parsley (fresh fine chopped is OK but dried is best)
1 ½ tablespoons herbs de provence
1 tablespoon turmeric
½ -1 tablespoon garlic powder or 3-5 cloves garlic, finely minced
½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
2-3 cups half-and-half
3-4 cups cooked chopped chicken
Shredded parmesan, asiago or gruyere cheese, for topping (optional)
Roux:
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons butter
Directions
For the soup:
In a 4-quart or larger saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion and cook for 5-10 minutes. Pour in the broth and add the potatoes, chicken bouillon, bay leaves, parsley, herbs de provence, turmeric, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. (To make it "Ronnie Style", add a large pinch of red pepper flakes, an extra dusting of garlic powder, and a bit of costco no salt seasoning.)
Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook, uncovered or partially covered, for 12-15 minutes until the vegetables and potatoes are tender.
For the roux:
While the soup simmers, in a small saucepan, add the olive oil and butter and cook on medium heat until the butter is melted. Add the flour and whisk to combine until a smooth paste forms. Remove from the heat.
Add the half-and-half to the soup and heat through. Add the roux to the soup and cook, stirring or whisking constantly, over medium heat until the soup thickens and gently simmers, 5-7 minutes.
Stir in the chicken, season to taste with salt and pepper (this is important for flavor!) and heat through.
Remove the bay leaves and serve with a sprinkle of parmesan, asiago or gruyere on top.