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Chicken Soup

By September 17, 2012Depression

Rotisserie chicken, celery, onions, carrots, chicken stock, parsley, sage, thyme, marjoram, salt, pepper, bay leaves, garlic, baguette… and one sick little brother.

Open the rotisserie chicken, and peel the skin off entire bird. Eat skin with some of the chicken. Shred chicken off bones, and place the meat in the container it came in. Place bones in soup pot. Place shredded chicken in fridge.

Dice onion, half of the celery, and garlic, and place in soup pot. Fill pot halfway with one to two containers of organic chicken stock. Bring to boil, and begin adding herbs. At this point, use your nose. It will tell you when you have the right blend. NOTE: Don’t add the salt ’til the end after simmering for a couple hours.

Add water to the pot, and bring the total volume to roughly 3/4 from the top.

Wait for text from little brother: “Dude, I feel like death. Can you make some soup?”

Smile, because you anticipated this text.

Stir pot, and bring down to a simmer. Every hour or so, tear off a chunk of the bread, and dip into the soup. This should give you an idea of what seasoning you need to add without burning your tongue or mouth using a spoon . It should not be overpowering by any one flavor, but you should be able to identify the various flavors.

Reply to text: “Should be ready in about an hour or so. Rice or noodles? How are you doing, buddy?”

At this point, add a pinch of salt, and taste. Key here is you want the salt to open up your taste buds but not to overpower the soup. If you happen to go overboard, you can always add more water, but then you gotta wait a few more hours while you reduce and get the margins right.

Once you feel like you have achieved the right flavor, rough dice the other half of the celery, and thinly slice the carrots. (Don’t put them in the pot just yet.)

Text from brother: “Hey, do you mind bringing it to me, bro? I really don’t feel like coming all the way up there.”

Using a pair of tongs and a wide-slotted spoon, stir and snatch out all the bones in the soup. There will be quite a few, so you can do one of two things: Strain and replace broth in pot while you pick bones out of strainer, OR just fish around with tongs and snag the bones.

Replace all the bits and pieces sans bones back to pot.

Reply to brother: “No problem. Rice or noodles?”

At this point, throw a handful of egg noodles and the other half of celery and carrots into the pot.

Dig around for a couple Tupperware bowls so there is a “Right Now” serving and a “Rest Later” bundle.

Take the other half of the baguette, and wrap it in aluminum foil.

Take one last hunk of bread, and taste. It should be perfect. If so, divvy up into “Right Now” container and “Rest Later” containers. Be sure to leave enough noodles and veggies so you have equal parts. (Pick out any last minute bones, skin, etc.)

Place saran wrap over top of Tupperware, then place lid over that. Double bag both in a leftover plastic bag with bread.

Exit apartment. Stop at corner store and buy four XXX Vitamin Waters and a Calcium Tropicana.

Hail cab.

Wait for text: “Hey bro, sorry to be a pain. I feel like death. Can you pick up some OJ and XXX Vitamin Water?”

Smile, knowing this is what big brothers do for their little brothers when they are sick.

Arrive at door. Notice that brother does, in fact, look like death, and the apartment is pitch black with some sort of Brad Pitt movie playing on screen. Hand “Right Now” container and one XXX to him with spoon and hunk of bread.

Put rest of soup in fridge, and pour self a glass of water.

Listen as little brother slurps disgustingly from “Right Now” container in other room.

“It’s really good man, but I got a bone again. Why don’t you take those out?”

Feeds one sick brother for 1.5 days.

Miss making soups when he was feeling under the weather. Miss him even more when I am making the soup for myself and don’t have my little buddy to ask for my leftovers.