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Make Spicy Chicken and Rice Soup

November 24, 2006

I’m always on the lookout for ways to use chicken as I am not particularly a poultry fan. (My favorite use of turkey is in a sandwich with Hellman’s mayonnaise and butter.) I like to make chicken soup and leave the starch out of the actual soup. This allows me to vary the starch. We can eat this one evening with rice, another evening with potatoes, and a third with noodles.

Just cook the desired starch, put it in your soup bowl, and pour the soup over the starch. This adds variety and makes the soup feel like a new meal each time served. I think this method also works better if you freeze a portion of this soup. Just defrost, reheat, check the spices in case they need refreshing, and serve. This recipe should serve six.

Spicy Chicken and Rice Soup

2 tablespoons oil
1 large onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
3 carrots, peeled or washed, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut in ½ inch pieces (about 3 pounds)
2 teaspoons thyme
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons assorted peppers, chopped fine
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped fine
2 10 ounce packages of frozen, thawed spinach, thawed and chopped
1 can chicken broth
1 cup hot, spicy salsa
I large can stewed or diced tomatoes with chiles, undrained
6 cups water
Reduced fat sour cream
Cilantro, fresh, a few sprigs chopped
Green onions, chopped including green stems
Rice, potatoes, or noodles to taste

Heat the oil in a large soup pan. Add onion, celery, carrots and garlic and sauté for two minutes on medium heat. Add the chicken and stir fry until the chicken pieces are lightly browned on all sides.

Add all of the other ingredients to the soup pan. Bring the soup almost to a boil and then reduce the temperature to simmer. Simmer the soup for approximately 45 minutes.

Serve the soup with a tablespoon of sour cream or reduced fat sour cream on top. Sprinkle chopped fresh cilantro and chopped green onions over the sour cream.

About peppers: I use a variety of peppers in my recipes. Different combinations provide different tastes to the recipes. Experiment until you find a combination you like. For this soup, I use cayenne powder, about a half of a teaspoon of ancho chili, and a teaspoon and a half of three or four other varieties of peppers.