Dear Chef Kathleen,
 
I would appreciate your suggestions on making a tasty chicken soup. The soup made from supermarket whole chickens does not have much flavor. I add canned chicken stock and bouillon cubes but this doesn't result in a soup with old-fashioned, rich chicken flavor.

Darlena


Dear Darlena,

Of one thing I'm sure, good chicken soup is made from great chicken stock. Because soup boasting "old fashioned rich chicken flavor" is a memory I chase from my childhood too, my initial investigation started at home.

"Mom, how do you make your chicken stock?"

"Well, I don't do it the way you do, that's for sure."

"Mom, I throw a whole chicken (one with head and feet attached if I can find it) in a pot and cover it with water and bring it a boil. I skim off any foam, throw in a little kosher salt, a peeled onion and a peeled carrot, both cut in half, a celery stalk or two and a bay leaf. I bring it to a boil again, skim off any foam and reduce it to a simmer. I cook it until it tastes good, about two hours. What's wrong with that?"

"Kathleen, nobody can get chickens with the head and feet attached, and who'd want to anyway? That's just gross. And why should anyone want to waste a perfectly good chicken just to make broth? And what? Then we should throw it out? What a waste of money, Kathleen."

"How do you make chicken stock, Mom?"

"I empty the freezer. I use the bones from roasted chickens, backbones left over from split roasted chicken, the wings and tips left over from chicken wings and dark meat I didn't feel like eating. I throw all that in a pot with any left-over vegetable scraps I can fish out of the freezer without killing myself and cover it all with water. I try to remember to put a carrot and an onion in the pot and some salt and pepper. It's the same as my vegetable stock only with chicken. I just hope that it comes out more chicken-y than vegetable-y. I strain it in a colander and then again through cheesecloth and let it cool in the refrigerator overnight. The next day I skim off the fat, divide it up in dinner-size portions and freeze it."

"That's it?"

"That's it, Kathleen. Cooking doesn't need to be fancy or complicated."
Still, my quest to make perfect stock continued so I consulted "The Zuni Cafe Cookbook," written by Judy Rodgers.

Having spent several years under her tutelage, I was quite familiar with her strong convictions when it came to preparing chicken stock, referred to as "liquid gold" in her kitchen for its pricey organic ingredients and whole chickens used because, as Rodgers writes in her book, "They provide a convenient combination of the meat, bone, connective fibers and fat that produce great flavor and body."

In Rodgers' opinion, "A brew made from the economical "backs, necks and wing tips" triumvirate does not compare. Chicken stock brewed from mostly bones, especially stockpiled, tired ones, tastes dull to me and isn't worth the trouble, or even the small expense."

Clearly, there's more than one way to make the perfect stock, but to answer your question, Darlena, it doesn't really matter what recipe for chicken soup you use but to guarantee old-fashioned rich chicken flavor, you must use as your base the very best chicken stock you're able to prepare.

Tips for making great stock:

1. Use chickens with their heads and feet whenever possible, usually available in Asian markets or by special order at butcher shops.
   
   Alternatively, whether you're starting with a whole chicken or bones and leftover chicken you've saved up, be sure to use chicken wings in your chicken stock because, as Judy Rodgers states in her book, they "deliver bright flavor and viscosity."
2. Rinse the chicken very well before you add it to the pot so you don't muddy the flavor of the stock.
3. In "The Zuni Cafe Cookbook," Rodgers guides you to "slash the thigh and leg muscles to encourage the greatest release of flavor during cooking."
   
   Slash the breast meat too unless you remove it before you begin to reserve for another meal down the road.
4. Add water just to cover the amount of chicken you're using by about an inch. Too much water and your stock will be weak tasting.
5. Use coarse grained salt and vegetables that you like. Traditional chicken stocks rely only on carrots, celery and onion for flavor.
6. Once the liquid comes to a boil, reduce it to a simmer and resist the urge to stir it. Let it cook until it tastes bright, lively and full bodied, about 2 hours.

kd@chefkathleen.com