This dish was an accident, but one I am delighted happened because it improves on both chicken soup and chicken stew.
The first time I made this I didn’t know what happened. I was trying for chicken soup, but the result was definitely not what I thought it would be nor was it the chicken soup to which I was accustomed..
When I repeated the process, it became clear that I had discovered something rare and absolutely delicious.
A whole chicken is needed – preferably one of good size rather than the small young chickens that are good for frying. Decades ago these were called “stewing hens”. Today they seem to have disappeared in favor of the young chickens usually much under three pounds. The life span of, chickens has seriously diminished, they no longer have a long life.
If you can’t find a large one, then whatever you find will still make a good dish. ONLY make sure the chicken is organically grown. That is what really makes the difference. And everything else you use for this dish must be organic – otherwise, why bother cooking. It would only limit your life span.
First – take as much of the skin off the chicken as possible. This makes a better dish and the skin must be saved because it makes an absolutely scrumptious snack. – Recipe for this to follow in another article.
Second – put three or more tablespoons of organic butter into a very large pot and add chopped onions, celery, carrots and garlic. Add the garlic after the onions, and other vegetables have had a few minutes in the pot alone.
Use very generous amounts of the vegetables. – all of which have been organically grown.
Add the chicken and let these ingredients fry together for several minutes turning the chicken so it doesn’t burn or get too brown.
Add a can of organic coconut milk to the pot – please don’t use the “light” kind. Regular organic coconut milk is what makes the best dish. The other shouldn’t even be on the grocery store shelves.
Add several spices. The ones we like for this dish are salt, tabasco sauce, thyme, turmeric and rosemary. One person who tested this recipe added honey – YUK!! But he waxed eloquent about the results. That is what happens when you let men into the kitchen. The dish is adulterated, although he brought a pot for us to sample and it was quite good. Not excellent, but very good.
Let the dish cook a bit until everything in the pot looks comfortable combined together..
Add regular milk to cover everything to about two inches above.
Add noodles – uncooked. We prefer the large very thick noodles for this dish. They are what takes the dish from ordinary to great. If you lose your confidence in our recipes and add cooked noodles you will have a very disappointing dish. Something is added to this dish when the noodles so added are uncooked and allowed to cook to perfection in this dish rather than being put into the dish after boiling everything decent out of the noodles in a separate pot full of water and salt.
Let simmer until the chicken is done – at least 45 minutes – stirring every ten to fifteen minutes to keep all of the flavors moving around one another.
Add the zest from one lemon – obtained by using a rasp which takes only the yellow part off the uncut lemon, then squeeze the lemon juice into the pot. If a couple seeds get into the pot also, no problem, they add to the taste and nutrition of the dish.
The mixture will thicken without adding either corn starch or flour. Just give it time. And enjoy!!!
Serve in soup bowls – however, take care that the consistency is not as liquid as a soup and not as lacking in liquid as a stew.
AND feel free to send us your feedback on this dish. NOT on what you think about it, but what your experience having made it has told you.
