Name: Creamy chicken noodle soup with mini croutons
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 5
Ingredients: 400g/10oz chicken breast (2 small), cut in half horizontally to form 2 thin steaks (sub boneless thighs); 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt; 1/4 tbsp black pepper; Soup:; 4 strips streaky bacon (enough to cover base of pot); 30g/ 2 tbsp unsalted butter; 1/2 onion , finely diced; 2 garlic cloves , finely minced; 2 sprigs thyme or 1/2 tsp dried thyme (optional); 2 celery stalks , chopped (~1/2 x 1.2 cm / 1/5 x 1/2″ pieces); 1 carrot , chopped (1/2 x 1 cm / 1/5 x 1/2″ pieces); 3/4 cup corn kernels (frozen thawed or canned drained); 4 tbsp flour; 3 cups milk , full fat best but low fat ok (non-dairy ok too); 2 cups low sodium chicken stock/broth; 2 cups water; 1 tsp cooking salt; 1 1/3 cups (100g) broken angel hair pasta OR angel hair pasta / spaghetti broken into 6 pieces, or other small, spoon-able pasta; 3/4 cup frozen peas; 1/2 tsp finely chopped parsley , optional; Mini croutons:; 1 cup bread (crustless) cut into 7mm / 1/4″ cubes – sourdough type is crunchier, regular sandwich bread is fine too; 2 tsp olive oil; Pinch cooking salt / kosher salt

1. Short cut angel hair pasta – angel hair pasta cut into 3cm / 1.2″ long pieces, sold I’m bags. Cooks fast (pack will say 2 minutes, takes 4 – 5 minutes in a creamy broth in this recipe) and ideal soup-scooping size. Find it in the pasta aisle of regular Australian grocery stores. Can’t find it? Break angel hair, spaghetti, fettuccini etc by hand (will take longer to cook). Other small pasta like risoni, star shaped pasta, ditalini, alphabet pasta etc also ideal!

2. Cooking bacon – If you are using streaky bacon (ie bacon streaked with fat) you won’t need oil. As the pot heats up, the fat will melt so it cooks in its own fat. If you are using lean bacon, you’ll need a bit of oil.

3. Other vegetables – Feel free to substitute the corn and peas with other vegetables.

4. Making ahead / storing leftovers – Use colander to separate pasta, chicken and veg from the broth (pasta bloats and absorbs soup broth if left overnight). Once separated, keeps 3-4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer. Don’t be tempted to cook pasta separately (read in post for why).

Nutrition per serving assuming 5 servings.

Creamy chicken noodle soup with mini croutons

Ingredients

Soup

Mini Croutons

Steps

Notes

Nutrition Facts