Best served with noodles and Matza Balls or Kreplach.

The way I feel about chicken soup is the way people feel about a much-loved, always-worn sweater. The moment you put it on, you are enrobed in comfort and warmth. But it’s so much better because you can share the soup. The sweater, on the other hand, is for you alone.

This chicken soup is a method. The reason not to give you a recipe per se is because this is the kind of dish I would like to empower everyone to make without depending on a recipe. This is one of those dishes—like toast or eggs—that should be in our arsenal of “Things I Can Cook.”

This is the method my grandfather Tzvi taught my mother. Tzvi learned how to make it from his grandmother Chana, and one can only assume that Chana learned how to make it from her mother Bubba Simka—who famously lived to the age of 106. It may have been the soup!

FOR 10 PEOPLE:

1. Fill a large soup pot:
Use a very large (10–12 litre) pot and fill it about ¾ of the way with water.

2. Add the chicken:
Add a whole chicken cut into 8 pieces, skin and bones intact. Using dark thighs and legs will give your soup a superior flavour. If you enjoy eating the chicken from the soup, make sure there’s enough meat on the bones. Remember, it’s the bones that impart the flavour.

3. Skim the scum:
As the water begins to boil, impurities will rise to the top. Use a large spoon to skim off and discard the “scum” from the surface. By the time the soup has reached a full boil, most of it should be gone.

4. Season:
Add a generous handful of kosher salt and 1–2 teaspoons of ground black pepper.

5. Add vegetables:
For me, the essentials are:

• 3 onions
• 4 sticks of celery
• 10 carrots (all peeled and left whole)

Everything else is a delicious addition. In my home, we usually also add:

• 1 parsnip
• 3 zucchini
• The heart of a white cabbage (or a peeled kohlrabi)
• 50 g fresh dill
• 50 g fresh parsley

6. Simmer:
Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer the soup. For a clear broth, keep it at a gentle simmer rather than a rolling boil. Partially cover the pot and let it cook for at least 3 to 4 hours. Truthfully, a full 4 hours makes the most full-bodied soup.

TO FINISH:

You can serve the soup immediately, or better yet, allow it to cool, store it in the fridge overnight, or freeze it for up to a month. Before reheating, skim off the fat from the surface. Reheat, taste, and adjust seasoning.

Best served with noodles and Matza Balls or Kreplach.

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