Making Potato Soup on a very cold day!
This recipe is a guesstimate because she never gave me the actual recipe written down. I decided to do exactly what I remember on those oh so good soup days.
She always made a pot of chicken or beef soup once a week and it usually was Monday(laundry day).
I pretty much do the same and I remember her pot was a big and I mean big stock pot. She always used mostly thighs and breasts but did use (the pic of the chic) which contained legs too as I recall or even she'd cut up a whole chicken. Note: She always had extra broth which she would freeze for another day.
I will simplify my recipe as there are only two of us.
2 to 3 lb. bone in chicken breasts and thighs.(Bone in makes the broth hearty).
Celery tops (green tops and a few pieces)
1 medium onion
Several cleaned carrots
Salt (a few Tablespoons) depending on your taste.
At least 6 cups water or more (fill a Dutch oven pot to a reasonable amount with water). Enough to have chicken immersed completely in the water.
In a large Dutch oven pot in COLD WATER place all ingredients. Cook on medium heat until chicken starts to fall off bone. That will be several hours. Note: Use a crockpot for convenience and you can allow it to cook for at least 6 hours on low heat or 4 hours on high heat.
After chicken is cooked (mine will usually fall of bone) Remove chicken, carrots, onion and celery from broth/soup. Cut carrots in small pieces. Remove chicken from bone and allow to cool. Discard the rest. After cooled cut chicken in cubes or shred. Mine usually shreds. If you have too much chicken I would use the rest for chicken salad or I have frozen cooked chicken in freezer for later use. Use a large freezer storage bag or wrap in clear wrap and aluminum foil and label it cooked chicken.
Note: I have found cooked chicken is handy to have in the freezer. I have used it in casseroles and actually made chicken salad with it later.