Making meals ahead of time isn’t something I do often, but when I’ve had one of “those” days and I come home to a wonderful, warm, healthy homemade meal that I just need to reheat it kind of feels like I won the lottery-ya know what I mean?!
One of the meals that I always think of when I think true comfort food is my mom’s chicken noodle soup. She would regularly make it from scratch and serve it just when we needed that comforting bowl of warmth.
Today is Recipe Redux day, and the theme this month is Fantastic Freezer Meals:
Share your tips and tricks for making one – or more freezer meals. It’s the end of the gardening season for some of us; let’s store away that produce in heat-and-eat-from-the-freezer-meals. Show how convenient healthy freezer breakfast, lunches or dinners can be!
As soon as I read this description, I knew that I wanted to replicate a noodleless version of my mom’s soup to keep on hand for a day when I really needed it. I have to admit that prior to last winter, I had no idea how to make delicious homemade meals ahead of time and freeze them properly for later use.
It wasn’t until I was in the midst of recipe testing for the cookbook last November and I had a LOT of extra food on hand that I didn’t want to waste that I figured out HOW to freeze and store meals for later. One of my favorite things to store and reheat was soup!
I actually hosted an entire dinner party utilizing the frozen soups! All I had to do was pull the soups out of the freezer earlier in the day and then make up a salad.
I chose to make the soup without noodles so that it remained gluten-free and FODMAP friendly, but I can assure you that it tasted just like my mom’s traditional recipe 🙂
The tip for freezing soup that I learned and has been a true life saver, is to put it in a large plastic bag, then place the bag on a baking sheet and allow it to freeze flat. Once the soup is frozen, you can lay it flat in the freezer, stack it up and down, or figure out another way for it to fit in your freezer. With the soup being frozen flat it is very easy to work with!
*To thaw, simply remove from the freezer the morning of the day you want to use it and put it in the refrigerator. Then, reheat and enjoy!
I hope you enjoy making this recipe and having it on hand for one of those occasions when you need something quick, delicious and nutritious!
This one pot soup truly warms from the inside out. Wholesome ingredients will leave you feeling satisfied and nourished, and this soup is great to make ahead and freeze for later use!
Ingredients
Scale
10 cups vegetable or chicken broth/stock (I used homemade to make this low FODMAP)
3 cups shredded chicken
4 large carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 potato, diced
sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Combine the broth, chicken, carrots, celery, potato, and 1 teaspoon sea salt in a large stock pot.
Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are fork-tender.
Season to taste with salt and pepper
Enjoy now, or allow the soup to cool before placing it in 1-2 large zipper top bags. Place the zipper top bags on a baking sheet and allow to freeze. Once frozen, you can removed the soup bags from the baking sheet and stack in your freezer however you see fit.
To thaw: Simply remove the frozen soup from the freezer and thaw in the fridge.
To reheat: Pour the desired amount of soup into a large pot and bring to a low boil. Serve and enjoy!
Woohoo for noodle-less soups! Sometime’s I just want all the deliciousness of the veggies and proteins, so I definitely feel you on this one! But, I must admit, I do full engulf my slice of bread in the broth 🙂 LOL!
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[…] Noodleless Chicken Soup […]
great minds 😉 I also made my mom’s classic chicken soup for the redux this month!
YES! Nothing beats “Mom’s” soup 🙂 Great idea!
Chicken soup is one of my favorite soups! I can not believe it’s that time of year already… where we are making soups and eating pumpkin!
Seriously though! I’ve decided to full on embrace fall…our decorations are already out!
Yum! This recipe looks so comforting and delicious to me! I need to stock my freezer with recipes like this. 🙂
Thanks, Melanie! 🙂 Having this in the freezer is a serious life saver!
Yum this looks so good and easy! Love how it doesn’t have noodles too. My favorite make-ahead meals are casseroles and soups!
Thanks, Sara!! Casseroles and soups are perfect make ahead meals.
Woohoo for noodle-less soups! Sometime’s I just want all the deliciousness of the veggies and proteins, so I definitely feel you on this one! But, I must admit, I do full engulf my slice of bread in the broth 🙂 LOL!
Yes! Thanks, Elizabeth! 🙂 My hubby LOVES dipping the bread too!
Ah perfect timing for my second take on eliminating grains! Can’t wait for for the chilly weather to cozy up with a cup of this. 😀
Good luck eliminating grains!
Ah yes! My dad’s chicken soup will always be a childhood favorite! When I see chicken soup, I only think of him!
Mmmm soup just brings so many good memories 🙂