Before you pass this off as another boring chicken noodle soup recipe, I want to assure you that this is no ordinary chicken noodle soup! This grain-free chicken noodle soup has been a menu staple in my house since before I can remember. It is a soup recipe that everyone in the family likes and it is bursting with flavor and nutrition. During the fall and winter it is on the menu at least once every other week (alternating with some of our other favorite soup recipes). I love making this soup because it is super easy to throw in the crockpot and it is a flavorful meal that my whole family enjoys!
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Grain-free chicken noodle soup is an amazing modern pioneer recipe with heritage roots! Almost everything about this recipe could make it a pioneer recipe, except the fact that the early pioneers did not usually have access to chickens. Chickens were easier to raise later on when homesteaders settled down and were able to adequately protect their precious flocks from predators.
So essentially, this recipe could be a heritage homestead recipe instead of a modern pioneer recipe! All the ingredients are wholesome and heritage based, except maybe the grain-free noodles, but we can solve that issue in a minute. The vegetable and herbs included in this flavorful soup can easily be homegrown on the homestead or in a small garden plot.
We will discuss choosing heritage options for the chicken and broth later on, but both can easily be provided right from your own homestead if you are that far along in your modern pioneer journey. Just making this wholesome soup from scratch will make you feel like a modern pioneer!
Not only is this recipe a heritage homestead recipe, but it is also allergy-friendly for the modern pioneer! This chicken noodle soup recipe is….
So, the noodles…. when it comes to chicken noodle soup, I absolutely had to use noodles and not pasta. Thankfully, my favorite brand of allergy-friendly pasta also makes a great spaghetti or noodle too! Banza pasta makes different styles of pasta and noodles using chickpeas. These pastas are amazing and I love using them in allergy-friendly recipes, like spaghetti and meatballs or soup!
The Banza spaghetti noodles are what I used in my chicken noodle soup. I have used some of their other pastas in soups before, like the elbows, shells, or penne, but for chicken noodle soup I was thrilled to use grain-free noodles to make this classic recipe!
For more of a heritage homestead twist, you can instead try your hand at making your own egg-noodles. Noodles were actually a pioneer recipe that the early pioneers would make. I was surprised to find a heritage egg-noodle recipe in a chuckwagon recipe list! I’ll be working on a grain-free version of homemade egg-noodles to share with you in the future!
Whether you are using an allergy-friendly brand of noodles or using homemade noodles, you don’t want to add them to your soup too soon. Noodles cook really fast and if allowed to simmer with the soup for 4+ hours, they would turn to mush! Instead, add your noodles about 10-20 minutes prior to serving the soup.
The noodles will cook and simmer with the soup and be perfectly done when you go to serve the soup!
When it comes to making chicken noodle soup heritage style, you absolutely have to choose the right ingredients! A flavorful, nutritious chicken noodle soup is made using wholesome ingredients.
Starting with the veggies, which includes the carrots, celery, and onion. Make sure you either use homegrown veggies or purchase fresh veggies from a local farm stand. If these veggies aren’t in season, then you can get them at a health food store or local co-op grocery store. Make sure you buy organic produce to support sustainable practices and to choose the healthiest, most nutritious option!
If you choose to add potatoes to your chicken noodle soup, you can also use homegrown potatoes or locally grown potatoes. Make sure they are organic too! I love using new potatoes in my recipe, but organic red potatoes or russet potatoes are also good too!
Choosing the right chicken to make your soup with is probably one of the most important ingredients to choose carefully. I won’t go into my tangent now, but let’s just say I am not a supporter of modern-day poultry farming (commercial operations). When you can’t raise your own chickens for meat, you must know how to make a sustainable alternative choice.
My first recommendation would be to be from a local farmer or Amish community who raises their chickens naturally, organically, and sustainably. If you don’t have a source like that near you, then look at local health food stores for chicken labeled pasture-raised and organic.
Choosing the right chicken is also fundamental for making a good broth for this recipe. I believe you really should use homemade broth in any soup recipe! It is so much more flavorful and nutritious. Making your own homemade chicken broth is a great modern pioneer life skill to practice when making this soup recipe!
Homemade chicken broth is essential for making a flavorful, rich chicken noodle soup.
When it comes to serving soup, my family has a tradition of serving soups with a side of bread. I love that tradition, because I am a bread lover! Whether it be a bread, muffins, baguette, or scones, having a bread product with my soup makes for a filling and satisfying meal.
Here are some of my favorite sides to serve with chicken noodle soup:
My dad also likes to put crackers in his chicken noodle soup. If you are more of a cracker fan, try using Mary’s Gone cracker thins, From the Ground Up cauliflower crackers, or making your own grain-free crackers!
Grain-free chicken noodle soup is also a super easy meal to make and save for later. The soup can be prepared and simmered, then saved for later either by storing it in the refridgerator or freezer. I like to store leftover soup in glass canning jars both for storing in the fridge or freezing. When freezing soups, don’t secure the lids on the jars all the way! The soup will expand when it freezes which could break your jar if the lid is screwed on tightly.
In the fridge, leftover chicken noodle soup will last for 3-4 days. If you freeze the soup, it can last for up to a year.
You can also can this soup! Although I would recommend leaving out the noodles until you go to use the soup. When you reheat the soup you can add the noodles and simmer it until they are done. I’m afraid canning the noodles would make them too soft.
Grain-free chicken noodle soup is super easy to make! It is also one of those meals where you can do most of the prep ahead of time, so when it is time to get dinner on all you have to do is throw all the ingredients in the crockpot or slow cooker. Here are some tips for prepping this soup recipe ahead of time!
In my kitchen, the chicken soup process usually looks like this: The night before we have a roast chicken (either with salad or roast veggies). Leftover roast chicken gets shredded and stored in the fridge. The bones are left in the crockpot, covered with water, and left to simmer overnight. Next morning the chicken bone broth is strained and 2 quarts are left in the crockpot. In goes the leftover cooked chicken and other ingredients… and dinner is on!
Other soups that we might make with fresh, homemade chicken broth include butternut squash soup, chicken pot pie soup, or dairy-free potato soup!
This grain-free chicken noodle soup is a soup-er easy dinner meal to put together in the homestead kitchen! It uses wholesome ingredients to create a delicious and nutritious soup that is rich in flavor and will be a favorite with all!
Grain-free chicken noodle soup is a fall menu staple on our homestead! From the nutritious chicken bone broth, to the numerous veggies, to the rich delicious flavor, everyone loves having chicken noodle soup for dinner! Serve it up with some grain-free cinnamon swirl bread or chocolate chip muffins and you have the makings of a cozy meal. Of course, chicken noodle soup is a year-round menu item, but there’s just something about having warm soups during the fall and winter that seems to appeal and makes them taste just that much better!
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by Alexa
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