Healing

Chicken Soup

My mom’s chicken soup—whipped up at the first sign of a cold when I was growing up—is the inspiration for this bubbling brew, which I’ve Shari-ized with some of my go-to food-as-medicine elements. For starters, I brew a pot of eleuthero tea for its perceived anti-inflammatory properties. Then I use a slew of other fresh herbs and spices—garlic, lemongrass, turmeric, and ginger among them—which brings both great taste and health to the pot. The chicken bones add body to the broth.

Serves 8 to 10

For the tea

• 3 tablespoons dried (not ground) eleuthero
• 8 cups boiling water

For the soup

• 1 (4-ounce) piece fresh ginger, cut into ¼-inch coins
• 1 (5-inch) piece fresh turmeric, chopped
• 2 fresh lemongrass stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces and smashed with the heel of a knife
• 1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium onions, sliced, or 2 leeks, white parts only, well washed and sliced
• 10 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
• 6 large carrots, peeled and trimmed
• 5 celery stalks, trimmed
• 1 turnip, peeled and trimmed
• 1 rutabaga, peeled and trimmed
• 1 bunch fresh dill, tied with kitchen twine, plus more for garnish
• 1 tablespoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste

Make the tea: Using a tea infuser, brew the eleuthero in the boiling water for about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, make the soup: Tie the ginger, turmeric, and lemongrass in a piece of cheesecloth with kitchen twine, leaving a little room for the stuff inside to move around. Set aside.

To an 8- or 10-quart soup pot, add the chicken, cover with 4 inches of cold water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a vigorous simmer and cook, skimming the scum from the top of the soup as needed, for 15 to 20 minutes.

While the chicken is boiling, heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until just softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. When the broth in the soup pot is clear, transfer the onion mixture to the soup pot, along with the carrots, celery, turnip, and rutabaga. Strain the eleuthero tea directly into the pot, discarding the solids, and then add enough water to almost fill the soup pot to the top.

Bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, add the dill bunch, cover, and cook for 1 hour.

Carefully remove the breasts from the chicken to prevent overcooking, leaving the remainder of the chicken in the pot, and reserve in the refrigerator. Continue to cook the soup until the color darkens, 2 to 4 hours (or longer, if desired). During the last hour of cooking, add the salt and the reserved cheesecloth bundle.

Remove and discard the dill bunch and the cheesecloth bundle. Carefully remove the dark-meat chicken and whole vegetables from the soup and cool slightly. Remove the white meat from the refrigerator, then shred the white and dark meat to bite-sized pieces. Discard the bones.

Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Return the meat to the soup to warm through and season the soup with additional salt to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with a generous sprinkling of fresh dill.