Golden Chicken Soup with Couscous and Avgolemono

Ingredients

• 4 chicken leg quarters (bone-in)
• salt (to taste, for seasoning chicken)
• black pepper (to taste, for seasoning chicken)
• garlic powder (to taste, for seasoning chicken)
• onion powder (to taste, for seasoning chicken)
• Cajun seasoning (to taste, for seasoning chicken)
• cayenne pepper (to taste, for seasoning chicken)
• 2 leeks (sliced and rinsed)
• 3 jumbo carrots (diced)
• 3 celery stalks (diced)
• 0.5 jumbo yellow onion (diced)
• 7 cloves garlic (6-8 cloves used, minced)
• 1 tbsp butter (for sautéing)
• 1 qt bone broth (one carton)
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp Better than Bouillon (chicken base recommended)
• fresh rosemary (sprigs)
• fresh thyme (sprigs)
• parmesan cheese (plus rind)
• 0.5 tsp turmeric (estimated for color)
• 2 eggs (could use 3 for extra thickness)
• 0.5 lemon lemon juice (juice from half a lemon)
• 1 cup pearl couscous (cooked separately to serve)

Steps

1. 1

   Dice 3 jumbo carrots, 3 stalks of celery, and 1/2 of a jumbo onion. Slice 2 leeks and give them an extra rinse to remove any grit.

2. 2

   Season 4 chicken leg quarters generously with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, and cayenne pepper.

3. 3

   In a large pot or Dutch oven, sear the seasoned chicken leg quarters over medium-high heat. The goal is to bloom the spices and create flavorful drippings, not necessarily to fully brown the meat. Remove the chicken and set aside.

4. 4

   In the same pot with the chicken drippings, sauté the sliced leeks for a few minutes until they begin to soften.

5. 5

   Add the diced carrots, celery, onion, 6-8 cloves of minced garlic, and a tablespoon of butter to the pot. Sauté the vegetables until they are fragrant and slightly softened.

6. 6

   Add the chicken back into the pot. Pour in 1 quart of bone broth, 1 cup of water mixed with 1 tablespoon of Better than Bouillon, fresh rosemary, fresh thyme, a parmesan rind, and a little turmeric for color.

7. 7

   Bring the soup to a simmer, then reduce heat and let it simmer for about one hour until the chicken is tender and fall-off-the-bone juicy.

8. 8

   Remove the chicken from the pot. Shred the meat, discarding the bones and skin, then set the meat aside.

9. 9

   Prepare the avgolemono base: In a small bowl, whisk 2 eggs (or 3 for a thicker soup) with the juice of half a lemon. Slowly add a ladle of the hot soup broth to the egg mixture while whisking constantly to temper the eggs so they don't scramble.

10. 10

    Slowly pour the tempered egg mixture back into the main pot of soup, stirring constantly to create a silky, golden broth.

11. 11

    Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Remove the herb sprigs and the parmesan rind.

12. 12

    Serve the soup over cooked pearl couscous and garnish with extra parmesan cheese if desired.

Notes

The author suggests using 3 eggs instead of 2 for a thicker consistency. The chicken is seasoned before searing to help 'bloom' the spices. Pearl couscous was recommended as a pairing for the final dish.

Nutrition per serving

• main
• soup
• chicken soup
• avgolemono
• comfort food
• winter
• couscous