Description
A comforting and creamy chicken noodle soup featuring tender chicken breast, crispy streaky bacon, and delicate angel hair pasta, served with crunchy homemade mini croutons. This hearty soup combines fresh vegetables, rich broth, and a velvety texture, perfect for a cozy meal any day.
Ingredients
Scale
Chicken and Seasoning
- 400g/10oz chicken breast (2 small), cut in half horizontally to form 2 thin steaks (sub boneless thighs)
- 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 1/4 tbsp black pepper
Soup
- 4 strips streaky bacon (enough to cover base of pot)
- 30g/2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/2 onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 2 sprigs thyme or 1/2 tsp dried thyme (optional)
- 2 celery stalks, chopped (~0.5 x 1.2 cm / 1/5 x 1/2″ pieces)
- 1 carrot, chopped (0.5 x 1 cm / 1/5 x 1/2″ pieces)
- 3/4 cup corn kernels (frozen thawed or canned drained)
- 4 tbsp flour
- 3 cups milk, full fat preferred but low fat or non-dairy OK
- 2 cups low sodium chicken stock/broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp cooking salt
- 1 1/3 cups (100g) broken angel hair pasta OR angel hair pasta/spaghetti broken into 6 pieces, or other small, spoon-able pasta
- 3/4 cup frozen peas
- 1/2 tsp finely chopped parsley (optional)
Mini Croutons
- 1 cup bread (crustless) cut into 7mm / 1/4″ cubes – sourdough type is crunchier, regular sandwich bread is fine too
- 2 tsp olive oil
- Pinch cooking salt / kosher salt
Instructions
- Make Mini Croutons: Preheat the oven to 180°C/345°F (160°C fan-forced). Toss the bread cubes with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Spread them evenly on a baking tray and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, tossing halfway through, until golden and crispy. Remove from oven and let cool on the tray. Set aside.
- Season the Chicken: Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with 1/4 tsp cooking salt and 1/4 tbsp black pepper evenly. Set aside.
- Cook the Bacon: Place streaky bacon strips in a single layer in a cold large pot. Turn heat to medium-high and cook the bacon until golden on both sides, about 2-3 minutes on the first side and 1.5 minutes on the second. Remove bacon and drain on paper towels to crisp as it cools. Finely chop bacon and save for garnish. Leave bacon fat in the pot.
- Cook Chicken: Using the same pot with bacon fat still hot, cook the seasoned chicken breasts for 1.5 minutes on each side or until lightly golden. Remove chicken onto a plate and once cool enough to handle, chop into small 8mm (1/3″) cubes.
- Prepare Soup Broth: Lower heat to medium-high. Melt the unsalted butter in the pot. Add diced onion, minced garlic, chopped celery, chopped carrot, and thyme sprigs. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, until carrot softens but onion does not brown. Sprinkle flour over vegetables and stir for 1 minute to cook the flour.
- Add Liquids: While stirring, slowly pour in the milk to dissolve the flour mixture. Then add chicken stock, water, and 1 tsp cooking salt. Stir to combine thoroughly.
- Simmer Soup: Increase heat to high and bring the soup to a gentle simmer. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Soup will seem thin initially but will thicken as pasta cooks.
- Cook Pasta and Vegetables: Increase heat to high again. Add broken angel hair pasta and corn kernels. Cook for 5 minutes or until pasta is tender. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, add frozen peas and chopped chicken (including any juices).
- Serve: Ladle the finished soup into bowls. Garnish with chopped crispy bacon, homemade mini croutons, and a sprinkle of chopped parsley if desired. Serve hot and enjoy!
Notes
- Short cut angel hair pasta: Use angel hair pasta cut into 3cm (1.2″) long pieces sold pre-packaged. Cooks faster (about 4-5 minutes in this recipe) and is an ideal size for soups. If unavailable, break angel hair, spaghetti, or similar pasta by hand before cooking.
- Cooking bacon: Streaky bacon releases enough fat to cook in its own grease without added oil. If using lean bacon, add a bit of oil to the pot to prevent sticking.
- Vegetable substitutions: Feel free to swap the corn and peas for other vegetables as preferred.
- Make ahead and storage: To avoid pasta absorbing too much broth, strain pasta, chicken, and vegetables from the soup before storing leftovers. Keep separately and recombine when reheating. Soup keeps 3-4 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl (approx. 375g)
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 480 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 32 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 25 g
- Cholesterol: 65 mg
