Lancaster County Chicken Noodle Soup Recipes

CHICKEN CORN SOUP WITH RIVELS

Steps:

• Combine chicken, corn, broth, water, and seasonings in a stock pot or dutch oven.
• Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and cook three to four minutes until corn is tender.
• Meanwhile, combine flour and raw egg to make rivels. Mix by hand until consistency of pie dough crumbs. Add extra flour if dough is too sticky.
• Slowly add rivels to boiling soup by crumbling into soup with hands while stirring constantly.
• Cook about five minutes and then stir in hard-boiled eggs.

PA DUTCH CHICKEN CORN SOUP

Steps:

• 1. Boil chickens, celery stalks, carrots, and onion, some kosher salt & pepper in a stockpot with enough water to cover both. I add about 1 tsp of curry & some chicken bouillon at this point because I like a hearty broth.
• 2. When chicken is cooked, remove chicken & refrigerate separately.
• 3. Let broth cool down a bit to room temperature. Discard celery and onion. Refrigerate broth overnight.
• 4. Next day, skim fat from top of broth.
• 5. Heat broth over medium heat.
• 6. Add chicken bouillon and cans of chicken broth. Heat to almost a boil.
• 7. Remove skin and bones from chickens. Pick off meat in large chunks.
• 8. Add chicken to the broth.
• 9. Add a few pinches of saffron and nutmeg (optional). I also like to add some Hungarian paprika, dill, a bay leaf, a dash of onion powder, a dash of garlic powder, and a little celery seed.
• 10. Add cans of corn. I drain all the cans of corn but one and add the corn juice to the soup. (NOTE: Most people use fresh corn on the cob or frozen corn for their chicken corn soup. I prefer the cans, just because I think it's better flavor.)
• 11. Add more salt & pepper to taste. Let cook for about an hour and check taste again. This normally is where I will add more water if necessary, more chicken bouillon, salt, etc.
• 12. Cut up hard-boiled eggs into bite-size pieces. Add to the pot.
• 13. Continue cooking and add some fresh parsley snipped in small flakes. Once you are happy with the flavor, bring to a low boil and begin to prepare the rivels. My favorite part of chicken corn soup!!!
• 14. Mix the flour, beaten egg, and milk well. I add a few teaspoons of the broth, too, just for flavor.
• 15. Once it is very well blended, drop by very teeny balls into the soup. (Make sure broth is boiling). I take a fork & just let the rival batter fall off. They are not supposed to be pretty, so don't worry about rolling them or making them uniform! They will be a mishmash of yumminess. Don't make the mistake of getting lazy and making the rivals too large or they won't cook well. You can add some broken thin noodles instead if you want to skip this step.
• 16. Continue stirring over boil for about 10/15 mins. The rivels should have a dough texture. I taste again, add more salt & pepper as needed, and another chicken bouillon, if necessary.
• 17. Add fresh chopped parsley. Stir & serve.
• 18. ENJOY!!! This is everyone's favorite soup in Central PA!

LANCASTER CHICKEN SOUP

Steps:

• Place chicken in soup pot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and when it subsides, add onion through saffron. Simmer gently, partly covered, for 1-1/2 hours.
• Remove chicken and let soup cool, then skim any fat that appears from the surface. Meanwhile, tear the chicken into bite-size pieces.
• Puree 2 cups of the corn with 1/4 cup of the soup in a food processor or blender; add to the soup along with the chicken, 2 cups whole corn kernels and noodles. (If freezing, do so at this point but without the noodles. When ready to complete, thaw the soup, add the noodles and continue on from here).
• Simmer gently until noodles are cooked; season with white pepper to taste and stir in the parsley. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle chopped eggs over top and serve.

BEST PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH CHICKEN CORN SOUP

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium heat, combine chicken, water, onions, celery, salt, nutmeg and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 2 hours, adding water as needed, until chicken is very tender. Remove the chicken from the soup. Refrigerate chicken and soup.
• When fat solidifies on surface of soup, remove from refrigerator and remove fat. Remaining soup should equal about 2 1/2 quarts.
• Remove corn from cobs by splitting kernels lengthwise with a sharp knife and scraping corn from cob. Combine soup and corn in a large pot over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until corn is tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, place two of the eggs in a small saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop. Set aside.
• Chop cooled chicken meat and add to soup.
• In a medium bowl, beat remaining egg until light in color. Beat in flour and milk until smooth. Drop batter by partial spoonfuls into hot broth to make small (1/4 -1/2 inch round) dumplings. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 to 5 minutes, until dumplings hold their shape and float to the surface. Stir in reserved cooked egg.