Yes, I AM Too Tired To Defrost the Chicken! (Soup for a Post-Race/Post-Holiday Full Body Hangover)

It’s hard to get back into training after a looooooong holiday season (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, four cities, 2400 miles by car). I think even without running 200 miles at Across the Years I’d still be exhausted just from all of the holidayishness. You too?

But the double whammy of this holiday/race conundrum is that I am exhausted AND starving! Ack! And, after what feels like six weeks of torturing my body AND eating out, I need home cooked food. Unfortunately though, since I’m the only one in my crew who cooks, that means, unless the chicken decides to throw itself into the oven, I need to get to work.

When I’m in this crazy/fatigued/over-fast-food state, I crave simple stuff – soups, braises, and of course, desserts. I want nourishment, ease, satisfaction – all wrapped up in a big hug. Like chicken noodle soup, pancakes, pulled pork, kale salad, chocolate cake. The catch is to make it taste delicious but not force me to have to pull a chair up to the counter to finish the dish because I’m so tired. A huggy dish that’s only slightly more difficult than something you could have pulled off in your EZ Bake Oven as a kid (not that I ever cooked Spaghetti-O’s in my sister’s and almost burned the house down). This means no defrosting, no chopping (if you can avoid it), and no babysitting. I can’t see my stove from my couch, so if a dish requires me to get up and check on it more than a couple of times, it is a no-go right now.

Here is what I started with:

Easiest Chicken Noodle Soup Ever (that doesn’t come in a can or box)

1 frozen chicken breast

64 oz of chicken broth (2 boxes)

2 carrots chopped

1/2 medium onion chopped

1 stalk celery chopped

2 tsp. dried thyme

pepper to taste

3 dashes of Worcestershire

1/4 packet of spaghetti noodles broken into 2 inch pieces

Notice I didn’t mention salt. Because you are going to cook a frozen chicken breast in the chicken broth, it is going to take awhile to get tender. Your chicken broth, already a bit salty, is going to reduce quite a bit. I love me some salt, but even I didn’t need to add any. Feel free to adjust to your own tastebuds.

In a 3 quart (or larger) saucepan with a lid, bring the chicken stock and frozen chicken breast to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer. After about 20 minutes, you should notice a bit of white “scum” collecting on the top. With a spoon, skim off the scum and discard. Add carrots, onion, celery, thyme, pepper and Worcestershire. Replace cover and continue to simmer for about another hour or until chicken is tender.

Check seasonings, add more pepper and salt if desired.

Break spaghetti into pieces and put into soup. Cook until noodles are tender, about 8-10 minutes.

Serve with warm bread and cheese.

Now get back to the couch. You deserve it.

Tagged as: Easy Chicken Noodle Soup, No defrosting needed chicken, post-race meal