Kitchen

[goldensrbest]

Do you use chicken thighs,bone in or not  ,or chicken breasts?

[rockygems123]

@goldensrbest 

I incorporate bones as often as I can when making soups for the taste and health benefits.

If I'm making a quick chicken soup then I saute the usual onions celery and carrots, add broth and usually use chopped cooked chicken breast.

I do use bone-in chicken thighs for a heartier longer slow cooking chicken stew however.

[PickyPicky3]

I buy a whole chicken and use everything.

[deepwaterdotter]

I cut up rotisserie chicken into bite-size pieces and stir in at the end of cooking..

[goldensrbest]

The last two times i used thighs,the soup  tended to be stringie, from the thighs ,not sure if that is  a word!!!

[Sooner]

I use only chicken breasts.  I use bone-in ones for roasting, and boneless, skinless otherwise.  I am not a fan of dark meat chicken.  

[sabatini]

For the past couple of years, I cheat!

For $5, I buy a rotisserie chicken from Costco. which makes a great soup. 

Just pick the nice meat from the bones, chop it up, put it in a ziploc bag and refrigerate.

Since I don't care for drumsticks or wings, I leave that meat on the bones.

Then, break up the carcass & throw the whole thing into a pot; skin, fat, juices from the chicken's container, everything.

Add water to cover, along w/ a bay leaf, a few carrot & celery stalks, a wedge of onion and pop on the lid.

Simmer for about an hour and a half, strain, discard solids & refrigerate the broth.

The next day I'm good to go! I can either make soup, or freeze the broth & meat for when I do need it.

Don't put the chicken in until the end of the soup making process, as it only needs to heat through.

[RedTop]

I usually use canned chicken or that pack of chicken breasts I overlooked in the freezer and must be used for something now.  

[Carmie]

I always make my own stock, so I use chicken parts with the bones in.  

Most of the time I cut up a whole chicken and use everything.

I also save backs, necks and wing tips in a freezer bag to make chicken soup when I have enough. You need the collagen from the bones to make the best tasting and most healthy soup.

[LindaSal]

I also cook a whole chicken.   I do it on low in the crockpot overnight.  Next morning I take it out and pull it apart and refrigerate, then add my cut up veggies to the broth in the pot (that I cut the day before) and cook those for around 5-6 hours on low.  Then an hour before they are cooked I add the cut up chicken back in to warm it.  It comes out so tasty this way and sometimes I even make biscuits and put them in the bowls like dumplings when serving. Yum!