Chicken quinoa soup

Runner’s World calls chicken and quinoa a “dynamic duo”…I figured I’d try out their recipe to see if I could get behind that statement. As with many soups, the base is a mirepoix (that’s basically a fancy of way of saying a mixture of celery, carrots and onion).

The original recipe calls for one pound of sliced boneless chicken thighs. I typically use boneless skinless chicken breast for everything, regardless of what is stated in the recipe. Since shopping at Whole Foods on a Sunday afternoon is survival of the fittest, I grabbed the first thing I saw, which was thighs. I’d probably go back to my yuge next time. I prefer a higher vegetable-to-meat ratio, so I did not use a whole pound.

Mise en place

Chicken quinoa soup
Source: adapted from Runner’s World (December 2012)
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients
2 tsp canola oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, sliced
1 1/2 cups mushrooms, sliced (about half of a 10-ounce package)
2 celery stalks, sliced
4 chicken breast thighs (or 2 chicken breasts), thinly sliced
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
3/4 cup quinoa
4 sprigs thyme
Salt and pepper (to taste)
Hot sauce

Directions
1. Heat canola oil in a pot; add onion, garlic, and carrots and cook for about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms, celery, and chicken and cook for another 5 minutes.
2. Add broth, water, quinoa, thyme, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 15 minutes, until quinoa is tender.
3. Top with hot sauce and enjoy!

Try it vegetarian: substitute beans or tofu for the chicken and vegetable broth for the chicken broth

Pre-broth



Dynamic soup!