Pay attention to the following points when making chicken soup:
Use a live chicken or a frozen chicken
There's no need to explain the benefits of buying a live chicken, as it's mainly to ensure the meat is fresh. However, after buying a fresh chicken, you should first place it in the freezer for about 3 hours before taking it out to thaw and make the soup. This process is the same as the principle of "aged meat." When an animal is suddenly killed, its body naturally releases various toxins. Additionally, the body temperature of a freshly killed chicken is suitable for bacterial growth. Freezing it at this stage can both kill bacteria and allow the chicken to naturally transition from the "rigor mortis" stage to the "maturation" stage. The meat from such a chicken is of the best quality, and the resulting soup will be more flavorful.
Blanching is a necessary step
Nutritional research shows that before stewing any meat, the main ingredient should be blanched in boiling water. This not only removes the raw, gamey smell but is also a thorough cleaning process for the meat. It results in a clear, not cloudy, broth that is fragrant without any off-odors. This process is called "blanching."
There are techniques to blanching. If you put the meat in cold water and bring it to a boil, the nutrients will be severely lost. Therefore, the best time to blanch is when the water is warm. Add the meat and cook for 7-8 minutes, turning the meat pieces occasionally. Of course, you can also add the meat to boiling water, in which case it only needs to cook for 3-5 minutes.
Start stewing with cold water
After blanching, immediately rinse the meat pieces with cold water before placing them in the pot to stew. Stewing is best done with cold water. As the water temperature slowly rises, the ingredients will fully release their nutrients. Ingredients that are at the same temperature as the water will yield a better flavor. My healthy diet
Controlling the heat is key to stewing
The main purpose of stewing soup is to drink the soup first, and then eat the meat. Therefore, we do not recommend using a pressure cooker, as nutrients are slowly released with low heat over a long period. A pressure cooker's short cooking time cannot achieve the desired effect. Therefore, chicken soup should be made in a clay pot. Bring it to a boil over high heat for 10 minutes, then reduce to low heat.
During the stewing process, try not to remove the lid. Removing it can cause the soup to "lose its essence," diminishing its original flavor.
There's a science to adding seasonings
The order in which you add seasonings when making chicken soup is also crucial; otherwise, the final soup will be significantly less impressive.
Some people like to add all the seasonings at the very beginning of cooking the chicken soup. This is not scientific. When making chicken soup, if salt is added too early, the proteins in the chicken will coagulate. This greatly reduces the nutritional value and flavor of the soup, often resulting in a bland taste and tough meat.
So, when should you add the seasonings? Salt and other seasonings should be added towards the end of the cooking process. After adding the salt, do not stir it in, as this can leave a raw salt taste. After adding the salt, turn the heat back up to high for another 10 minutes. Do not remove the lid during this time. This will result in a more intensely flavored chicken soup.