Holiday Soup Recipe

The ingredients in this recipe are incredibly simple, so the flavor of the dish really rests on the quality of the broth. There are no restrictions on the type (anything from chicken, beef, lamb, or a combination will work), but homemade is always preferred (if using store-bought broth, I like to doctor it by briefly simmering it with additional aromatics).

I personally like to make the dish with chicken broth because I find it the most delicate, which complements the simplicity of the remaining ingredients well. Most often, I make my broth with the leftover carcass of a roast chicken, using onion, bay leaf, garlic, and carrot as aromatics, and whole peppercorns, allspice, coriander, and cinnamon for spice. Sometimes I’ll add some whole cloves or cardamom as well. If making the broth from raw chicken pieces, I recommend parboiling them for a few minutes before transferring to a clean pot and adding fresh water and aromatics—this will yield a clearer broth, both in visual appearance and in terms of flavor.