I met Hanan on an airplane coming home from Israel. She introduced herself as Christian Palestinian, ‘the peaceful kind’. In turn, I introduced myself as ‘Jewish American, the peaceful kind’. We chatted about all sorts of things. She now lives in San Jose and still loves to cook the food she grew up with. Not knowing my interest in chicken soup, she shared her mother’s recipe. Her advice is that the soup should only have a small handful of rice because the broth is most important, especially when someone is sick.
Ingredients 9
60 ml chicken fat
1 yellow onion, cut into 1 cm (1⁄2 in) cubes
2 ribs celery, cut into 1 cm (1⁄2 in) cubes
120 g curly parsley, leaves and stems, roughly chopped
80 g cilantro (coriander), leaves and stems, roughly chopped
1.9 l chicken stock
670 g boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2.5 cm (1 in) pieces
100 g basmati rice
salt, to taste
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Method 5
Heat the or neutral oil in a pot over a medium–high heat. Add the and and cook, stirring frequently for 3–4 minutes until the onion is translucent and slightly golden.
Add 80 g (2¾ oz) of the parsley and all the and stir to combine, then add the chicken stock or water and bring to a simmer.
Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, add the , stir and cook for 15 minutes.
Add the , stir and cook for a further 10 minutes, or until the and rice are tender.
Season with salt and garnish with the remaining .
Jenn Louis's tips
The soup should only have a small handful of rice because the broth is most important, especially when someone is sick.
