Slow cooker chicken noodle soup
Nourishing, aromatic and deeply flavourful, this deceptively simple chicken soup makes the perfect family supper – best of all, there’s hardly any washing up.
Ingredients
- 20²µ/¾´Ç³ú fresh coriander, stalks finely chopped and leaves roughly chopped
- 6 chicken thighs, bone in and skinless
- 1 tbsp Chinese five-spice powder
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 100²µ/3½´Ç³ú shiitake mushrooms, trimmed and roughly torn
- 20²µ/¾´Ç³ú fresh root ginger, peeled and finely grated
- 4 spring onions, finely sliced
- 2 medium garlic cloves, finely grated
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 fresh red or green chilli, finely sliced (optional)
- 200g/7oz dried egg noodles
- 2 small pak choi (approx. 350g/12oz), shredded into 1cm/½in wide pieces
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Place the coriander stalks, chicken thighs, five-spice, soy sauce, shiitake mushrooms, half of the grated ginger, half of the spring onions and 1.2 litres/2 pints cold water into a slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper and stir to combine.
Cook on low for 4 hours or high for 2 hours. There is no need to open the lid and stir during the cooking time.
By the end, the chicken should be cooked through and tender with a rich and flavourful broth. Remove the chicken and replace the lid. Once the chicken is cool enough to handle, discard the bones and shred the meat before returning it to the slow cooker.
Around 5–10 minutes before you want to serve, add the remaining spring onions, coriander leaves and ginger, along with the garlic, sesame oil and chilli, if using. Stir well and check the seasoning, adding another splash of soy sauce if more salt is needed.
Add the noodles, submerging them evenly. Cook for a further 5–10 minutes with the lid on, checking after 5 minutes, until just cooked through.
Stir through the pak choi cover with the lid and leave to stand for a further minute before serving.
Recipe Tips
Don’t be tempted to open the lid during cooking. This lowers the temperature inside and increases the cooking time.
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