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A bowl of golden turmeric chicken soup with chickpeas, kale and carrots, a lemon wedge and grated ginger on a stone counter

Anti Inflammatory Soup With Turmeric, Ginger, Chicken and Chickpeas

Prep
20 min
Cook
35 min
Total
55 min
Servings
6 bowls

A golden pot of chicken, chickpeas and lacinato kale, warmed with fresh ginger, turmeric and black pepper and finished with lemon and parsley. Six bowls of 310 calories and 35 g of protein, and an honest look at what the turmeric and ginger trials tested.

Ingredients

  • 2 tbspolive oil
  • 1 mediumonion, diced
  • 3 mediumcarrots, sliced into coins
  • 3 stalkcelery, sliced
  • 4 clovegarlic, minced
  • 2 tbspginger root, peeled and finely grated, a piece about 2 inches long
  • 2 tspturmeric powder
  • 1/2 tspblack pepper
  • 6 cuplow-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cupwater
  • 1.5 lbboneless skinless chicken breast, 2 to 3 breasts, left whole
  • 1 cancanned chickpeas, 15 ounces, about 1 1/2 cups, drained and rinsed
  • 4 cuplacinato kale, stems removed, leaves chopped
  • 3 tbsplemon juice
  • 1/4 cupchopped fresh parsley

Instructions

  1. Soften the onion, carrots and celery. Warm the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook for about 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent.
    Diced onion, carrot coins and sliced celery softening in a dark pot with a wooden spoon
  2. Bloom the ginger, garlic and turmeric. Stir in the garlic, grated ginger, turmeric and black pepper and cook for 1 minute, until the vegetables turn golden and the ginger smells sharp and sweet. Keep stirring so the turmeric does not scorch.
    Onion, carrots and celery in a pot dusted with ground turmeric, garlic and black pepper
  3. Poach the chicken in the broth. Pour in the broth and water, then slide in the whole chicken breasts. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 to 18 minutes, until the thickest part of the chicken reads 165 °F (74 °C) on a food thermometer.
    Whole chicken breasts poaching in golden broth with carrot coins and celery in a dark pot
  4. Shred the chicken and add the chickpeas. Lift the chicken onto a board and shred it with two forks. Return it to the pot with the drained chickpeas and simmer for 5 minutes.
    Shredded chicken, chickpeas, carrots and celery simmering in golden broth in a blue pot
  5. Finish with kale, lemon and parsley. Stir in the kale and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until it is dark green and tender. Take the pot off the heat, then add the lemon juice and parsley. Taste, and add a pinch of salt only if it needs it.
    Finished soup with shredded chicken, chickpeas, carrots and wilted kale in a dark pot, parsley nearby

Notes

  • Poaching the breasts whole and shredding them at the end keeps the chicken tender; cubes of raw breast boiled for half an hour turn stringy.
  • Turmeric stains wooden spoons and pale pot lids for good: use a dark or enamel pot if you can.
  • Lemon goes in off the heat, so it stays bright instead of tasting cooked.

Nutrition Facts

Per serving (estimated) : Calories: 310 | Total Carbohydrate: 20 g | Protein: 35 g | Total Fat: 10 g | Sodium: 273 mg

Category: Functional FoodsAuthor: Kerth GCuisine: American