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Dina's Kitchen

Lebanese Recipes

October 31, 2018

Shorbet djej – Chicken soup

Chicken soup is a great old home remedy. Like my mother and my grandmother and many others before them, I strongly believe that chicken soup can help ease cold and flu symptoms. And on top of its “healing” anti-inflammatory properties (it can clear nasal congestion and ease sore throat), it is really delicious. I don’t only cook it when someone is sick in my family; I make it very often on cold autumn and winter days.

I like to prepare the soup with a whole free-range chicken, but you can also use chicken pieces instead. The way I clean the chicken before cooking it doesn’t appeal to all my students in the cooking courses. They don’t understand why, after removing excess skin and fat around the neck and tail, I need to wash the chicken inside out with cold water. After that I generously rub it with salt and half a lemon and wash it again. Finally, I rub the chicken with salt and other spices depending on the recipe. I explain that we need to do that to get rid of rank odour. Then I remind them about the hygiene when preparing raw chicken; hands, all kitchen utensils and surfaces need to be thoroughly washed with hot water and soap before using or touching any other utensils or ingredients. Although this should go without saying, my teaching experience has taught me otherwise! Better safe than sorry is my motto, and I am never tired of repeating instructions each lesson.

Now back to our chicken soup. You can also add a handful of broken vermicelli to cook with the rice and carrots, and if you like a nutty kick, just garnish your bowl with some roasted pine nuts.

Sahtein! 

Remove excess skin and fat and wash chicken inside out with cold water. See recipe for more
Bouquet garni: indispensable for a flavourful chicken or meat stock
onion for the stock, carrots for the soup and parsley to finish
Cook chicken alone over high heat for few minutes
Skim the foam
Add bouquet garni and onion, and cook for an hour
You know chicken is tender when chicken pieces lightly fall apart
Remove chicken onto a cutting board and discard bouquet garni and onion.
Let cool a little
skin chicken, debone and cut or tear meat
chop the carrots
chop parsley
soak rice for 10 minutes
add a handful of fine noodles like vermicelli
Pour the stock onto a new pot, add drained rice, carrots and seasoning and bring to a boil
Reduce heat to medium low and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes
finish with some parsley and serve hot with a squeeze of lemon

Shorbet Djaj – Chicken Soup

dina Bayoud-Kohl
5 from 2 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 1 hr 35 mins
Total Time 2 hrs 15 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Lebanese
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1200-1400 g free-range chicken
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • Half of a lemon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 litres cold water
  • 1 medium onion peeled
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 4 whole cardamom pods
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 200 g rice rinsed and soaked in cold water for 10 minutes
  • 100 g carrots peeled, rinsed and finely chopped
  • 11/2 teaspoons salt ¼ teaspoon cinnamon to season
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper optional
  • 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped parsley
  • Lemon juice

Instructions
 

  • Remove excess skin and fat from the chicken (around the neck and tail). Wash the chicken inside and out with cold water over a colander. Sprinkle the chicken with the 2 teaspoons salt and rub inside and out with the half lemon. Then wash it again with cold water. Finally rub the chicken with the teaspoon salt.
  • Add the chicken and the water to a large pot, cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Skim the foam from the surface with a slotted spoon. Add the onion, the cinnamon stick, the cardamom pods and the bay leaves. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, for about 1 hour.
  • Discard the onion, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods and bay leaves. Remove the chicken and place on a plate. Skin chicken, debone and cut or tear the meat into bite-sized pieces. Pour the chicken stock into a clean big pot and keep warm.
  • Add chicken pieces to the stock in the clean pot, add the drained rice and the carrots, season with the salt and cinnamon and bring to a boil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes until the rice is done.
  • Stir in the parsley and serve immediately with a squeeze of lemon.

Notes

All images and text © Dina Bayoud Kohl for Dina’s Kitchen

Filed Under: Main Course, Meat & Poultry, Salads & Soups

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Joseph says

    May 15, 2020 at 21:42

    Great recipe. Enjoyed it. Thanks

    Reply
    • Dina says

      May 16, 2020 at 20:37

      Glad you liked it!

      Reply
    • Dina says

      May 19, 2020 at 8:29

      My pleasure! I love this soup anytime of the year as well!

      Reply
  2. Cynthia Kohl says

    January 21, 2021 at 18:13

    5 stars
    So good

    Reply
    • Dina says

      January 21, 2021 at 22:45

      Reminds you of home, doesn’t it?

      Reply
  3. Jamal says

    May 10, 2021 at 20:50

    5 stars
    It’s been some time away from Leb and this recipe made my whole kitchen smell like home!

    I had to fight myself not to eat the chicken as I was shredding it. The soup turned out amazing and I never tried to squeeze lemon on it but wow it really enhanced the flavor. I made a whole lot of it, but not enough apparently, as I am constantly sneaking back to the kitchen for another bowl.

    Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply
    • Dina says

      May 10, 2021 at 22:46

      Hello Jamal, so glad you loved it! Yes, lemon juice enhances the flavour a lot! I added to all my lentil soups as well. Thank you so much for the lovely feedback! Hoping you tried a few more recipes on the blog 🙂

      Reply

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