20-Minute Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe - Crunchy Creamy Sweet (2024)

FAQs

What adds sweetness to soup? ›

To add sweetness without sugar, try coconut, vanilla, or date, suggests Clean Eating Magazine, but for many soup recipes, sugar can help turn up the flavor volume of the original recipe.

The best options for thickening soup are cream or half and half. Plain yogurt or even freshly grated cheese works well and adds an extra layer of tangy, salty flavor. Add the dairy at the end and avoid bringing the soup to a boil since this can cause yogurt, cheese, or cream to split.

Lemon Zest and Juice: Adding a bit of lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice at the end of cooking can brighten up the soup. This adds a fresh, tangy contrast to the rich flavors of the chicken and broth. Mushrooms for Depth: Incorporate sliced mushrooms, such as cremini or shiitake, for an earthy depth of flavor.

Adding extra vegetables can enhance the flavor and nutritional value of your soup. You can add diced carrots, celery, onions, or any other vegetables you like. Simply sauté them before adding the soup to incorporate them seamlessly into the dish.

Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice, mace, cardamom and star anise are commonly associated with sweetness. These spices are often used in baked goods and pair especially well with fruit dishes. Vanilla extract can also make food seem sweeter, perhaps due to its aroma.

Like salt, sugar is added to tomato soup to offset the acidity of tomatoes and to help enhance the flavor. Other than salt and sugar, many soups have heavy cream added for consistency and to add body. Cream-based soups, such as chowders and bisques, are high in calories and saturated fat.

Whether you use a few tablespoons or a few cups, cream gives soup a silky mouthfeel and rich flavor. You can definitely add milk or other dairy as well, though it will taste gradually less creamy as you go down in percent.

Whole milk or half-and-half also thicken up the soup. I've even made it with half the amount (1/2 cup or 120ml) heavy cream in a pinch. (Add more chicken broth if you use heavy cream; see recipe Note.) Nice and thick, without being too heavy.

The high fat content in heavy cream contributes to a velvety mouthfeel, making the soup more satisfying. Additionally, heavy cream can mellow out the flavors of certain soups, balancing any acidity or sharpness. It also adds a subtle sweetness, complementing savory ingredients.

While adding vinegar won't reduce the amount of sodium in the pot, the sharp tang of this condiment can help equal out the salty flavor on your tastebuds, masking the brininess of an oversalted soup and making it easier to eat.

What can I add to my chicken soup to give it more flavor? ›

Adding a splash of acid can brighten up the flavors in your soup. Consider squeezing some fresh lemon juice or adding a splash of vinegar, such as apple cider or white wine vinegar. The acidity will help balance out the richness of the broth and add a tangy note to the overall taste.

Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe Variations

Add Lemon: Add 3 to 4 lemon slices, similar to this lemony chicken soup. Mexican-Inspired Soup: Add 3 or 4 slices of lime, use rice instead of noodles, swap the parsley for fresh cilantro, and then add diced tomatoes and cubed avocado.

Herbs add a fresh note to a bland chicken soup. Add a sprig or two and let them steep as the soup simmers for 10 to 30 minutes, or chop the herbs and toss them in for near-immediate color and flavor.

Add Flour Or Cornstarch

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute.

To add both deep flavor and an underlying sweetness, add some tomato paste (about 1 tablespoon per quart of stock). This work especially well for broths destined for soups like minestrone and rich, aromatic stews.

The first is to caramelize the vegetables, either in your soup pot or in the oven, to sweeten them and condense their juices. Next, add plenty of aromatics to the pot — herbs, spices, garlic, onions and the like — and let everything simmer for a long time to blend the flavors.

Add sweet vegetables like carrots and beets. They will sweeten the broth and deepen its color. You might also add a bit of miso (or salt) and/or a squeeze of lemon juice. Sweet, salt and acid balance bitter flavors.