SARA'S FULL-FLAVORED CHICKEN SOUP

Sara's Full-Flavored Chicken Soup image

Provided by Super Sara

Time 3h30m

Yield 8-10 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 12

8 bone-in chicken thighs
1 yellow onion, cut in large pieces
6 -8 garlic cloves, minced
12 -16 cups water
1 (8 ounce) can chicken broth
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
2 -3 whole bay leaves
4 stalks celery, chopped (approx 2 c.)
3 large carrots, chopped (approx 2 c.)
kosher salt
fresh ground pepper
vegetable oil

Steps:

Heat oil in large pot on medium-high.
Salt and pepper chicken pieces and add to hot oil.
Brown all chicken pieces very well on each side. I find it easy to use long tongs to turn them.
Add onions and garlic to pot and cook until transluscent. Do NOT overcook the garlic, it will really ruin the flavor of the broth.
Add 12c. of water, chicken broth, italian seasoning and bay leaves. If you don't have broth I'll add about 2TB of Better than Boullion.
Simmer for 1-2 hours until the chicken is falling from the bones.
Remove Chicken from pot and set aside to cool. Strain out onions, bay leaves and any larger chunks of garlic.
Add celery and carrots and turn heat up to boil, then reduce to simmer. While veggies are cooking, shred or cut up chicken pieces, discarding the skins and bones. Return to pot. At this point, if your stock/liquid has cooked down quite a bit, you can always add more water at this point. I usually do!
Check vegetables after 20-30 minutes; remove from heat.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy!