Loaded Vegetable Chicken Soup

Loaded vegetable chicken soup is the cold-weather pot that solves leftover chicken and an empty crisper drawer in one move. Three styles of canned tomato, crushed, diced, and diced with green chiles, build the base for a robust, slightly spiced broth, then carrots, celery, onion, zucchini, and garlic round it out into a real meal in a bowl.

The vegetables go in first and simmer 30 minutes alone, which is the move that makes this soup taste like it cooked all day. That long base simmer lets the carrots and celery sweeten the broth before any protein hits the pot. Skip it and the soup tastes thin.

A flour-and-water slurry at the end gives the broth just enough body to coat a spoon without going gravy-thick. Stir it in gradually and bring to a boil to cook out the raw-flour taste. That two-second whisk turns chicken-noodle-without-noodles into something heartier and more satisfying.

Kitchen Tips

• Use a rotisserie chicken to skip the cooking step. Pull about 4 cups of meat from one bird.
• The diced tomatoes with green chiles bring quiet heat. Use plain tomatoes if cooking for spice-shy kids.
• Slice the carrots and celery to about coin-thickness so they cook evenly with the zucchini.
• The recipe makes a big pot. Freeze portions in zip bags laid flat for easy stacking in the freezer.
• Serve with crusty bread and a hard cheese for a complete supper.

Variations

• Add a cup of cooked small pasta or rice in the last 10 minutes for a heartier bowl.
• Stir in a cup of cooked white beans for extra protein and creaminess.
• Finish with a handful of baby spinach right before serving for a green vitamin hit.