Chicken and White Bean Soup

Ingredients

  • 1 rotisserie chicken breast section or 3 cups chopped white chicken meat
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 3 carrots, sliced
  • 2 celery stalks, sliced
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cups water
  • 6 cups reduced–sodium chicken broth
  • 1 (15-ounce) can Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  • Remove wings from chicken and reserve. Remove skin from breast and discard. Shred the meat from the breast and break off breastbones.
  • In a stockpot over medium heat, add oil. Sauté the carrots, celery, onion, chicken wings, and breastbones for 8 to 10 minutes, or until vegetables soften.
  • Add water and chicken broth and bring to a boil, stirring to combine. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Add beans and chicken meat and cook for 5 minutes. If too thick, add additional broth or water. Discard bones and wings before serving. Season with salt and pepper.

Notes

A store-bought rotisserie chicken offers incredible versatility at mealtime. Here it makes a quick and flavorful “homemade” chicken soup. Instead of traditional noodles, this soup is made with protein-packed beans. Choose a rotisserie chicken with mild seasoning—both plain and lemon-pepper work well. Adding the wings and some bones to the broth adds richer flavor. For a burst of green, add a few handfuls of baby spinach or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley right before serving. For classic chicken noodle soup, substitute ½ cup of egg noodles for the beans.

Serves: 6 to 8
Prep time: 15 minutes or less
Total time: 1 hour or less

Recipe credit to the American Cancer Society.