A guest post from Anne, of Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy and When Food is Dangerous.
Soup is among the most frugal of frugal foods, being largely based on broth, which is largely based on water. On top of which, it uses far less of a protein, typically the most expensive element of a meal, to feed your entire family, than meals that center around a cut of meat. And what’s more, you can easily incorporate leftovers into your soup, which really makes it a frugal star.
What I love most about soup, though, is how healthy it can be, especially if you make it from scratch (i.e., none of those cans of creamed soup). I like to load my soup up with vegetables for the maximum health benefit.
And as if that isn’t enough, most soups work wonderfully in the slow cooker, which I love because I can set it going in the morning and forget about it until dinner time. That’s an especially useful benefit of soup on those days when we have a lot going on in the evening.
To make soup prep even easier, I try to store extra cooked chicken, rice and noodles in the freezer whenever possible. I do this by cooking extra whenever I make those items, and then just store the excess until I need it. This chicken brown rice soup recipe uses both cooked chicken and rice. If you don’t have them, simply cut and panfry a pound of boneless skinless chicken, and cook 1 cup of brown rice.
Chicken Brown Rice Soup
INGREDIENTS
- 6-8 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or cubed
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- ½ onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 cups brown rice, cooked
DIRECTIONS
- Place all ingredients except for parsley and rice in the slow cooker
- Cook on low 6-8 hours
- Add rice and parsley just before serving (If rice is cold, continue cooking 10 minutes or so after adding it to the slow cooker)
This is a great basic recipe that can easily be adjusted for taste preferences – add some different vegetables, like corn, and herbs such as oregano or rosemary. Serve with crackers or a slice of hearty bread.
When she’s not busy cooking up something new in the kitchen, Anne Simpson can be found at Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy, where she proves that making healthy delicious food doesn’t have to waste your time, energy or money. You can also find her at When Food is Dangerous, a blog about living with life-threatening food allergies.
2 comments
2 pings
Erin @ epiCURIOUS ERIN
02/17/2011 at 8:52 AM (UTC -6)
To Anne & Steph,
Great post and great series so far! I’m definitely going to try this soup soon. I’m a huge soup fan and I have a healthy cauliflower soup recipe that people say rivals the fancier ones in NY restaurants that are loaded with cream. It makes me feel good that its healthier AND tastier.
I’ve also been thinking of trying to make a healthy version of a Southwestern Cheesy Chicken soup that I love and I think I’ve just been inspired to get on top of that!
Thanks ladies!
Susie Bee on Maui (Eat Little, Eat Big)
02/17/2011 at 12:44 PM (UTC -6)
I love that you used brown rice in this soup!
Guest Post on Cheapskate Cook | Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy
02/16/2011 at 7:07 PM (UTC -6)
[...] Guest Post on Cheapskate Cook By Anne, on February 17th, 2011 Steph, The Cheapskate Cook, and I, have a lot in common: we were both home-schooled, we are both young moms, we both strive to feed our families healthy food on a meager budget, and we both have … ahem… occasionally resistant hubbies. If you’ve never read her blog, be sure and check it out. Right now is the perfect time, as she is hosting a series on Soups and Stews this week, and I’m thrilled to be guest posting over there today with my Chicken and Brown Rice Soup. [...]
The Cheapskate Cook » Series Round-Up: Frugal Soups & Stews
03/10/2011 at 2:31 PM (UTC -6)
[...] Chicken Noodle Soup. Simply follow Anne’s recipe and replace rice with some egg [...]