Spicy Chicken Noodle Soup With Lime and Ginger Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does adding lime to soup do? ›

The addition of fennel and cabbage adds a little aromatic heartiness. The lime really just brightens everything, adding both amazing flavor and vitamin C, another healthful vitamin during the common cold.

Lemons are a chicken soup game changer. Why? They brighten up and balance the salty, rich flavors of the dish, and make all of the ingredients come into line. Like a vinaigrette on a salad, the pickle on a burger, and the sour cream in a coffee cake, a squeeze of lemon gives chicken soup a game-changing brightness.

But to put some pep back in your soup's step, you're going to want to add more. Start by sautéing any combination of finely chopped vegetables and alliums—like onion, garlic, carrots, celery, bell peppers, and ginger. Whatever you choose is going to infuse the entire can of soup you're about to heat.

The famous chicken soup study from 2000 focused on its impact on inflammation. “The 2000 study basically found that chicken soup inhibited neutrophil chemotaxis, which is a fancy way of saying it helped temporarily decrease inflammation so those who were sick could temporarily breathe easier,” Pike said.

Fresh, just-squeezed lemon or lime juice does wonders for a pan sauce. But if you've ever added it to a sauce too early, you know how funky it tastes when it cooks. Avoid discoloration and a bitter flavor by only adding the juice after you remove the sauce (or stew, or soup, or whatever) from the heat.

Drinking lime water improves digestion. Limes are acidic and they help saliva break down food for better digestion. Additionally, flavonoids in limes stimulate secretion of digestive juices. If you experience constipation, the acidity of limes can clear the excretory system and stimulate bowel activity.

Add Vinegar To Begin With To Avoid Oversalting

By adding a splash of an acidic ingredient to your soup as you cook it, you'll reduce the need to add as much salt, while still highlighting and deepening the flavors in the pot.

While you could easily add lemon juice to taste, Rachael Ray recommends using ¼ cup of lemon juice. Her recipe calls for adding the lemon juice at the very end of the cooking process when the chicken soup is already done, contrary to what you may be used to.

The Lime Marinade makes the chicken juicy on the inside and injects with flavour so you won't need a sauce with it. And after resting the chicken for a few minutes before serving it, some of those juices will sweat to the surface, like you see below.

Add Fresh Chilies

If you're a spice enthusiast, fresh chilies can take your soup to new heights. Whether it's jalapenos, serranos, or habaneros, these peppers will add both heat and a burst of fresh flavor to your soup.

How to spice up can chicken soup? ›

Herbs: Fresh chives, thyme, or cilantro stirred in just before serving. Spices: Your soup is probably salty enough, but what about simmering a bay leaf in there for a while (don't forget to remove it before serving)? Depending on the soup's flavor profile, you could shake in some cumin or red pepper flakes.

Wolff recommends jazzing up chicken noodle soup with “interesting toppings, like spices, sauces, or drizzles.” For example, harissa—a North African chili paste—gives the broth complexity and heat. The Middle Eastern seasoning blend za'atar would also be a nice touch, adding rich, earthy character to the soup.

Bone broth serves as a great way to replenish the fluids that you're losing, while also providing your body with valuable electrolytes from the sodium in the broth. These electrolytes will also help you absorb the water more easily.

Chicken broth is also a rich source of minerals, including iron. Your body uses iron to make hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to all parts of the body, and myoglobin, a protein that supplies oxygen to muscles. Your body also needs iron to produce certain hormones.

Compared with hot water alone, studies show chicken soup is more effective at loosening mucus. The herbs and spices sometimes used in chicken soup, such as pepper and garlic, also loosen mucus. The broth, which contains water and electrolytes, helps with rehydration.

Limes contain antioxidants, which have been shown to help reduce inflammation and even help prevent certain chronic illnesses. The high levels of Vitamin C found in limes can help protect you from infection and speed up your body's healing process. Citrus fruits have been shown to help keep kidney stones at bay.

Lemon or Lime – A few drops of an acid like lemon or lime juice will help even out the saltiness of a dish. Choose between the two depending on the flavor of the actual dish. Only use a few drops and then taste after each addition to figure out how much you need to fix the dish you're cooking.

Lime juice in cooking

Lime juice will enhance the flavour of fruits, vegetables, salads, and other dishes without adding fat or a lot of calories. It also allows less salt to be used. Like lemon, lime juice is also used in baked goods and desserts to provide a light, fresh flavour like the famous Key Lime pie.

Lime is applied to the soil of home lawns to increase the soil pH. Soil pH, a measure of the soil's acidity or alkalinity, can directly influence the vigor and quality of the home lawn. When the pH is below 7.0, the soil is said to be acidic; when pH is above 7.0, soil is alkaline; and pH of 7.0 is considered neutral.