A Cuban Chicken Soup recipe (sopa de pollo) is easy and relatively quick. It is serious comfort food, especially when you're sick. This soup really warms your soul and is a favorite in Cuba.
Some Cuban friends introduced me to this soup some time ago, their mom was making it and they were drooling, waiting for it to be served up.
I must admit, I love it and have always had it in the back of my mind to try my hand at making a batch. I was surprised at the simplicity of it.
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❤️ Why you'll love it
- Ingredients you would tend to have on hand, and if you don't, they're easy to get from any grocery store.
- It reminds you of the chicken noodle soup we'd eat when sick as a child. Delicious soups we can all appreciate.
- This delicious Cuban recipe is perfect on a chilly day - perfect comfort food.
🧅 Ingredients
- Chicken Thighs
- Corn
- Medium Onion
- Bell Pepper
- Celery
- Chicken Bouillon
- Garlic Cloves
- Potatoes
- Medium Carrot
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Black Pepper
- Water
See recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities.
🥣 Instructions
- Step 1: Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat and add the onions, bell peppers and celery.
- Step 2: Cook until soft, about 5 minutes, then add the garlic. Cook another 2 minutes.
- Step 3: Add the chopped chicken pieces and brown a little. While that's happening boil 2 cups of the water, then add the bouillon. Mix well with a whisk then add to the pot with the chicken.
- Step 4: Add the remaining water, stir the ingredients and bring to a boil.
- Step 5: Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover. Simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Step 6: After 45 minutes add the carrots and potatoes and cook another 30 minutes.
- Step 7: Add the corn pieces and cook another 15.
- Step 8: Add the angel hair pasta and cook another 4 minutes until al dente.
Hint: Exchange the angel hair pasta for any noodle you prefer.
If you find you need to add more fluid, add chicken broth. Sometimes if you add too much pasta it can suck up the fluid too much.
🔄 Substitutions and Variations
- Tomato Paste - this can be added at the beginning when cooking down your onions. Adds a certain acidity and flavor as well as thickening.
- Tomato Sauce - same as above.
- Bay Leaf - add some bay leaves while cooking.
- Sweet Potatoes - some people like to use sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes.
- Green Onions - finish the dish with a sprinkling of chopped green onions.
- Lime Juice - Squeeze the juice from a lime or two at the end, if you like.
- Black Beans - some people like to add beans to their chicken soup.
- Fresh Chopped Cilantro - finish the dish by sprinkling some at the end.
- Turmeric Powder - check if your bouillon has this. If not, sprinkle a little into the chicken broth.
- Sour Cream - can be added for richness.
- White Rice - try this instead of the noodles.
- Sazon - add a sazon packet or two, instead of the bouillon.
- Fidelini Noodles - it's a thin spaghetti - much like angel hair.
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🔌 Equipment
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A large pot is needed to cook this soup. I like to use my large Dutch Oven. I have a link to my favorite one on Amazon in the recipe card below.
📘 Related Recipes
- Slow Cooker Cajun 15 Bean Soup
- Easy Taco Soup
- Copycat Saltgrass Baked Potato Soup
- Crab Soup
- Shrimp and Corn Bisque
- Corn and Crab Bisque
🧊 Storage
Once the Cuban chicken soup has cooled completely store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Pasta doesn't really freeze and thaw too well, it gets a bit weird, so I wouldn't recommend freezing it. If you complete all the steps before the pasta then want to take a few bowls to freeze, that would be a great idea.
In that case, it will freeze well for up to 3 months.
💡 Tips
Expert Tip: Speed things up by using a rotisserie chicken instead. You can eliminate the initial 45 minutes of cooking by adding the shredded chicken.
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Cuban Chicken Soup Recipe
A traditional Cuban chicken soup recipe that is quick and easy to make and warms the soul. A comfort food full of flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 Teaspoons Olive Oil
- 1 Onion, diced
- 1 Green Bell Pepper, diced
- 1 Stick Celery, diced
- 4 Cloves Garlic, minced
- 8 Chicken Thighs, boneless skinless, cut into 1" pieces
- 8 Cups Water
- 3 Tablespoons Chicken Bouillon
- 3 Medium Carrots, sliced
- 4 Large Potatoes, quartered
- 2 Corn Cobs, cut into 3" pieces
- 6oz Angel Hair Spaghetti
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a large heavy bottomed pot (like a Dutch Oven).
- Add the onions, bell pepper and celery and cook for 5 minutes over medium-high heat until soft.
- Add the garlic and cook a further 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken pieces stir well and cook a couple of minutes.
- While that's happening boil some water in a kettle and add to a measuring jug. Add the bouillion to that hot water and mix well.
- Pour into the pot then add the remaining water.
- Stir well and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to a low roll and cover. Simmer like that for about 45 minutes.
- Add the sliced carrots and potatoes and cook another 30 minutes then add the corn. Continue cooking for another 15 minutes.
- Add the angel hair pasta and cook for about another 4 minutes then turn off the heat.
- Taste the broth to see if you need to add some salt and pepper. Season to taste.
Notes
Any cut of chicken is fine for this Cuban Chicken Soup recipe, I find that chicken thighs fall apart nicely though, which is nice in a soup. They also have more flavor.
If you can, use bone-in chicken thighs. The bones are easy fish out after and they give a lot more flavor.
To make things quicker you could use the meat from a Rotisserie chicken and forget the first 45 minutes of cooking time.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 10 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 328Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 110mgSodium 621mgCarbohydrates 38gFiber 4gSugar 4gProtein 27g
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