Chicken Ginger Soup
If you’re looking for a delicious budget meal, then, you’ve come to the right place. This Chicken Ginger Soup is one of the most popular dishes in the Philippines, it’s called “tinola”. The traditional ingredients are green papaya and pepper leaves. For me, it tastes great with any greens and potatoes as well. The main ingredients are chicken and ginger obviously, and I love adding a lot of ginger. There’s something about ginger that’s very soothing especially if I’m making soups.
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Here’s what you need to make it
Chicken broth – the chicken broth is always my “go-to” when I make any type of soup.
Chicken thighs or dark meat – dark meat is more flavorful especially when they’re attached to the bones.
Yellow potatoes – I like using yellow potatoes, I find that they cook faster and they’re more creamy.
Aromatics – onion, garlic, and ginger. These aromatics are always the base of my cooking.
Sauces – soy sauce and fish sauce. These sauces give my dish an umami flavor, these are flavor boosters.
Spinach – traditionally, you’ll use pepper leaves but spinach is what I have available and it works great too.
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step-by-step
This is a simple dish. Just remember that ginger is the star of the show, next to the chicken of course. You can use a store-bought chicken broth or make your own. I browned the chicken first, then used the same pot and added more oil. I started sauteing the onion, garlic, and ginger. Then I seasoned it with soy sauce and fish sauce. I added the potatoes and combine everything. I let the potatoes sear for about five minutes before I added the chicken back into the pan. This way, they brown and give your dish another layer of flavor. Then I added the chicken broth, lower the heat, cover it, and simmer it for 10 minutes. Don’t forget to skim off the top, this process allows you to remove the excess fat. Cover again and simmer until the chicken is cooked all the way through (165ºF internal temperature). Time to taste, add more salt if needed, and add red chili flakes for a little heat. And, at the end of cooking add the spinach.
watch how to make it
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recipe
Chicken Ginger Soup
Equipment
- Stockpot
- knife
- cutting board
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 1 1/2 pound chicken thighs and drumsticks, or any dark chicken meat, attached to the bones, cut then into pieces
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 medium yellow potatoes, cut into wedges
- 4 cups chicken broth, store-bought or homemade
- 1/4 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
- add salt to taste
- 2 cups baby spinach
Instructions
- Heat a stockpot with oil. Add the chicken pieces and brown on both sides, for about 3-4 minutes. Remove them from the pot, and set them aside.
- In the same pot, add more oil if needed, add the onion, and saute until soft and translucent. Add the ginger and garlic, and continue sauteing until fragrant.
- Add the soy sauce and fish sauce, and stir to combine. Add the potatoes, and brown for 5 minutes before adding the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the seared chicken back into the pot. Add the chicken broth, stir, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. After 10 minutes, uncover and skim the top to remove excess fat. Cover again, and continue cooking until the chicken reaches the internal temperature of 165ºF and the potatoes are tender.
- Add red chili pepper flakes. Taste and adjust by adding more salt if needed. Add the spinach. Serve immediately.
Notes
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Hi there! Nice to meet you. My name is Jen.
I’m a mom of 2 wonderful girls. I love to prepare and cook home-cooked meals. Cooking and planning your meals might sound like another chore added to your already long list of things to do. Believe me, I’ve been there. However, cooking more meals at home is worth all the effort. After years of cooking for my family and teaching culinary classes, I can honestly say that I have more control over the quality of the ingredients I use. That means I’m eating a lot better. Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring and you don’t have to eat the same thing repeatedly. There are ways we can do and naturally enhance the flavor of our food and enjoy home-cooked meals.