Chicken & Rice Soup

Soup is an integral part of my Autumn/Winter diet. I love soups and since I work from home most of the time, having leftover soup in the fridge or freezer is always a lunchtime lifesaver. Hoping to reduce my pasta intake from overdosing on Chicken Noodle Soup, I came up with this worthy alternative that features rice instead. Feel free to add more veggies - I made this with what I had in the house, but on a more plentiful day, I might add celery as well. The Cayenne pepper and chili flakes give a bit of a kick to the soup which I love, especially on cold days, but if you're not a fan, feel free to reduce them or eliminate them altogether.

Ingredients
6 1/2 cups low-salt hot chicken stock (more if required)
2 small carrots, cubed
1 cup frozen green peas or Petit Pois
400 − 500 grams uncooked chicken breast, cut into small pieces
2 cups cooked rice
1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried chili flakes
Salt & pepper

Method

1. Put the stock into a large pan with a lid. Add the raw chicken and bring to a boil. When it starts boiling, reduce the heat to medium.
2. When the chicken is fully cooked, skim any fat from the top of the soup and discard.
3. Add the carrots, frozen peas and cooked rice. Bring to boil again.
4. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low. Salt & pepper to taste and clamp on the lid. Leave to simmer for about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

This soup is great as leftovers - it usually keeps for me for the week in the fridge, however you can also freeze this soup. Just thaw before warming.