By Grocery List Plus Editorial Staff | Published on June 3, 2026
Serves 8
98 cal · 220 min
Cleansing Ginger-Chicken Soup
Recipe GLPR77629018d6be2a
A warming, deeply flavored broth made by slowly simmering chicken breasts with fresh ginger, aromatics, and whole spices. The extended cooking time draws out rich, cleansing flavors from the ginger and creates a light, nourishing soup that's both comforting and simple. Shredded chicken is served in bowls and topped with the strained, flavorful broth, finished with fresh cilantro if desired.
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Ingredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1½ pounds)
1 medium onion, sliced into thin wedges
2 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
8 ounces fresh ginger with skin, scrubbed and sliced ½ inch thick
2 garlic cloves, lightly crushed
10 whole black peppercorns
6 quarts filtered or spring water
Kosher salt to taste
Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish (optional)
Directions
Place the onion, celery, ginger slices, crushed garlic cloves, and peppercorns in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Set the chicken breasts on top of the vegetables. Pour in the 6 quarts of water, covering the ingredients completely. Bring the liquid to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, partially cover the pot with a lid (leaving it slightly ajar), and maintain a gentle simmer.
Simmer for about 30 minutes, until the chicken breasts are cooked through (internal temperature should reach 165°F when measured with a meat thermometer in the thickest part). Carefully transfer the cooked chicken breasts to a plate and allow them to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate.
Continue simmering the broth, uncovered, for approximately 2½ hours longer. This extended cooking draws out the full flavor from the ginger, aromatics, and spices, creating a rich, deeply flavored broth. The liquid will reduce somewhat and become more concentrated.
Once the broth has finished simmering, remove the pot from heat. Place a fine-mesh sieve over a large, clean pot. Carefully strain the broth through the sieve, discarding all the solids (onion, celery, ginger, garlic, and peppercorns). You should have approximately 8 cups of strained broth.
When the chilled chicken breasts are cool enough to handle, coarsely shred the meat using two forks or your fingers, discarding any remaining skin and bones. The meat should be in bite-sized, irregular shreds.
Season the strained broth to taste with kosher salt. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Gently reheat the seasoned broth over medium heat until it reaches a simmer, just before serving. Divide the shredded chicken equally among 8 bowls. Ladle the hot broth over the chicken in each bowl, dividing it equally. Garnish each serving with fresh cilantro leaves if desired.
Comments
This is a straightforward stock-based soup that checks the practical boxes for a Charlotte family. Every ingredient is a staple at Harris Teeter, Food Lion, or Walmart—nothing forces a special stop. At roughly $1.20 to $1.50 per serving, it's cheap; chicken breast and aromatics do the lifting. The real issue is the 220-minute claim: the cooking time assumes a slow simmer to extract broth, but the recipe lists only chicken breast and aromatics, which actually cook through in 45 minutes, not three-plus hours—the stated time is wildly optimistic unless you're making stock from bones. Leftovers freeze beautifully and reheat perfectly on a weeknight, and the minimal fussiness makes it family-friendly, though cilantro is fresh and should be stirred in at the table so it doesn't wilt into invisibility during storage.
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