Good ol' fashioned chicken and veggie soup

When something goes in my freezer it's like a study in long term cryogenics. For me putting something in the freezer is as good as opening a door and throwing something into Narnia - lost in an endless winter. What I'm trying to say (very badly) is that it's a case of out of sight out of mind - especially when it comes to uncooked meats. If I can't remember when I put it in there then I think it's safer to assume it isn't safe to eat which  means much of what I freeze ends up in the bin.

But I'm turning over a new leaf (well trying to). I'm trying to live a less wasteful life which means not letting food I've purchased go to waste. That means either cooking it or freezing it - then of course remembering I've got it in the freezer. Enter frozen 'lovely legs' chicken.

With them thawing in the fridge I went in search of recipes to use. I found an old recipe I have used in the past for chicken and barely soup. Naturally I didn't have half the ingredients so living on the edge of culinary possibility I boldly began chopping anything I could find.

Ingredients
1 tray of free range 'lovely legs' (5 - 6 in a packet)
1 - 2 tbsp olive oil

The corn kernels off 1 ear of corn
1/2 beetroot washed and chopped
1 carrot washed and chopped
Approx 1 cup of chopped sweet potato and pumpkin
7 small button mushrooms
1 small zucchini chopped
1/3 cup of brown rice (I use bio-dynamic)
Massel chicken stock powder
Water

Method

1. Prepare all chopped vegetables
2. Heat olive oil in large saucepan
3. Add all vegetables and cook over heat for approx. 5 minutes
4. Add enough water to cover all vegetables with 1 - 2 cms over
5. Add 1 heaped tsp of chicken stock powder (or more if you like it salty)
6. Bring to the boil
7. Add 'lovely legs' and the rice and bring back to the boil
8. Immediately reduce heat to low simmer
9. Partially cover and cook for up to 1 hour, stirring occasionally
10. When rice is cooked and chicken is easily falling off the bone, take out 'lovely legs'
11. Remove the cooked chicken from the bones, chop the chicken meat and throw back into the soup.
12. Stir it all together
13. Ready to serve or freeze.

Result
Any chance to use whole mushrooms and beetroot gets me excited. Aside from seriously burning myself whilst getting the chicken off the bone it worked a treat! I like my soup to be thick - amlost like a stew. For those who prefer a thinner soup just add more water. It has such a rustic flavour and I love the chunkiness of all the chopped veggies and the tenderness of the chicken. It keeps really well and is especially good for freezing - if you can be trusted to remember that it's there.

Verdict
It does take a while to cook which usually is a deterrent for me trying to cook it again - but as there is actually very little effort involved I will definitely keep this one as a staple in my soup repertoire

Useful links
Massel stock has no animal product so is suitable for vegans: http://www.massel.com.au/
Demeter bio-dynamic brown rice: http://www.demeter.org.au/products.html