Creamy Chicken Macaroni Soup for a Gathering

A large-batch sopas with separately cooked macaroni for better texture.

Ingredients

• Elbow macaroni — 1 kg dry, cook separately
• Chicken breast — 1.2–1.5 kg boneless or 2 kg bone-in, raw weight; cooked then shredded
• Purefoods TJ Classic small hotdogs — 500 g, rounds ½ cm thick
• Chicken broth — 6 L total, including the chicken cooking broth
• Extra unsalted broth or water — 1–2 L reserved, use only if needed
• Evaporated milk — 3 × 370 mL cans
• All-purpose cream — 2 × 250 mL packs
• Carrots — 600 g, peeled, ½ cm cubes
• Cabbage — 800 g, remove the core; strips ½ cm wide × 2–3 cm long
• Onion — 350 g, chopped
• Garlic — 60 g, minced
• Celery — 150 g, stalks sliced 3–5 mm; keep chopped leaves separate
• Butter or margarine — 100 g
• Cooking oil — 3 tbsp, plus 1 tbsp for the macaroni
• Knorr chicken powder — 2 level tbsp initially, add more only after tasting
• Patis — 2 tbsp initially, up to 4 tbsp total if needed
• Ground pepper — 1 tsp initially, add to taste
• Salt — only if needed after tasting

Method

• Simmer the chicken until the thickest part reaches 74°C, then debone and shred. Strain and top up its cooking liquid to make 6 L broth in total.
• Sauté hotdogs in 3 tbsp oil, add butter and onion, then garlic and celery stalks. Add chicken and 2 tbsp fish sauce. Pour in broth, then chicken powder and pepper; gently simmer 5 minutes.
• Cook macaroni separately, 1–2 minutes short of the packet time, until firm without a hard centre. Drain, briefly rinse with clean cold water, drain again and toss with 1 tbsp oil.
• Simmer carrots in the soup base for 5–8 minutes. Lower the heat and add evaporated milk. Loosen the cream with warm broth before stirring it in. Add cabbage and celery leaves for 2–3 minutes.
• Fold in the macaroni and heat through. Add reserved hot broth in 250–500 mL increments if too thick. Taste and serve promptly. If preparing ahead, chill components promptly and reheat chilled soup to 74°C before serving.

Before you cook

Read the ingredient labels for allergens, especially seafood, soy, wheat, dairy and eggs. Prepared sauces and seasoning powders vary in saltiness, so taste before adding more. Cooking times are guides; check doneness in the actual batch.

Cook poultry and reheated leftovers to 74°C, ground meat to 71°C, and fish to 63°C. FoodSafety.gov cooking guidance ↗