Chicken Soup, good for both the body and the soul

Typhoons and rains have been abundant in the past several weeks. More often than not, our days are cold, wet, and a little dark …. Sometimes the weather tends to really affect our mood even if we don’t want to. Not only that, the kids tend to get more sick because of it.

As a child, I remember loving to bathe in the rain. If my mom doesn’t allow me, I would go upstairs and sit by the window to soak in those stray raindrops. I remember loving the feel of those cold, random, drops of water and I would just sit there until the rain stops. If it didn’t, then I would sit there until my mother or somebody else notices and tell me to close the window.

I’d get sick that night following my short frisk with the rain. These nights would involve a lot of motherly hugs, sponge baths, aspilets, and hot bowls of Royco Chicken noodle soup. I don’t think we still have Royco chicken noodle soup in the market today but it’s very much similar to the Knorr chicken noodle soup we have today — tasty, with short noodles and with a few chicken bits.

That’s one of the things that comforted me when I was sick as a child. Royco Chicken noodle soup was more like a liquid hug that tells me I would feel better the next day.

I have a vague recollection of what went on with my weekend last week because I literally didn’t have any sleep. Ykaie and Cyra got sick. They had colds, coughs and incessant fever during night time. On the first night that they got sick, I gave them soup from the instant noodles cups we have stocked at home. Soup is the only thing they would want to eat. I guess that’s because it’s easier to eat and it’s very comforting, they didn’t even want the noodles that came with the soup.

I couldn’t feed them instant soup the whole time they’re sick. They need something that’s comforting but also nutritious at the same time. So I decided to go to the market the following morning to buy some ingredients for good old Chicken Soup.

As we all know, Chicken Soup is a popular home remedy for the common cold and other illness like sore throat and fever. The steam from the chicken soup may open up congested noses and throats. Soup also provides fluid, which is important for fighting infection. Some researchers suggest that there are substances in chicken soup that reduce the inflammation associated with the common cold, thus providing some relief. I don’t know if that is true but a good chicken soup does make you feel better.

This Chicken Soup became Cyra and Ykaie’s little hugs…. I can tell they felt better after eating it, although they left some of chicken pieces in the bowl. At least I am assured that what they ate — or slurped — was natural and nutritious.

This Chicken Soup is made by simmering chicken pieces with bone in, carrots, and celery after sauteéing white onions in olive oil. Imagine all the goodness that is in this soup.Think about how easy it is to make it…. I think it won’t take a lot of convincing for you to make it in THIS cold, damp Monday. This is good for both the body and the soul.