How to Make Grandma's Chicken Soup

SERVINGS: 4

PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES

COOK TIME: 60 MINUTES

SKILL LEVEL: EASY

MEAL: LUNCH-DINNER

STYLE: WESTERN

PREPARATION: SOUP, BOILED

EAT IN: SPRING, AUTUMN-WINTER

FOR OCCASION: CLEANSE, ON-THE-MEND

How Does This Ayurvedic Recipe Improve Wellness?

CLINICAL AYURVEDIC REVIEW

Salty, nurturing, warm broth soothes your belly on the worst of days. Grandma still knows best- Chicken Soup is her mysterious cure-all and its reputation persists today. The next time you're feeling under the weather, make a big pot of Grandma's Chicken Soup, and feel the healing qualities soothe your achy body.

Common Cold Cure

Grandma's Chicken Soup doesn't have any high tech chemicals, compounds, or derivatives that prevent the common cold. So how does it work? The answer is that chicken soup pulls less blood to the GI tract while providing balanced nutrition. The more blood that stays in circulation, the more blood is available to fight disease. A whopping 60% of metabolism gets consumed by digestion. Releasing the power of that 60% is the key to Grandma's magic and boosting immunity.

Carrots and rice digest in a snap. Black pepper stimulates circulation. Circulation is great for immunity because it stimulates a light sweat, thereby releasing the toxins that are giving you the blues. Nutrition in the form of broth is easy to assimilate and keeps the body hydrated.

Why Chicken?

Between nations or organisms, war is costly. Sustained periods of fighting bacterial invasion eventually depletes your strength. Meat closely resembles our bodily tissues and is the best way to replace depleted fuel and vitality-giving ojas. Chicken is preferred for those recovering from illness because it is easier to digest than heavy red meat. Additionally, the nourishing fats of dark chicken keep your digestive tract lubricated and flowing freely, aiding your body's ability to eliminate toxins that may have been (or may in the future!) make you sick.

The Vegetarian Choice

Vegetarians are recommended to use kitchari with root vegetables instead. Kitchari is Ayurveda's vegetarian version of chicken soup that has been used for thousands of years. Make your kitchari with extra broth when you're sick to receive many of the same benefits of chicken soup.

Prevention is Better than the Cure

Some of the best medicine for full-blown illness works wonders as preventative medicine. Why get sick if you don't have to? If you feel even a touch under the weather, gently nurturing yourself with this soup can save you from heading all the way down the pipeline to a common cold or winter flu. It's not easy to cook for yourself when you don't feel good, so keep chicken broth in the freezer. It's a great way to jump-start feeling great again. So get in the kitchen and prepare for winter!

AYURVEDA'S GUIDE TO VITALITY & WHOLESOME NOURISHMENT

Your Ayurvedic diet is tailored to your individual body and your specific imbalances. With an Ayurvedic diet you feel joy and satisfaction because what you are eating truly nourishes and balances you. Disease results from diets and lifestyles that are incompatible with your nature. By eating a personalized diet matched to your body, you experience optimal health. See How it Works.

See a complete list of all biocharacteristics.

INCREASES Increases These Biocharacteristics (Gunas) Functional Ayurveda helps you assess imbalances through 20 main biocharacteristics (gunas). Aggravating these characteristics weakens your body and causes imbalance. By knowing which characteristics are habitually imbalanced in your body, you will be able to identify and correct imbalances before you get sick. Every characteristic has an opposite which balances it (i.e. hot balances cold). You restore balance by favoring diet and lifestyle choices that increase the opposite characteristic. Learn More	EASY ABOUT EASY BIOCHARACTERISTIC Easy refers to anything easy to digest, or digests quickly. LEARN MORE ABOUT EASY CLEAR ABOUT CLEAR BIOCHARACTERISTIC Clear refers to anything that cleanses or flushes out wastes, or that digests ama. LEARN MORE ABOUT CLEAR LIQUEFIED ABOUT LIQUEFIED BIOCHARACTERISTIC Substances that thin fluids (lower viscosity of blood plasma). These may include blood thinners or mucolytic herbs. LEARN MORE ABOUT LIQUEFIED LIGHT ABOUT LIGHT BIOCHARACTERISTIC Lightness is identified by reduced weight. LEARN MORE ABOUT LIGHT
TASTES The 6 Tastes Taste is used to sense the most basic properties and effects of food. Each taste has a specific medicinal effect on your body. Cravings for food with certain tastes indicate your body is craving specific medicinal results from food. Taste is experienced on the tongue and represents your body's reaction to foods. Sweet taste causes physical satisfaction and attraction whereas bitter taste causes discomfort and aversion. Kapha should use less sweet taste while Vata and Pitta would benefit from using more sweet taste. One of the first signs of illness is that your taste and appetite for food changes. The six tastes are sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent. Do you crave foods with any of the tastes below? Learn More	PUNGENT ABOUT PUNGENT BIOCHARACTERISTIC Pungency is characterized by irritation, or sharp, spicy foods that irritate the mouth such as black pepper. LEARN MORE ABOUT PUNGENT
DOSHAS The Three Doshas / Body Types According to the biocharacteristic theory of medicine, people tend to get sick, over and over again, due to habitual causes and imbalances that are unique to the person. Your body type summarizes this tendency, showing you the 'type' of conditions and imbalances that frequently challenge your health & wellness. Using body type, you can also identify remedies likely to improve your strength and resiliency. Your body type identifies physical and mental characteristics as well as your personal strengths and weaknesses. The calculation of your body type is based on your medical history. The 3 functional body types (doshas), are Catabolic (Vata), Metabolic (Pitta), and Anabolic (Kapha). Catabolic individuals tend to break down body mass into energy. They are easily stimulated, hyperactive, underweight and dry. Metabolic individuals tend to burn or use energy. They tend to be rosy-cheeked, easily irritated, focused, driven, and easily inflamed. Anabolic individuals tend to store energy as body mass. If they store too much energy, they could gain weight easily and have congestion. Anabolic people tend to be stable and grounded. Learn More	PACIFIES AGGRAVATES
HAS THE FOLLOWING	Subtaste: Aromatic AROMATIC Herbs or spices with volatile essential oils that present strong aromas. Aromatic oils shock, refresh and numb tissue, with the end result of relaxing, opening and clearing stagnant fluids in tissues. SEE ALL 'AROMATIC' FOODS / HERBS , Crunchy CRUNCHY Makes an audible noise when you eat them. Can provide fun texture variation. SEE ALL 'CRUNCHY' FOODS / HERBS , Bland BLAND Bland means doesn't have much taste. In Chinese medicine, bland taste refers to afood without little macronutrients, such as cabbage, radish or bok choy. SEE ALL 'BLAND' FOODS / HERBS Moves Energy: Downward DOWNWARD Downward-moving (Adho Gati Marga) substances move food downward in the GI tract, settle the nervous system, and relax muscles. SEE ALL 'DOWNWARD' FOODS / HERBS
HERBAL ACTIONS (see all)	Medicinal Benefits, Uses & Herbal Actions of Grandma's Chicken Soup Experiences are Personal Experiences vary according to the person and constitution. Individual results may vary. The list of herbal-actions below has not be approved by the FDA and should not be used to treat a medical condition. Digestion: Quenches Thirst QUENCHES-THIRST An herb or substance that relieves thirst. SEE ALL 'QUENCHES-THIRST' FOODS / HERBS , Digestive DIGESTIVE Herbs that encourage healthy digestion. SEE ALL 'DIGESTIVE' FOODS / HERBS Bowel Health: Relieves Burning RELIEVES-BURNING Herbs that soothe a burn or reduce an internal burning sensation, such as aloe vera. SEE ALL 'RELIEVES-BURNING' FOODS / HERBS Cleanse & Detox: Burns Toxins BURNS-TOXINS An herb that detoxifies by helping your body metabolize toxins, as opposed to eliminating them. SEE ALL 'BURNS-TOXINS' FOODS / HERBS Mind, Stress & Sleep: Strengthens Resolve STRENGTHENS-RESOLVE Increases determination and courage by reducing stress and building strength. SEE ALL 'STRENGTHENS-RESOLVE' FOODS / HERBS , Makes You Tired MAKES-YOU-TIRED Induces drowsiness and promotes sound sleep. SEE ALL 'MAKES-YOU-TIRED' FOODS / HERBS Energy Vitality: Satisfies Stomach SATISFIES-STOMACH Provides a sense of gratification and fullness in the stomach. SEE ALL 'SATISFIES-STOMACH' FOODS / HERBS , Nutritive NUTRITIVE An herb that is strengthening and nourishing. SEE ALL 'NUTRITIVE' FOODS / HERBS Skin Care & Beauty: Diaphoretic DIAPHORETIC An herb that induces sweating, often by dilating blood vessels close to the skin. SEE ALL 'DIAPHORETIC' FOODS / HERBS Respiratory-Health: Flushes Sinuses FLUSHES-SINUSES An herb that relieves sinus congestion by flushing out mucus. SEE ALL 'FLUSHES-SINUSES' FOODS / HERBS , Soothes Throat SOOTHES-THROAT Soothes throat discomfort, including from a sore or ticklish throat. SEE ALL 'SOOTHES-THROAT' FOODS / HERBS , Decongestant DECONGESTANT An herb that reduces mucus production often by restricting blood flow to mucus membranes. SEE ALL 'DECONGESTANT' FOODS / HERBS Heart & Circulation: Cardiac Stimulant CARDIAC-STIMULANT Herbs that increase the heart rate. Useful in cardiovascular health, blood stagnation, and subjective feeling of heaviness in the chest area. SEE ALL 'CARDIAC-STIMULANT' FOODS / HERBS , Vasodilator VASODILATOR A vasodilator is an herb that widens the blood vessels by the relaxation of smooth muscle cells within the vessel walls, thereby increasing circulation systemically or to a local area. SEE ALL 'VASODILATOR' FOODS / HERBS , Blood Tonic BLOOD-TONIC An herb that produces more blood cells in the body, or otherwise improves blood cell quality or hemoglobin content. Helpful for anemia and other types of deficiency. SEE ALL 'BLOOD-TONIC' FOODS / HERBS Kidney & Urinary: Diuretic DIURETIC Herbs that promote urine formation, thereby flushing the kidneys and urinary tract while eliminating any excess water retention. As diuretics reduce water retention, they are often used to reduce blood pressure. SEE ALL 'DIURETIC' FOODS / HERBS Liver & Gallbladder: Cholagogue CHOLAGOGUE Cholagogues stimulate the production & release of bile from the liver & gallbladder. This refreshes and cleanses these organs, as well as increases bile in the small intestines. SEE ALL 'CHOLAGOGUE' FOODS / HERBS Constituents: Nitric Oxide NITRIC-OXIDE Improves circulation by dilating blood vessels. Protects blood vessels from damage. Improves athletic performance, libido, immunity, and brain health. SEE ALL 'NITRIC-OXIDE' FOODS / HERBS , Coumarin COUMARIN Moderately toxic, vascular tonic, hypotensive, and anti-inflammatory. SEE ALL 'COUMARIN' FOODS / HERBS , Carbohydrate, Vitamin K, Saponins SAPONINS Can be used to make soap. Saponins stimulate mucus membrane secretion, liquefying mucus for easy removal (expectorant). SEE ALL 'SAPONINS' FOODS / HERBS , Sodium, Soluble Fiber, Aromatase Inhibitor AROMATASE-INHIBITOR Blocks estrogen synthesis by inhibiting conversion of progesterone and testosterone into estrogen. SEE ALL 'AROMATASE-INHIBITOR' FOODS / HERBS , Sulfated Polysaccharides, Sulphur, Vitamin A, Potassium, Polysaccharides, Folate, Insoluble Fiber, Beta Carotene

Foods with a Similar Nature to Grandma's Chicken Soup

Herb Supplements with a Similar Nature to Grandma's Chicken Soup

Joyful Belly is a recognized school of biocharacteristics medicine.