CHICKEN SOUP WITH BUGS: The Quintessential Minnesota Meal

Hi folks, Chef G. here, and it's my pleasure to welcome you back to America's most beloved destination for mid-western food excellence--that would be The Chef G. Cooking Channel.

And boy, you can't get much more "mid-western" than today's featured meal.  First of all, the mid-western state of Minnesota processes tons of chickens.  Second of all, it is home to millions of billions of bugs.  Thirdly, it's also the nation's #1 producer of wild rice which, as you'll soon see, is a pretty significant ingredient too.  (Here's an interesting fact: wild rice is officially recognized as the "Minnesota State Grain."  How cool is that?)

In addition, the citizens of Minnesota love their food to be homey, creamy, traditional, and not too spicy.  Chicken Soup With Bugs fits the bill on all counts.  Most importantly though, it's a complete meal in one pot--sort of like another Minnesota favorite known as "hotdish."  In the rest of the world, hotdish is called casserole.

At this point I should probably make a quick clarification regarding this dish:  My kids used to call it "Bug Soup" because of all the ants and mosquitoes crawling around in there.  They loved it.  But in reality there are no bugs.  What looked like insects to them were actually grains of wild rice.  I don't remember ever telling them that though, so I may never know if they loved the soup despite the bugs or BECAUSE of them.

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I've been making this delicious soup several times a year since the 1990's.  No food on earth can provide a warmer, fuzzier sensation on a cold Minnesota winter day than this slurry of chicken broth, wild rice, tender chunks of chicken breast, carrots, celery, onion, mushrooms, flour and butter.  Chicken wild rice soup is especially cozy on one of those days when you feel the sniffles coming on.  Some folks say my version of the soup is a bona fide cure for the common cold.  If it works for them, who am I to argue?

Now, I have to be cautious about making unsubstantiated claims at this time, but let's just say the medicinal properties of my soup MIGHT have some value in the fight against Covid-19.  Preliminary testing, conducted by ME in my secret laboratory, seems to support the theory.  However, I have not yet submitted my soup for peer-reviewed clinical trials, so it's too early to start spreading the news that it will speed up the recovery process for Covid patients--or maybe even CURE them.  At least not yet.

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Let's Make Some Soup!

-The first thing you're gonna wanna do is cut a couple large Minnesota chicken breasts into chunks.

-The second thing you're gonna wanna do is toss a cup of Minnesota-grown wild rice into a pan with 2 1/2 cups of Minnesota tap water.

-The third thing you're gonna wanna do is bring the wild rice and water
to a slow boil.  Let it simmer until all the water is absorbed.
-The fourth thing you're gonna wanna do is salt and pepper the chunks 
of Minnesota chicken and brown them in a pan.

-The fifth thing you're gonna wanna do is chop 1-1/2 cups of carrot, 1-2/3 cups of onion, three stalks of celery, and 3-1/2 cups of mushrooms.

The sixth thing you're gonna wanna do is saute the chopped onion, celery and carrot in 1/4 cup 
of olive oil for about five minutes.  These vegetables should also be seasoned with salt and pepper.  Stir them frequently with the wooden spoon that your wife has kindly labeled for you.  (You do NOT want to confuse the "meat-soup-chili" spoon with the "cookie" spoon.)

Yes, the "cookie" spoon is a real thing.  (Mrs. Chef G. has also approved the cookie spoon
for stirring such things as cake batter, homemade frosting, fruit salads, whipped cream,
Rice Krispie Treats, and chocolate sauce. 

 

-Getting back to the soup recipe, the seventh thing you're gonna wanna do is add 2-3/4 Quarts of chicken broth to the pot of sauteed veggies.  (You don't have to make your own broth; any organic store bought brand made from gluten-free, non-GMO, free range chickens will do.)  Let the broth start to heat up.

-Then comes the eighth, and by far the most crucial thing you're gonna wanna do.  It might seem pretty pretty easy to melt a stick-and-a-half of Minnesota's own Land O' Lakes butter in a pan, add a cup of Minnesota's own Gold Medal flour, and stir like crazy to create a light brown roux, but it actually requires intense concentration.  Today I was so focused on the task that I forgot to take a picture.  Let me assure you, however, that my roux was whipped up into a thing of surreal beauty.  

-The eighth thing you're gonna wanna do is slowly add about four cups of the broth from your soup pot to the roux.  Continue to stir like a maniac in order to get all the lumps out. Then pour the roux back into the soup pot.  Add the chunks of Minnesota chicken and bring the liquid to a boil.  Then turn the heat down to simmer.

The ninth thing you're gonna wanna do is Saute the sliced Minnesota mushrooms in a half-stick 
of Minnesota's Land O' Lakes butter for a couple minutes and then toss them into the soup pot.  Continue to simmer the soupy concoction for about 30 minutes.  Stir frequently.

The tenth thing you're gonna wanna do is add the cooked Minnesota wild rice to the soup about one minute before serving.  Stir it in thoroughly.

Now, I don't want you to be intimidated by all the awesome Minnesota ingredients I've mentioned.  If you don't have access to Minnesota chicken, Minnesota wild rice, Minnesota tap water, Minnesota butter, Minnesota vegetables and Minnesota flour, you can use your own local substitutes.  The end product won't be quite as good, of course, but it'll do.

The beautiful golden soup.

Serve the soup in a bowl and garnish with a few leaves of parsley.  Here!  Try it!
If you don't agree that this is the best soup ever slurped by a human being, I'll eat an anvil.

In fact, I'll eat the hammer too.

This is the condensed, un-illustrated version of my Bug Soup recipe
for those who prefer simplicity.