Spanish Chicken Soup
I ate this soup for lunch every day last week. I finished it and even after eating it for five days straight I miss it and I wish I had more. I think that’s a sure sign of a successful recipe!
This recipe was Mike’s idea! We are both big fans of the fully cooked chicken sausage I buy at our nearby grocery store. I usually shop at Stop and Shop because I find they have the largest selection of food for the lowest price. Their “Nature’s Promise” line, which I believe can also be found at Giant, Food Lion, and Hannaford (they are all owned by the same company) makes it very simple to pick out quality food on the shelves. I know that when I see the Nature’s Promise logo, there’s a pretty good chance I would be comfortable buying whatever it is I’m looking at. I don’t typically purchase many of the “Free From” items, but I’m always buying the “Organic” items. This sausage is so dang good and it’s no exception. I had a pretty difficult time finding Whole30 compliant sausage I liked the first time I did a Whole30. Then I found the Nature’s Promise Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage and fell in love. I’m always looking for a reason to buy it. It’s what I used in my Sausage Kale Soup recipe from a few weeks back. I also have a sheet pan recipe that will be on the blog soon using it.
Mike suggested I make another soup using this sausage. When I told him I wanted to put some sort of a Spanish spin on it, all he said was: “You should use saffron!” Approximately three minutes went by when he then said: “The saffron will be here tomorrow.” And the rest is history.
I don’t get great phone service at my day job, so we use Google Hangouts to converse. That day was no exception, and he used those three minutes to scour Amazon for saffron. He picked it, bought it, and I did indeed have it the next day!
Except when it showed up, I had no clue what to do with it. It didn’t look like anything I had ever seen! I just assumed I shouldn’t just throw the strands as is into the soup. I took a gamble, grabbed a pinch, and ground it all up before adding the powder into the soup along with the rest of the spices. When I took the lid off the Instant Pot after the pressure cooking was done, I love what I saw! As I expected, the saffron helped to give this soup a lovely color. I’m sure the paprika helped as well. The saffron was good, but it’s no paprika. Paprika remains my favorite spice.
You know what this blog needs? More paprika. Coming up!
Spanish Chicken Soup
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Add 1 tbsp avocado oil to the insert of the Instant Pot and press the saute button. When hot, add the sliced sausage in a single layer and saute for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned on both sides. Use a slotted spoon to remove the sausage from the Instant Pot and place in a medium bowl.
- Add the potatoes, onion, and garlic to the Instant Pot with a splash of chicken broth. Saute for 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the Instant Pot to remove the stuck sausage pieces from the bottom. Press the Cancel button. Add the browned chicken sausage back to the pot.
- Add the rest of the chicken broth, chicken thighs, spices, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Secure the lid on the Instant Pot. Check to be sure the valve is set to "sealing." Press the Pressure Cook button and adjust the time to 15 minutes to cook on high pressure.
- When the Instant Pot indicates it is done pressure cooking, move the valve from "sealing" to "venting." When the pressure indicator button drops, carefully remove the lid from the Instant Pot. Take out the chicken thighs and place on a plate. Shred with two forks and add back into the soup. Stir to combine. Ladle into bowls, serve hot, and enjoy!
