Egyptian Chicken Vermicelli Soup
Vermicelli turns to paste and soaks up all the broth because it was boiled in it from the start. Instead: toast it in ghee until golden brown and add it for the last 6 minutes only — toasting coats the surface starch so the strands stay separate.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 75 min
- Total
- 90 min
- Calories
- 190
Photo: Vyacheslav Argenberg — CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Vermicelli soup is the most familiar bowl on an Egyptian table and the first thing eaten at iftar in Ramadan. The complaint you hear most is that the vermicelli turns to mush and the broth vanishes.
Method
-
1
Rinse the chicken
Rinse the chicken well with water and vinegar or lemon. This cuts any gaminess and removes blood residue that would cloud the broth.
⏱ 8 min -
2
Start in cold water
Put the chicken in cold water with the onion, carrot, celery, bay and cardamom, and heat it slowly. Cold water extracts far better than hot.
⏱ 6 min -
3
Skim the foam
As it comes to a boil, skim off the grey foam that rises in the first 15 minutes. That is coagulated protein and the reason broth turns cloudy.
⏱ 18 min -
4
Gentle simmer
Drop to the lowest heat and cook for 60 minutes at a bare tremble. A rolling boil emulsifies the fat into the broth and leaves it cloudy and greasy.
⏱ 62 min -
5
Strain
Strain the broth and discard the vegetables, then shred the chicken meat. For a very clear broth, strain again through muslin.
⏱ 10 min -
6
Toast the vermicelli
In a pot, melt the ghee and toast the vermicelli over medium heat for 4 minutes until golden brown. Toasting seals the starch so it will not turn to paste.
⏱ 5 min -
7
Short cook
Pour the strained broth over the toasted vermicelli with the salt and pepper, and boil for 6 minutes only until just cooked and still separate.
⏱ 8 min -
8
Serve
Stir in the shredded chicken and lemon juice and scatter over the parsley. Serve immediately — vermicelli keeps swelling if it sits.
⏱ 4 min
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Tips that actually matter
- Toast the vermicelli in ghee before the broth — this is what stops it going to paste.
- Six minutes of boiling at most, and serve straight away.
- Skim the foam in the first 15 minutes — it is the cause of cloudy broth.
- To make ahead: store the broth and meat, and toast the vermicelli at serving time.
People also ask
Why does the vermicelli turn to paste?
You boiled it in the broth from the start. Toast it in ghee until golden brown — that coats the surface starch so the strands stay separate — and add it for the last 6 minutes only.
Why is my broth cloudy?
Either you did not skim the foam, or the soup boiled hard. Skim the grey foam in the first 15 minutes and keep it at a bare simmer — a rolling boil emulsifies the fat and clouds everything.
Can I make it the night before?
Make the broth and meat the night before and keep them in the fridge (3 days) or freezer (3 months). Toast the vermicelli and add it at serving time — that way it stays separate rather than bloated.
Cook mode
Egyptian Chicken Vermicelli Soup
-
1
Rinse the chicken
Rinse the chicken well with water and vinegar or lemon. This cuts any gaminess and removes blood residue that would cloud the broth.
-
2
Start in cold water
Put the chicken in cold water with the onion, carrot, celery, bay and cardamom, and heat it slowly. Cold water extracts far better than hot.
-
3
Skim the foam
As it comes to a boil, skim off the grey foam that rises in the first 15 minutes. That is coagulated protein and the reason broth turns cloudy.
-
4
Gentle simmer
Drop to the lowest heat and cook for 60 minutes at a bare tremble. A rolling boil emulsifies the fat into the broth and leaves it cloudy and greasy.
-
5
Strain
Strain the broth and discard the vegetables, then shred the chicken meat. For a very clear broth, strain again through muslin.
-
6
Toast the vermicelli
In a pot, melt the ghee and toast the vermicelli over medium heat for 4 minutes until golden brown. Toasting seals the starch so it will not turn to paste.
-
7
Short cook
Pour the strained broth over the toasted vermicelli with the salt and pepper, and boil for 6 minutes only until just cooked and still separate.
-
8
Serve
Stir in the shredded chicken and lemon juice and scatter over the parsley. Serve immediately — vermicelli keeps swelling if it sits.
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