Chicken Noodle Soup for the Common Cold
Categories: Asian, Chicken, Gluten-free, Soup, Wei Qi Vacuity, Wind Cold Invading Lungs, Wind Invasion (External)

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP FOR THE COMMON COLD serves 4
- 2 tbs coconut oil
- ¼ lb chicken, shredded
- ¼ c preserved mustard greens, soaked, rinsed, and shredded
- 4 slices ginger, shredded
- 2 green onions, sliced thinly
- 1-2 tbs fermented black beans, soaked, rinsed, and chopped
- 4 c chicken stock
- 1 tbs soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 oz rice vermicelli, presoaked in hot water until soft, drained
- Fresh perilla leaves (or substitute with cilantro or basil)
1) Heat oil until smoking. Add chicken for 30 seconds. Add ginger, onions, greens, and black beans and stir fry for a few seconds.
2) Add chicken stock, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 min. add the soy sauce and sesame oil.
3) Divide noodles between 4 bowls, top with a handful of perilla leaves, and ladle the hot soup over the top.
EARLY WIND COLD INVASION
Coconut oil: warm, sweet; strengthening, moistening
Chicken: warm, sweet; tonifies Qi and Blood
Preserved Mustard greens: warm, acrid, salty; relieves common cold, ventilates Lungs, reduces swollen glands
Ginger: warm, acrid; LU, SP, ST; promotes sweating, expels pathogen, opens LU
Green Onion: hot, acrid; LU, ST; promotes sweating, expels external pathogen
Fermented Black beans: warm, sweet, slightly bitter; LU, ST; releases exterior, illuminates irritability
Soy sauce: cool, sweet, salty; clears heat
Sesame oil: warm, sweet; harmonizes Blood, lubricates intestines
Perilla Leaf: warm, acrid, aromatic; LU, SP; releases exterior, opens chest, moves QI
Rice noodles: sweet; tonifies SP, ST; nourishes QI
This recipe contains ingredients that disperse external pathogens but also treat an underlying deficiency of Wei Qi. It’s useful during the cold and flu season as a prophylactic tonic and in the early stages of the common cold.
Jason Cox