Chicken and Vermicelli Soup With Lime Recipe • 5★ • 1 hr 10 min

Updated Jan. 22, 2025

A soothing bowl of broth and wheat vermicelli is popular among many cuisines, and often the go-to soup at the first signs of a cold or ailment. Available at many grocery stores and at Middle Eastern and Latin markets, the vermicelli noodles are packaged already broken or sold in nests which you can break by hand. (Note: These are not rice vermicelli noodles.) The finely chopped vegetables and chicken, along with a bit of tomato paste and turmeric, make for a satisfying and savory broth. The soup will thicken as it sits; you can adjust the consistency to your liking by adding more water when reheating.

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2tablespoons butter or olive oil

1small or ½ large yellow onion, finely chopped

1medium Yukon Gold potato, diced into small cubes

1large carrot, finely chopped

1boneless, skinless chicken breast

Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and black pepper

¾cup broken wheat vermicelli noodles, broken angel hair pasta or fideo

1tablespoon chopped parsley, plus more for serving

1tablespoon lime or lemon juice, plus more as needed

Lime or lemon slices, for serving

193 calories; 6 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 21 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 13 grams protein; 339 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Step 1In a large pot, melt the butter over medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes; you don’t want the onion to take on any color. Sprinkle in the turmeric and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the potato and carrot, then stir and cook for 2 minutes.

In a large pot, melt the butter over medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes; you don’t want the onion to take on any color. Sprinkle in the turmeric and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the potato and carrot, then stir and cook for 2 minutes.

Step 2Adjust heat to medium-low and add the tomato paste. Cook, stirring frequently, until the tomato paste releases its color into the oil, 2 to 3 minutes.

Adjust heat to medium-low and add the tomato paste. Cook, stirring frequently, until the tomato paste releases its color into the oil, 2 to 3 minutes.

Step 3Place the chicken breast on top of the vegetables and season with 2 teaspoons salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Add 6 cups of water and stir. Partially cover, increase heat and bring to a boil, then cover completely, adjust heat to low and simmer gently for 40 minutes.

Place the chicken breast on top of the vegetables and season with 2 teaspoons salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Add 6 cups of water and stir. Partially cover, increase heat and bring to a boil, then cover completely, adjust heat to low and simmer gently for 40 minutes.

Step 4After 40 minutes, transfer the chicken to a medium bowl and shred with two forks while the soup continues to simmer. Taste the soup and adjust salt as needed. Add the shredded chicken and vermicelli, stir and increase heat to bring the soup to a lively simmer. Cover, adjust heat to low and simmer until the noodles soften and the flavors come together, 10 minutes.

After 40 minutes, transfer the chicken to a medium bowl and shred with two forks while the soup continues to simmer. Taste the soup and adjust salt as needed. Add the shredded chicken and vermicelli, stir and increase heat to bring the soup to a lively simmer. Cover, adjust heat to low and simmer until the noodles soften and the flavors come together, 10 minutes.

Step 5Remove from the heat, stir in the parsley and lime juice and let sit, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lime juice, salt or pepper as needed. Serve with lime slices and garnish with more parsley.

Remove from the heat, stir in the parsley and lime juice and let sit, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lime juice, salt or pepper as needed. Serve with lime slices and garnish with more parsley.

1 chicken breast for 6 people doesn't seem to be enough. Also, as the question suggests, 40 minutes will produce very dry stringy chicken. 20 minutes should be more than enough considering the soup simmers for 10 more minutes, and continues to poach for 5-10 more.

This looks like an amped-up Sopa de Fideos, one of my favorite Mexican soups. Here in Tucson, a package of fideos, which are vermicelli already broken up, is readily available in the Mexican/Hispanic foods section of any grocery store.

How are you keeping your single chicken breast tender with 40 minutes of simmering? Thank you.

Cooked this today but changed a lot as I often do with recipe.

Started with a whole chicken, simmered gently to make stock and used the meat in the soup.

I followed the rest of the process, but substituted risoni and some cooked chickpeas for the pasta noodles. I also added some finely shredded greens, and freshly grated parmersan before serving. The herb and lime were great to lift up the flavours.

The end result was very good and comforting.

Why use water? Use broth for flavor

I focused in on this recipe because it made use of items I had in refrigerator and pantry: onion, carrots, yukon gold potato, tomato paste, frozen chicken thighs, parsley, lemon. Used two boneless skinless chicken thighs. Added about 1 tablespoon of chicken Better Than Bouillon. Used about twice as many noodles (tiny little noodles, called Hungarian soup noodles, just what I had on hand). Needs something to spice up. Maybe ginger, hot pepper flakes, cilantro?

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1026337-chicken-and-vermicelli-soup-with-lime