12/14/2025
Emergency Chicken Soup: Healing in a Bowl
New blog post by Dr. Tiffany Hoyt, DAOM, M.CHM, Dipl. O.M. , LAc. (link to the website post and Dr. Hoyt bio in the comments)
Emergency Chicken Soup: Healing in a Bowl
The great thing about getting a winter cold is having a good excuse to take a day off from responsibilities. Everyone should allow themselves to get sick at least once during the dark months of November through February. The joy of lying in bed, not doing anything (including looking at your phone or computer), is that you come back from it twice as strong as before. The bad thing, of course, is that you probably don’t have anything in the fridge that will nourish your body and soul.
This is where Emergency Chicken comes in. Each year, right around the change in Daylight Saving time, I pack my freezer with at least one bag of emergency chicken soup. It is perfectly designed to be used in the most energy-efficient manner possible. If I’m sick with a cold or flu, the sniffles, or diarrhea, I can still plop the contents of a gallon-sized freezer bag directly into a slow-cooker full of water, turn the dial, and four hours later slurp up a delicious, rich, flavorful broth.
Here's what I put in my Emergency Chicken bag:
1 chicken carcass, possibly with a bit of meat, bones, and collagen (minus the skin, which is too greasy)
4 – 6 white bottoms of scallions, with their roots still attached, but carefully scrubbed of dirt
3-5 branches of parsley
1 – 2 carrots, washed, chopped into several large pieces
¼ cup radish (daikon, watermelon). If you use the small red French radishes, it will impart a red tinge to the soup. Radishes do not spice the soup, but they will clear your head and sinuses
3 – 5 whole black peppercorns
1 – 3 quarter-sized slices of ginger
Extras to add to the mix:
For tough mucus, you can add several pieces of dried orange peel
If you are flat-out exhausted, you can add 2 – 3 red (Chinese) dates
If you have nausea, diarrhea, or vomiting, several slices of fennel will do wonders
Do not add salt, do not add herbs for flavor, and most of all, do not add noodles or rice or potatoes—all of which will slow the healing process.
This is a super-nourishing, super-hydrating, super-satisfying superfood. When you make a big pot of this soup, you can drink it all day, and at the end of the day, put whatever is left over into the refrigerator. You cannot reheat it in the slow-cooker because it will taste old.
Stay healthy!
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For over a decade, Dr. Tiffany Hoyt has practiced all branches of Chinese Medicine at GWCIM, offering a holistic approach deeply rooted in Asian healing philosophy, culture, and life practices. She is accepting new patients for acupuncture, herbal medicine, Chinese nutrition, Qi Gong, and other modalities.
