Chicken Soup with Drumsticks is a clear, homestyle chicken noodle soup built on bone-in drumsticks. The drumsticks are seared, simmered whole in broth with onion, carrots, celery, leek, potatoes, parsnip and rutabaga, then shredded and stirred back in with egg noodles. It’s ready in about 50 minutes and serves 6.
How to make it: Sauté the onion in olive oil and sear the drumsticks on both sides. Add the vegetables, broth, bay leaves and pepper, bring to a boil and simmer covered 20 to 25 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F. Lift out the drumsticks, cook the noodles in the broth, shred the meat off the bones, stir it back in and season.
Can You Make Chicken Soup With Just Drumsticks?
Yes. Drumsticks are an easy, budget-friendly cut for soup: the bones and skin simmer right in the broth, and the meat shreds easily once it’s cooked. You can even make a very simple soup from drumsticks, onion, garlic and water alone. This recipe adds a full pot of vegetables and egg noodles.
Why You’ll Love It
- Bone-in flavor: seared drumsticks give the broth depth.
- Loaded with vegetables: carrots, celery, leek, potatoes, parsnip and rutabaga.
- One pot: the noodles cook right in the broth.
- About 50 minutes: quicker than a long-simmered chicken soup.
Ingredient Notes
Chicken drumsticks: One and a half pounds, about five large drumsticks.
Vegetables: A yellow onion, 3 carrots, 3 celery stalks, half a leek, 1/2 pound of potatoes, a small parsnip and half a medium rutabaga. Peel and dice the root vegetables.
Broth: Eight cups of chicken or vegetable broth, plus more if needed.
Seasoning: Two bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon of cracked black pepper and salt to taste.
Egg noodles: Five ounces. They cook in the broth at the end.
Parsley: Chopped, to finish.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken drumsticks (about 5 large)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 1/2 leek, sliced
- 1/2 pound potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1 small parsnip, peeled and diced
- 1/2 medium rutabaga, peeled and diced
- 8 cups chicken or vegetable broth, plus more if needed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- Salt, to taste
- 5 ounces egg noodles
- Chopped parsley, for garnish
How to Make Chicken Soup with Drumsticks
1. Sauté the onion. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the diced onion and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, until translucent.
2. Sear the drumsticks. Place the drumsticks in the pot and sear them for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until slightly golden brown.
3. Add the vegetables and broth. Add the carrots, celery, leek, potatoes, parsnip and rutabaga to the same pot. Stir the vegetables briefly, then pour in the broth.
4. Simmer until cooked through. Add the bay leaves and cracked black pepper and stir. Cover the pot and bring the soup to a rolling boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Poultry is done at 165°F on a food thermometer.
5. Cool the drumsticks. Carefully remove the drumsticks from the pot and set them aside to cool slightly.
6. Cook the noodles. While the chicken cools, add the egg noodles to the simmering broth and cook them for 8 to 10 minutes, or as the package directs, until tender.
7. Shred the chicken. When the drumsticks are cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones and shred the meat into bite-sized pieces. Return the meat to the pot and stir.
8. Season. Remove the bay leaves and adjust the salt to taste.
9. Serve. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with chopped parsley and serve warm.
How Long Do Drumsticks Take to Cook in Soup?
It depends on the method and on how soft you want the meat. Here’s how the timing compares:
| Method | Time | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Seared, then simmered (this recipe) | 20 to 25 minutes | Tender and cooked through |
| Simmered from raw, no searing | About 1 hour 15 minutes | Meat just starting to fall off the bone |
| Long stovetop simmer | 1 1/2 to 2 hours | Very tender, loose meat |
| Slow cooker | 4 1/2 hours on HIGH or 6 to 8 on LOW | Very tender |
The thermometer decides. Whatever the timing, USDA FSIS says all poultry, legs included, is safe at 165°F. Check the thickest drumstick before you shred it.
Sear for flavor. A few minutes a side until golden adds depth to the broth.
Let them cool a bit. Lift the drumsticks out and let them cool until you can handle them, then pull off the skin and bones and shred the meat.
Season at the end. Take out the bay leaves and add salt after tasting.
Variations
- Slow cooker: put thawed drumsticks, carrots, onion, celery, seasoning and broth or water in the slow cooker, vegetables first; cook on HIGH 4 1/2 hours or LOW 6 to 8 hours, then shred the meat and add noodles.
- Pressure cooker: layer everything with the broth last, use the Soup setting, let the pot release on its own, then take the meat off the bones.
- Noodles on the side: cook the noodles separately, toss them with a little olive oil and add them to each bowl.
- Greens and lemon: add sautéed greens to each bowl and finish with a squeeze of lemon.
- Creamy: blend the finished soup until smooth.
Storage & Reheating
Refrigerator: Divide the soup into shallow covered containers so it cools quickly and refrigerate it within 2 hours. USDA FSIS says to eat it within 3 to 4 days.
Freezer: Freeze it for 3 to 4 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator, or reheat it straight from frozen in a saucepan.
Reheat: Reheat covered on the stove until the soup comes to a rolling boil. Don’t reheat it in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
Serve it with crusty bread, like our German bread, or a side salad such as spinach salad with warm bacon dressing. More chicken comfort food: creamy chicken noodle soup, slow cooker lemon chicken and rice soup, slow cooker poor man chicken stew and chicken and dumplings with biscuits.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you make chicken soup with just drumsticks?
Yes. Drumsticks work on their own; the bones, skin and meat all go into the pot and the meat is shredded at the end.
Are drumsticks good for soup?
Yes. They’re bone-in and inexpensive, and the meat shreds easily after simmering.
How long do drumsticks take to cook in soup?
Seared first, 20 to 25 minutes of simmering. For meat that falls off the bone, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Either way, check for 165°F.
How do you use drumsticks in soup?
Simmer them whole, lift them out, remove the skin and bones, shred the meat and stir it back in.
Can I use vegetable broth?
Yes. The recipe works with chicken or vegetable broth.
Final Notes
Peel and dice the root vegetables while the onion softens, and the pot comes together quickly. Taste for salt only at the very end. If you make it, tell me in the comments which vegetables you added.
Chicken Soup with Drumsticks
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken drumsticks about five large drumsticks
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced
- 3 celery stalks diced
- 1/2 leek sliced
- 1/2 pound potatoes peeled and diced
- 1 small parsnip peeled and diced
- 1/2 medium rutabaga peeled and diced
- 8 cups chicken or vegetable broth more if needed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- salt to taste
- 5 ounces egg noodles
- parsley chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the diced onion and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, until translucent.
- Place the drumsticks in the pot and sear them for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until slightly golden brown.
- Add the carrots, celery, leek, potatoes, parsnip and rutabaga to the same pot. Stir the vegetables briefly, then pour in the broth.
- Add the bay leaves and cracked black pepper and stir. Cover the pot and bring the soup to a rolling boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Poultry is done at 165°F on a food thermometer.
- Carefully remove the drumsticks from the pot and set them aside to cool slightly.
- While the chicken cools, add the egg noodles to the simmering broth and cook them for 8 to 10 minutes, or as the package directs, until tender.
- When the drumsticks are cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones and shred the meat into bite-sized pieces. Return the meat to the pot and stir.
- Remove the bay leaves and adjust the salt to taste.
- Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with chopped parsley and serve warm.
