Chicken Soup with a Twist


Nothing beats a hot homemade chicken soup when it comes to fighting chest congestion and cough. But there's a way of making it extra effective. Add a whole head of unpeeled garlic, (sliced in half crosswise) and two to four quartered, unpeeled onions to the broth before cooking. The skins of garlic and onions have antiviral compounds called "Quercetin" that fights the rhinovirus that's causing the cold. Don't worry about the skins in your soup because you can easily strain them out before eating, the broth will have been infused with quercetin by then. Another perk that we get from chicken soup, whether canned or homemade, is that it blocks the activity of neutrophils. These are the inflammatory cells that trigger coughs and congestion.

Mommy's Little Corner

Comments

The Mother said…
My nearly 50 yo husband STILL calls his mom to bring him chicken soup when he's sick.

Jewish penicillin.
imelda said…
wow i find this interesting. . thanmks for this info.
yay!! thanks for the info, liza! usually i had my soup wt the whole garlic and onion. :) so glad to know that this is actually good for our body! :)
Rob said…
Wow, I never knew this. Thanks for the info. I will have to give it a try.
Joanna said…
Hmm... I never knew that! Thanks for this post!
Ann said…
Interesting point about the garlic skins, never knew that! A person never stops learning.
DebbieDana said…
I have always loved chicken soup and I never get tired of it...
Heidi said…
Thanks for the tip!
Anonymous said…
can anybody cook some for me? got cough right now.

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Anonymous said…
Since I'm currrently sporting a very nasty cold I read your post with great interest. I'm going to get me some of that!
Anonymous said…
Hi! I didn't know about the garlic and onion peels. I will definitely try this! (Probably won't wait for a cold either) :)
Swubird said…
Liza:

It sounds delicious and effective as a cold fighter. I would also add a dash of cayenne pepper.

Yummy on the tummy.

happy trails.
Anonymous said…
My PA recommended that I start taking Quercetin so I ordered some and am waiting for it to arrive. I didn't know that the skins of garlic and onions had this in it too!
Mary said…
I always thought that the chicken soup remedy was something like a placebo.. but I tried it when I had colds and it really worked! I swear by it now.

Soulful Scribbles
UPrinting said…
Thanks for sharing the tip!
My mom have never tried making chicken soup, even if someone among the family is sick. But hey, she still can cook anything and make it yummy! :)