Italian Chicken Soup with Parmesan & Low Carb Croutons

Step 1 – Start the Soup 

Heat a little of the reserved chicken fat in a large saucepan. 

Add the diced shallot, sliced carrot and celery and gently sauté for a couple of minutes until they begin to soften. 

Step 2 – Add the Aromatics 

Add the minced garlic and diced courgette and stir through the vegetables. 

Add the fresh oregano and tomato purée and cook briefly, stirring everything together. 

Step 3 – Add the Tomatoes & Stock 

Add the halved cherry tomatoes followed by the homemade chicken stock. 

Bring to a gentle simmer and cook until the vegetables begin to soften and the flavours come together. 

Step 4 – Finish the Soup 

Add the chicken picked from the roasted carcass and the sliced green beans. 

Stir through the grated Parmesan and simmer gently for a further 5 minutes. 

Taste and adjust the seasoning with sea salt and cracked black pepper. 

Step 5 – Make the fu:di Croutons 

Tear the fu:di rolls into rustic bite-sized pieces. 

Place in the air fryer or oven and cook until golden and crisp. 

Allow to cool before storing separately from the soup so they retain their crunch. 

Step 6 – Assemble 

Divide the Italian chicken soup between 2 glass meal-prep containers. 

Place the fu:di croutons into separate containers or bags to keep them crisp. 

Allow the soup to cool before covering and refrigerating, ready to enjoy later. 

To Serve

Reheat the soup until piping hot throughout. 

Add the crispy fu:di croutons just before eating so they soak up some of the rich chicken broth while still retaining some crunch. 

Chef's Tip 

This recipe makes the most of the whole roast chicken. Once the breasts and legs have been removed for the other batch-cook meals, pick every last piece of meat from the carcass before using the bones to make your stock. It adds plenty of flavour and means very little of the chicken goes to waste.