Pheasant Noodle Soup

With the Coronavirus pandemic ongoing and the flu season fast approaching in the United States, I thought I'd try to post a recipe that's a classic folk remedy all around the world. When I was dating my wife, Tami, who just so happens to be a nurse ... she would brag about how she never got sick. Wouldn't you know it ... A few weeks later, she was sporting a temperature and couldn't get out of bed. One night, on the way to her house, I stopped at the local Walmart and purchased everything I needed to make some good old fashion homemade Chicken Noodle Soup. I made a huge batch that she'd be able to eat on for days, hoping that it'd help her feel a little better. To this day, she still talks about that soup! I don't know if it was that good or if the virus she had just made her that delirious. Anyway, this is my attempt to recreate that recipe with Pheasant and some homemade vegetable broth.

The great thing about a vegetable broth is it's super easy to make and there isn't a lot of rules. Generally, when we make it here, we just take all the vegetables and herbs that are about to go bad, throw them into a pot of water and let it simmer for a few hours. For an added flavor boost, you can also roast those vegetables before hand. Sometimes my wife will save ends from vegetable we used in other recipes in a zip lock bag, just the scrap pieces you'd normally throw away and we'll add those to a batch as well. Root vegetables like Carrots and Parsnips, along with Onions, Leeks, Celery, Mushrooms all make for a great broth. It's a great way to get some use from them before they spoil.

We have a small raised bed garden we started in the back yard. We had a trove of Zucchini this year, a lot more then we could ever eat and a bunch of stunted carrots that didn't look good, but the dogs loved ... so I added some of them to my broth as well. I generally don't add salt or a lot of seasoning to my broth, because I never know what I'm going to use it for. Not adding the salt and seasoning will give you more control over how your final dish taste. You'll need to use your broth within a few days or freeze to use another date. If you plan on freezing some of this soup, do not add the noodles, they'll get mushy in the freezer. You can cook everything else and freeze, then just cook the noodles when you're ready to eat.

I hope everyone has a healthily, virus free, safe hunting season. Wash your hands and don't touch your face!!