Whole Chicken Carcass Soup

Turn a leftover carcass into a rich broth, then build it back into a full, hearty soup.

Ingredients

1 leftover chicken carcass (roasted or raw soup bones), with any scraps of meat and skin still attached
12 cups water, or enough to cover the carcass by 2 inches
1 onion, quartered (skin on is fine)
3 celery stalks, roughly chopped, divided
3 carrots, roughly chopped, divided
3 cloves garlic, smashed
2 bay leaves
1 tsp black peppercorns
Salt and black pepper, to taste
1/2 onion, diced, for the soup
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (from the carcass or extra breast meat)
1 1/2 cups egg noodles or small pasta
Fresh parsley, chopped, for serving

Place the carcass in a large stockpot with the water, quartered onion, half the celery, half the carrots, the garlic, bay leaves, and peppercorns.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Skim off any foam that rises in the first 20 minutes.
Simmer uncovered for 2-3 hours, topping up with water if the carcass starts to poke above the surface. The longer it goes, the richer the broth.
Remove the carcass and large vegetable pieces with tongs. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot, discarding the spent solids. Pick off and reserve any usable meat from the bones before discarding them.
Return the strained broth to the pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and the remaining celery and carrots. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
Add the shredded chicken and the noodles. Cook until the noodles are just tender, about 8-10 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper to taste — the broth usually needs more salt than expected. Garnish with parsley and serve hot.

For extra depth, roast the carcass at 400°F for 20-25 minutes before it goes in the pot — the browning adds a noticeably richer flavor.
Don't cook the noodles in the broth if you're planning to freeze leftovers; they turn mushy on reheating. Cook them separately and add to each bowl instead.
Freeze carcasses in a bag until you have two or three saved up — more bones means a deeper, more gelatinous broth.