Why chicken broth is called "Jewish penicillin"
What could be simpler than chicken broth? Even a person who has never stood at the stove can cook it. But this dish, which is traditionally considered primitive, has many secrets. Yes, the broth does not strike on the spot with its taste, but at the same time it has an ancient history and has saved many lives. It is even called "Jewish penicillin" and this is not a joke at all.
It is not known exactly when the chicken broth was first cooked. But scientists know that in ancient Egypt they were able to cook it and highly appreciated it. There is even an Egyptian legend about how this dish appeared. It was told to archaeologists by parables on papyri, which are more than 3 thousand years old.
The story goes that one day a hungry slave stole a chicken. But he was so unlucky that he caught the eye of the guard, and she rushed after him in pursuit. Wanting to get rid of the evidence, the thief threw the bird carcass into a cauldron where water was boiling. He was overtaken and brought before a judge, and a cauldron with a brew was brought as proof of guilt.
The priest of justice was surprised by the appetizing smell from the cauldron and tasted the decoction. He impressed the judge so much that he ordered the thief to be forgiven. He was released, and the recipe for broth became the property of the Egyptian people. But if the Egyptians knew about the medicinal properties of poultry brew, they were silent about it.
For the first time, the Hellenes started talking about chicken broth as a medicine centuries later. The ancient Greek physician Dioscorides was the first to describe its positive effect on the body of a sick person. Later, his observations were confirmed by another luminary of medical science, the Persian physician Avicenna.
But it turns out that the Jews were well aware of the properties of the broth without all these Egyptians, Greeks and Persians. They used it to treat many ailments and considered it almost a panacea. This fact was the reason for the appearance of the unusual name of the dish - "Jewish penicillin".
Chicken broth was used for colds, bronchitis and pneumonia. It was prescribed to those who suffered from exhaustion, were recovering from severe wounds or needed the support of the immune system. Sometimes broth was the only medicine at the disposal of a poor Jewish family and at the same time coped no worse than the most expensive medicines.
This broth is a very nutritious, satisfying product. It is full of vitamins, for example, groups B, H, PP and, oddly enough, ascorbic acid. There are also enough trace elements in this liquid, among which magnesium, potassium, sodium, iron, and zinc can be considered the most important.
All this helps to increase the body's resistance to infections, improves digestion and metabolism, has a beneficial effect on hair, skin and nails. And the broth helps to remove phlegm when coughing and raises the overall tone of the body. As we can see, you can be treated with a decoction of chicken from anything.
Even if you cook chicken broth just without delving into the nuances, it will undoubtedly be useful. But to get the maximum benefit, you need to know some of the subtleties of cooking. Firstly, it is desirable that the chicken was homemade. Stuffed with vitamins, hormones and synthetic nutrition, broilers from the store are poorly suited for creating a drug.
The carcass of the bird, gutted and plucked, is lowered into a saucepan entirely and filled with cold water. The container is put on a medium-sized fire and wait until the water begins to boil. When this happens, you need to remove the foam from the surface. Only after that, other ingredients of the broth are thrown into boiling water.
These are two chopped carrots, a couple of small onions, celery, parsley and dill. Do not forget about spices. 3-4 peas of black pepper, a couple of leaves of bay leaf will make the taste of the broth especially bright. Yes, don't forget to salt everything to taste! After that, turn down the heat and cook the chicken for 3 hours.
The bird is taken out of the finished broth and everything that floats there, including spices, is caught. The easiest way to do this is by straining the liquid a couple of times through 2 different and pure substances. Chicken broth is ready to eat. The chicken is taken apart and served separately.