It's time to get out the soup pot, if not to warm the bones from winter blasts, then at least to fight the colds and flu so prevalent at this time of year. While doctors might advise you to let a common cold take its course ("it should disappear in a couple of weeks") there are some measures that can be taken to fight the symptoms. And we can find them in the food cupboard. We should not consider ourselves so sophisticated that we shun old remedies that grandma used to make the minute one of us had the sniffles. Medical research has many times over proved there is more than soothing value in chicken soup. It contains medicinal properties that help clear the nasal passages and loosen any mucous in the lungs.
Since those colds are sure to come, it's best to plan ahead for the day when you're too sick to cook. Now is a good time to make up a batch or two of chicken broth to freeze in small portions -even ice cube trays-for those sick days. To give the broth a double, or triple, whammy, toss in as much garlic, fresh gingerroot and onion as you can handle. Each has its own reputation as a potent germ-fighter-especially when eaten raw. It might not be the top food on your preference list, but raw garlic can get those colds in a headlock and make breathing easier, while its antibiotic properties go to work on what caused the cold in the first place. The best approach is to nibble on a raw garlic clove or two. If you can't handle that, then chop the raw garlic and include it in soups or other foods. (After eating raw garlic chew some fresh parsley sprigs: the chlorophyll contained in this green herb will help dispel garlic's unpleasant aroma.)
My grandmother also used lemons and raw onions to deal with miserable colds. A hot lemon drink or lemon tea with fresh ginger added can be comforting and offer some relief. And, how well I remember those raw onion sandwiches! Each bite into that sandwich (made by placing a slice or two of raw onion between bread slices, with a little mayonnaise, salt and pepper) would clear the sinuses like magic. Never mind the tears, so long as it works. Cayenne pepper, curry, mustard and other hot spices can also be added to soups to help sweat out a cold. If you're in the scratchy throat stage, or if you are downright sick with a cold or flu, we think we've got the soup that will make you feel better. On your worst days you might want to slowly sip on clear chicken broth. It's good medicine. When you start to feel better, you might advance to a more substantial chunky soup.
But, in my opinion, the clincher is the Cold-Fighting Ginger-Garlic Broth.