This Chicken Feet Soup recipe is a satisfyingly rich and traditional Chinese soup. If you love the health benefits of chicken feet and bone broth, then this recipe is a must try.
Ingredients
- Dried Kelp: Any Dried Seaweed is a good substitute.
- Chicken Feet: The chicken feet should already be peeled. Make sure to trim the nails though.
- Pork Neck Bones: Pork spare ribs are a good substitute
- Lotus Root: You can find lotus roots are most Asian grocery stores. If you don't know what lotus root is, here's a video.
- Ginger: No need to peel the ginger. Just slice a knob.
- Water
- Carrots: You’re going to need about 1 large carrot.
- Scallions
- Salt: Just salt to taste and make sure to use sea salt.
How to cook chicken feet soup Chinese style
1. Soak the dried seaweed for an hour, rinsing it with water a couple of times to ensure there’s no sediment. Drain and set aside.
2. Add the chicken feet and pork neck bones to a stockpot. Fill with enough water to submerge completely. Bring to a boil and let boil for 1 minute. Remove from the stock pot from the heat, then pour over a strainer.
3. Add the chicken feet and pork neck bones back into the stockpot with the seaweed, lotus root, ginger, and water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat.
4. Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook with the lid on for an additional 20 minutes.
5. Lastly, reduce the heat to a simmer for 1 1/2 hours, then add the carrots and cook for another 30 minutes. At that point the carrots should be fork tender and the chicken feet are soft and falling off the bone.
6. Before serving, add salt to taste and garnish with scallions.
Tips for making the best Chicken Feet Soup
- Peanuts are very traditional in this recipe; however, they were omitted because legumes are not Paleo or AIP friendly. If you would like to add them in, add 1/2 cup of unsalted peanuts with the chicken feet.
- Dried fish is another good substitute for the dried kelp or seaweed. I wanted this dish to be easy to make with ingredients you could find at most grocery stores like Sprouts or Whole Foods. However, if you have access to dried fish at an Asian store, I’d recommend dried scallops.
- We used carrots for this recipe as we wanted the ingredients to be easy to obtain at most grocery stores. But papaya is more traditional. However, chunks of pumpkin or yam would be suitable as well. Just keep in mind they may need additional cooking time. You can also skip the carrots if you would like to use dates instead.
- Red dates are also traditional in this recipe. In fact, most recipes contain chicken feet, peanuts, and red dates and not much else. Red dates are also dried jujubes. Medjool dates would be a good substitute. If you choose to use these, you only need 1-2. They should be added in with the chicken feet. They add a little bit of sweetness, which we are getting from the carrots, to help cut the fattiness of the chicken feet and pork.
- Make sure to trim the nail off the chicken feet. It’s fine to keep them on if you are making bone broth but they could fall off in the soup. It’s not appetizing to chew on a chicken toenail, so this is an important step.
- This recipe does best on the stove top. There aren’t a lot of ingredients and no chicken bouillon powder, so the flavor comes from the slow cooking. Therefore, it’s not recommended for the instant pot. If you want an Asian instant pot soup recipe, try this AIP Instant Pot Congee recipe.
- Please note that the dried seaweed is not the same as roasted seaweed. The seaweed that is used in sushi rolls or in the seaweed snacks is roasted. That is not appropriate for this recipe.
- If you don't know what lotus root is, here's a video.
What is chicken feet soup?
It’s a soup made with chicken feet. Many cultures have a version of Chicken Feet Soup but this one is Chinese style. The Chinese version of this soup is very simple and made with only a handful of ingredients. The flavor comes from slow cooking it over the stove top for a long period of time. Although the best soups and stews are always slow cooked. If you’ve had my AIP Beef Stew then you know exactly what I’m talking about.
What does chicken foot soup taste like?
There are many variations of this soup so the flavor will change depending upon the ingredients. I choose the ingredients based off what is more easily attainable at a grocery store rather than specialty markets. My hope is that you’ll be able to make this recipe even if you don’t have access to an Asian market. I’ve given a few ingredient alternatives in the notes if you would like additional options.
Regardless of the ingredients used, the flavor is very complex and layered. It’s rich and savory from the collagen of the chicken feet and pork. The carrots add sweetness. The lotus root and ginger add a lightness and warmth to the broth. Ginger seems to be the one constant in all Chinese Chicken Feet Soup recipes. And the seaweed is like adding anchovies to a pasta sauce. It adds a briny umami flavor.
How do you eat chicken feet?
Eating a chicken foot is not like picking up a drumstick. There’s no meat. It’s all gelatinous collagen and cartilage. That’s why chicken feet are a wonderful addition to bone broth. However, they have lots of little bones so be careful about those when you’re eating.
To eat the chicken foot, you’re basically going to bite of the gelatinous collagen and cartilage around the bone. Taking care to spit out the bones.
Where to buy chicken feet soup?
Honestly, I’ve never seen Chicken Feet Soup in a restaurant. It seems like something that is more of a home cooked specialty. If you’ve ever had it in a restaurant, make sure to let me know in the comments.
If you’re wanting to try chicken feet in a restaurant, go to dim sum. They usually have braised chicken feet which are amazing. I’ve also seen fried chicken feet at dim sum, but the braised version is more popular. Keep in mind the braised one is soaked and cooked in soy. And the fried ones usually contain gluten.
Is chicken feet soup good for you?
Yes, there are lots of great health benefits to Chicken Feet Soup. The broth alone is a nutrient dense super food.
Benefits of Chicken Feet Soup
- Protein rich
- Collagen rich (which helps hair, skin, nails, etc.)
- Hydrating
Do you have to peel chicken feet for broth?
Unless you get your chicken feet from a farmer, your grocery store has probably already peeled them for you. Never have I ever had to peel a chicken foot.
Other soup recipes you’ll love
- AIP Instant Pot Whole Chicken Soup
- AIP Broccoli Cheese Soup
- Asian Pork and Noodle Soup
- AIP Coconut Milk Curry Soup
- AIP Instant Pot Congee
- Shrimp Bok Choy and Turmeric Soup
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Chicken Feet Soup
Ingredients
- 2 oz Dried Kelp any dried seaweed is a good substitute
- 1 pound Chicken Feet nails trimmed
- 3/4 cup Lotus Root peeled and sliced, water chestnuts are a good substitute
- 3 slices Fresh Ginger
- 8 cups Water
- 1/2 cup Carrots about 1 large carrot
- 1 Scallion sliced
- Sea Salt to taste
Instructions
- Soak the dried seaweed for an hour, rinsing it with water a couple of times to ensure there’s no sediment. Drain and set aside.
- Add the chicken feet and pork neck bones to a stockpot. Fill with enough water to submerge completely. Bring to a boil and let boil for 1 minute. Remove from the stock pot from the heat, then pour over a strainer.
- Add the chicken feet and pork neck bones back into the stockpot with the seaweed, lotus root, ginger, and water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook with the lid on for an additional 20 minutes.
- Lastly, reduce the heat to a simmer for 1 1/2 hours, then add the carrots and cook for another 30 minutes. At that point the carrots should be fork tender and the chicken feet are soft and falling off the bone.
- Before serving, add salt to taste and garnish with scallions.
Video
Notes
- Peanuts are very traditional in this recipe; however, they were omitted because legumes are not Paleo or AIP friendly. If you would like to add them in, add 1/2 cup of unsalted peanuts with the chicken feet.
- Dried fish is another good substitute for the dried kelp or seaweed. I wanted this dish to be easy to make with ingredients you could find at most grocery stores like Sprouts or Whole Foods. However, if you have access to dried fish at an Asian store, I’d recommend dried scallops.
- We used carrots for this recipe as we wanted the ingredients to be easy to obtain at most grocery stores. But papaya is more traditional. However, chunks of pumpkin or yam would be suitable as well. Just keep in mind they may need additional cooking time. You can also skip the carrots if you would like to use dates instead.
- Red dates are also traditional in this recipe. In fact, most recipes contain chicken feet, peanuts, and red dates and not much else. Red dates are also dried jujubes. Medjool dates would be a good substitute. If you choose to use these, you only need 1-2. They should be added in with the chicken feet. They add a little bit of sweetness, which we are getting from the carrots, to help cut the fattiness of the chicken feet and pork.
- Make sure to trim the nail off the chicken feet. It’s fine to keep them on if you are making bone broth but they could fall off in the soup. It’s not appetizing to chew on a chicken toenail, so this is an important step.
- This recipe does best on the stove top. There aren’t a lot of ingredients and no chicken bouillon powder, so the flavor comes from the slow cooking. Therefore, it’s not recommended for the instant pot. If you want an Asian instant pot soup recipe, try this AIP Instant Pot Congee recipe.
- Please note that the dried seaweed is not the same as roasted seaweed. The seaweed that is used in sushi rolls or in the seaweed snacks is roasted. That is not appropriate for this recipe.
- If you don't know what lotus root is, here is a video.
Nutrition
Helpful Info for All Recipes
- I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise.
- I always use Himalayan sea salt or Celtic sea salt, unless otherwise noted.
- The majority of my recipes are strict AIP or include notations for reintroductions. However while I make every effort to label non-AIP ingredients and recipes sometimes they slip past me. If you have questions, please ask in advance.
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