---
title: "Restaurant Chicken Soup Recipe for 40 Portions"
description: "A commercial chicken soup recipe producing about 10 litres, with daily chicken stock, controlled cornflour thickening, egg ribbons and safe hot holding."
url: https://rosuii.com/recipes/chicken-soup-recipe
lang: en
course: starter
cuisine: Chinese
difficulty: medium
prep_minutes: 30
cook_minutes: 120
total_minutes: 150
yield: "about 40 plates"
servings: 40
tags: ["chicken", "mild", "soup"]
source: Rosuii (https://rosuii.com)
---

# Restaurant Chicken Soup Recipe for 40 Portions

A commercial chicken soup recipe producing about 10 litres, with daily chicken stock, controlled cornflour thickening, egg ribbons and safe hot holding.

## Ingredients

- 2.5 kg Chicken frames, chopped into manageable pieces
- 11 litres Water, 10 litres for stock, balance for adjusting volume
- 500 g Onion, quartered
- 120 g Ginger, crushed
- 80 g Garlic, crushed
- 15 g Black peppercorns, lightly crushed
- 1.2 kg Boneless chicken, trimmed
- 1.2 kg Sweet corn, drained if canned
- 600 g Carrot, cut into 5 mm dice
- 180 ml Light soy sauce
- 55 g Salt, adjust after checking soy sauce
- 30 g Sugar
- 12 g White pepper, finely ground
- 350 g Cornflour
- 700 ml Cold water, for cornflour slurry
- 12 large Eggs, beaten until uniform
- 40 ml Sesame oil
- 250 g Spring onion, finely sliced

## Equipment

- 20-litre stainless steel stockpot with lid
- Fine-mesh stock strainer
- Commercial burner
- Digital probe thermometer
- 10-litre soup kettle or bain-marie
- Measuring jug
- 250 ml portion ladle
- Stainless steel whisk

## Method

1. **Start The Daily Stock** — Place the chicken frames and 10 litres of cold water in the stockpot and heat gradually. When the liquid reaches 85°C to 90°C, skim off grey foam and loose fat from the surface.
2. **Add Stock Aromatics** — Add onion, ginger, garlic and black peppercorns after skimming. Hold the stock between 88°C and 95°C for 90 minutes, with only small bubbles breaking the surface. Do not allow a rolling boil.
3. **Strain And Measure Stock** — Pass the stock through a fine strainer into a clean pot without pressing the bones or vegetables. Measure 8.2 litres of strained stock, adding boiling water if short or simmering uncovered if excessive. Return it to 85°C to 90°C.
4. **Poach And Shred Chicken** — Lower the boneless chicken into the strained stock and poach gently for 12 to 16 minutes. Confirm a core temperature of at least 74°C, remove the meat and rest it for 5 minutes. Shred it into consistent thin pieces.
5. **Cook Corn And Carrot** — Add sweet corn and diced carrot to the stock and simmer at 90°C to 95°C for 5 to 7 minutes. The carrot should be tender but retain its shape. Return the shredded chicken to the pot.
6. **Season The Soup Base** — Add light soy sauce, salt, sugar and white pepper, then stir for 1 minute. Taste a cooled spoonful before adding more salt because soy sauce strength varies. Keep the soup close to a gentle boil.
7. **Thicken With Cornflour** — Whisk the cornflour with 700 ml cold water until completely smooth, then stir it again immediately before pouring. Add the slurry slowly while stirring the soup in one direction. Bring to a gentle boil for 60 to 90 seconds until glossy and able to lightly coat a spoon.
8. **Form Clean Egg Ribbons** — Reduce the heat so the surface moves gently at about 90°C. Pour the beaten egg in a thin, steady stream while slowly moving the soup in one direction. Wait 15 seconds, then fold gently two or three times to reveal long ribbons.
9. **Finish And Check Yield** — Add sesame oil and spring onion, then remove the pot from direct high heat. Adjust with boiling water only if required to reach a final volume of 10 litres, and recheck seasoning and thickness. Do not hard-boil after the egg is added.
10. **Transfer For Hot Holding** — Move the soup into a preheated kettle or bain-marie and hold it at 63°C or hotter. Stir from the bottom every 15 to 20 minutes and verify temperature with a sanitised probe. Serve with a level 250 ml ladle.

## Notes

**This chicken soup recipe produces about 10 litres, enough for 40 starter portions of 250 ml each.** It is designed for Bangladeshi restaurants, cafés and food carts that need one consistent batch for lunch and evening service. The daily stock provides the main flavour, while sweet corn, shredded chicken, vegetables, cornflour and egg create the familiar Chinese restaurant style.

## Why this soup works commercially

**Chicken soup works well commercially because one controlled batch can be portioned quickly throughout service.** The stock can be prepared before opening, and the finished soup needs only a short reheating and final adjustment. A measured ladle makes service fast without requiring a cook to assemble every plate separately.

The ingredients are widely available in Bangladesh, and the recipe can use clean chicken frames generated during normal kitchen cutting. It also accepts practical menu variations such as extra chicken, extra egg or a smaller cup portion. Keep the main batch moderately seasoned so customers can add chilli sauce, vinegar or extra pepper at the table without making the whole pot too strong.

## Selecting ingredients for quality

**The quality of the chicken stock matters more than expensive garnishes.** Use fresh chicken frames with some neck, wing tip and connective tissue attached. Frames should smell clean, remain properly chilled and show no slimy surface or grey-green discolouration. Avoid relying only on skin and fat because they produce grease without enough body.

Boneless breast gives neat pale shreds, while boneless thigh gives stronger flavour and stays softer during holding. Either is suitable, but use one cut consistently because changing cuts alters cooking loss and portion yield. Frozen chicken can be used if it is thawed under refrigeration at 5°C or below, never in standing room-temperature water.

Choose cornflour that is dry, white and free from lumps or stale odour. Ordinary flour is not a direct substitute because it creates a cloudy, floury soup and needs longer cooking. Use fresh eggs with clean, uncracked shells. Light soy sauce should provide seasoning and colour without making the soup dark; switching brands may change salt level considerably.

## Building the daily stock

**A clear stock requires gentle simmering rather than hard boiling.** Start the bones in cold water so proteins rise gradually and can be skimmed. Once the liquid approaches a simmer, remove the grey foam and excess surface fat before adding the aromatics.

Maintain the stock between 88°C and 95°C. A rolling boil breaks fat into the liquid, producing a greasy, cloudy base and increasing evaporation. Ninety minutes is enough for chopped chicken frames; much longer cooking can make ginger, garlic and bones taste dull or bitter. Strain without pressing the cooked bones and vegetables, because pressing releases sediment.

Measure the strained stock every day. The target is 8.2 litres before the meat, vegetables, slurry and eggs are added. If the stock is short, add boiling water. If it is excessive and weak, simmer it uncovered until it reaches the target volume. This measurement is essential because cornflour performance depends on the amount of liquid.

## Controlling thickness and egg ribbons

**Cornflour must be dispersed in cold water and added only after the soup base is hot.** Stir the slurry immediately before use because cornflour settles quickly. Pour it in gradually while moving the soup in one direction, then bring the soup back to a gentle boil for at least 60 seconds. The full thickness appears only after boiling.

Do not judge thickness while the soup is still below boiling temperature. Adding extra cornflour too early often creates a heavy soup that becomes almost gel-like during holding. If correction is necessary, prepare a separate small slurry at the same one-part-cornflour to two-parts-cold-water ratio. Never tip dry cornflour directly into the pot.

Egg ribbons should be added after thickening. The slightly thickened liquid supports the egg instead of allowing it to sink as small grains. Pour beaten egg in a thin stream while the soup moves gently, wait about 15 seconds, then fold once or twice. Vigorous whisking produces tiny scrambled particles rather than visible ribbons.

## Scaling the batch correctly

**Scale every ingredient by the same factor, but control final volume before adding cornflour.** For a half batch, use half of every ingredient and set the strained stock at 4.1 litres. For a double batch, use double quantities and set the strained stock at 16.4 litres before finishing.

Large pots lose proportionally less water than small pots, so water cannot be scaled blindly. Measure the stock rather than assuming evaporation will remain identical. A double batch also needs a sufficiently wide burner and pot so the soup returns to a boil quickly after vegetables and slurry are added. If the equipment cannot heat 20 litres evenly, prepare two separate batches.

Do not double cooking time. Chicken frames still need about 90 minutes once the pot reaches a gentle simmer, while diced vegetables need only enough time to become tender. Confirm that poached chicken reaches at least 74°C at its thickest point, regardless of batch size.

## Holding and reheating for service

**Finished soup must be held at 63°C or hotter during service.** Transfer it to a clean soup kettle or bain-marie that has already been preheated. Check the centre temperature with a sanitised probe, not only the display on the equipment. Stir from the bottom every 15 to 20 minutes because starch settles and the surface loses heat.

Keep the service pan covered between orders to reduce evaporation and contamination. For best texture, use the batch within four hours of finishing. If service is slow, hold a smaller quantity in the kettle and keep the remaining soup above 63°C in the kitchen rather than repeatedly heating and cooling the same container.

For chilled storage, divide soup into shallow containers and cool it from 60°C to 21°C within two hours, then to 5°C or below within a further four hours. Reheat only once to at least 74°C throughout, stirring frequently, and then return it to hot holding. Do not mix yesterday's soup into a new batch.

## Portioning and yield control

**A 250 ml ladle should produce 40 controlled starter portions from the 10-litre batch.** Verify the ladle with a measuring jug because nominal ladle sizes are not always accurate. Fill it level rather than heaped, and make sure each serving receives chicken, corn and egg instead of only liquid.

Stir before every few portions so solids remain evenly distributed. Record the opening volume, portions sold, staff meals and discarded quantity. A clear [portion control](/blog/restaurant-portion-control-guide) system identifies whether low yield comes from evaporation, oversized ladles, spills or unrecorded servings.

## Mistakes that cost money

**The most expensive mistakes are uncontrolled stock volume, over-portioning and poor temperature management.** Excessive boiling wastes gas, reduces yield and makes the soup salty. Weak stock encourages cooks to compensate with too much soy sauce, stock powder or salt, which can create an artificial and inconsistent taste.

- **Skipping the final volume check:** This changes flavour, thickness and the number of portions.
- **Adding all slurry at once:** Localised starch can form lumps on the bottom of the pot.
- **Boiling after egg ribboning:** Hard boiling breaks the ribbons and toughens the chicken.
- **Leaving the ladle in the kettle:** The handle can become contaminated and the kettle loses heat whenever its lid stays open.
- **Topping old soup with fresh soup:** This hides batch age and weakens temperature control.

## Keeping food cost stable

**Stable cost comes from fixed yields, standard chicken specifications and recorded waste.** Chicken is the main cost driver, so define whether purchasing is based on boneless breast, thigh or whole-bird breakdown. Compare usable cooked yield rather than only the supplier's kilogram rate. Sweet corn and eggs also move the batch cost when pack size, drained weight or egg grade changes.

Use a consistent supplier specification and monitor actual portions through [recipe costing](/blog/recipe-costing-restaurant). Rosuii can record the stock base as a production that converts raw materials into finished stock, while wastage and sales reports help operators compare output with service results. Review [inventory management](/blog/restaurant-inventory-management) records for unexplained use of chicken, cornflour and eggs rather than reducing the stated portion.

## Cost drivers

Chicken frames and boneless chicken dominate the cost, with the result affected by cut, trimming loss and cooked yield. Sweet corn and eggs are the next important variables, particularly when pack drained weight or egg size changes.

## FAQ

### Can this chicken soup recipe be doubled for a busy service?

Yes. Double every ingredient and standardise the strained stock at 16.4 litres before adding the remaining components. Use two pots if one burner cannot return the larger batch to a gentle boil quickly and evenly.

### How long can the finished soup remain in hot holding?

Keep it continuously at 63°C or hotter and aim to sell it within four hours for the best texture. Check and record the centre temperature regularly, stir every 15 to 20 minutes and never top an older batch with a fresh one.

### Can chicken stock powder replace the daily stock?

It can provide emergency seasoning, but it will not reproduce the body and clean chicken flavour of stock made from frames. If used, follow the manufacturer's concentration, reduce added salt and test the finished soup before service.

### How long can leftover chicken soup be refrigerated?

Cool it rapidly in shallow containers and refrigerate at 5°C or below. For the best egg and cornflour texture, use it within 24 hours, reheat it once to at least 74°C throughout and discard any portion with uncertain cooling history.

### Why did the batch produce fewer than 40 portions?

The usual causes are excessive stock evaporation, an unmeasured final volume, heaped ladles or staff servings that were not recorded. Standardise the finished batch at 10 litres and verify that the service ladle holds exactly 250 ml.

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