Old people’s recipes are the best. They generally use a handful of basic ingredients and taste awesome, such as this classic chicken soup recipe handed down from an old person. Wilkie’s original recipe used rice, which you can try, but we prefer barley. It does cook for a few hours but prep time is quick and it all goes into one big pot. This makes around 10-12 servings so clear space in your freezer.

You will need

• 500g chicken thigh fillets
• 1 1/2 cups of barley, rinsed
• 1/2 bunch celery, chopped
• 5 carrots (chop, grate or mixture of both for texture)
• 2 brown onions, chopped
• Bunch of parsley, finely chopped including stalks
• 2 teaspoons each of sea salt and pepper
• Water

What you do
Put the chicken, barley, celery, carrots, onions, parsley stalks and half the parsley leaves in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to the boil and let it simmer uncovered for 3 hours, giving it an occasional stir. Top up with some hot water if it gets too stewy. When done, stir remaining parsley through and season.

Note: When it cools down, it does get thicker and more stew-like, as shown in the picture but if you like it soupier, add more water as it’s cooking.