Cook Noodles Separately

1. Prepare the ingredients for your soup. This includes cleaning and chopping vegetables and gathering any spices or seasonings you plan to use.

2. Cook the soup according to the recipe instructions, but set your noodles aside for now. Some recipes call for simply throwing all the ingredients into a large pot and letting everything cook, while others suggest sauteing the vegetables and then letting the broth and meat slowly simmer until the soup is done. You can experiment with different recipes and even substitute your favorite vegetables, add meats or use different spices.

3. Boil a separate pot of water to cook your noodles in. Prepare the noodles according to the package instructions, then set aside.

4. Add the cooked noodles to your soup. If you add the entire batch of noodles to the soup, keep in mind that as the soup sits the noodles will continue to absorb the broth, making your soup thicker. To avoid this, you can store the noodles and soup separately and simply add noodles to each serving of soup.

Cook Noodles in the Soup

1. Prepare you soup according to the recipe, but set your noodles aside for now.

2. Add about 25 percent more broth to your soup that is needed. Cooking noodles in the soup will cause some of the broth to be absorbed.

3. Put your noodles directly in the soup and allow to boil until cooked. Keep in mind that cooking your noodles directly in the soup releases starches which can cause clear broth to become somewhat cloudy. Also remember that while your noodles may taste perfectly done now, as they continue to sit in the broth they will absorb more liquid and could end up too mushy for your taste. One way to combat this is to remove the soup from the heat a couple of minutes before the noodles are completely done.