Clean the whole chicken thoroughly. Place the chicken, giblets, and neck into a large stock pot. Fill with water until the chicken is completely covered — about ¾ of the pot or slightly more.

Add peppercorns, bay leaves, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, salt, and olive oil.

Bring to a rolling boil and boil for 5–10 minutes, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer (just small bubbles).

Simmer for at least 3 hours, longer if you can.

Pro Tip: This slow simmer is what gives Italian Penicillin Soup its healing qualities. The longer the bones cook, the more collagen and minerals are released into the broth.

In a separate soup pot, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium to medium-low heat.

Add the chopped onion, celery, and carrots. Sweat slowly until softened and fragrant — do not brown.

Add the chopped garlic and sauté briefly until aromatic. Stir in the tomato paste and cook until it deepens in color and smells rich.

Place a colander over a large bowl. Carefully pour everything from the stock pot into the colander.

Reserve the broth.

Pull out the carrots and celery from the strained contents and add them directly into the soup pot with the tomato paste mixture.

Instead of blending, mash the vegetables right in the pot using a potato masher.

Old-school Italian method: No blender, fewer dishes, and better texture.

Pour the strained broth into the soup pot and bring to a boil.

Using your hands, pick the chicken meat from the bones, carefully checking for any bones. Add the chicken to the soup.

Simmer for 5–10 minutes to allow the flavors to come together.

Add the chopped parsley and squeeze in the juice of one large lemon.

Taste and adjust with salt and pepper as needed.

The lemon is essential — it brightens this Italian Penicillin Soup and balances the rich, slow-simmered broth.