Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
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So hearty, comforting and soothing (and so easy!). Perfect during the cold weather or fighting off a cold!
Featured Comment
why i love this recipe
- Hands-off cooking
- Big batch soup recipe, great for freezing and planning ahead
- Warm hug-in-a-bowl
- Slurping up all the spaghetti noodles
chicken stock versus chicken broth
Chicken stock
Chicken stock is lower sodium and thicker than broth, and is made from bones and vegetables.
Chicken broth
Chicken broth is made from meat and vegetables. Store-bought broth is often times saltier than store-bought stock.
tips and tricks for success
- Use the right size crockpot. A 6-qt slow cooker is ideal for this recipe. For a smaller slow cooker, simply half the recipe with the same cook time.
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your soup. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety. Homemade stock is even better.
- Let the noodles cook with the soup. The pasta does not have to be pre-cooked prior to adding to the slow cooker. The beauty of this recipe is its ease – no extra pot needed here. Go ahead and throw in your uncooked, broken spaghetti noodles, letting it infuse all the lovely flavors.
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice. Lemon juice will elevate your chicken noodle soup, adding a fresh, bright flavor and balancing out all the saltiness and richness of the soup.
pro tip
Avoid overcooking your chicken noodle soup.
Even with its gentle heat feature, you can overcook chicken noodle soup in the slow cooker. The chicken will dry out, and the vegetables will turn to mush. Do not leave the slow cooker on longer than necessary.
what to serve with chicken noodle soup
Tools For This Recipe
6-qt slow cooker
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, there is a ton of flavor in the skin but this will also yield a little more grease and fat into the soup, yielding a more rich soup.
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
Don’t have any spaghetti noodles on hand? Wide egg noodles or rotini would both work very well in this recipe!
Here is our favorite homestyle chicken noodle soup recipe made on the stovetop.
100%! This is also another one of our favorites made so easily (and quickly) in the IP.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the noodles (or else they will get mushy) in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding freshly cooked noodles when serving.
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 3 ribs celery, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 bay leaves
- 8 ounces spaghetti, broken into thirds
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Equipment
Instructions
- Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste. Place chicken into a 6-qt slow cooker.
- Stir in chicken stock, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme, rosemary and bay leaves; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours.
- Remove chicken from the slow cooker and shred, using two forks.
- Stir in pasta and chicken into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat for an additional 30-40 minutes, or until pasta is tender.
- Stir in lemon juice and parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Did you make this recipe?
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Super good! Especially the next day! I used boneless skinless thighs instead and the meat stayed very moist. Also, I added about two cups more broth at the end. I like a lot of broth. I will be making this a lot this winter! Thanks for the recipe….so easy!
Can I cut the time if I use already cooked chicken? This looks
Delicious and I have some leftovers that are in danger of going to waste, but this recipe looks like it would be perfect to save them.
Yes!
Hello! I can’t wait to try this recipe! Although we love chicken stock, we don’t eat actual chicken. How long would I cook this in the slow cooker (or Dutch Oven!) without having chicken meat in it? Thank you very much!
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
It’s a good tasting soup! I’ve made it twice and both times by the time I go to get the chicken out to shred, there’s all these tiny chicken pieces floating on top. It doesn’t taste bad, but it looks pretty bad. What am I doing wrong?
I am trying chicken noodle soup for the first time in the slow cooker. I got 2 split breast and 2 bonless skinless thighs to toss in because thats what I had. The rest of the recipe I followed as written. I didnt have dried rosemary but I did have fresh so chopped that ip and threw it in with just a pinch of fennel because I love the flavor. I put the crock on high for 2 hours then will turn it down to low for the rest of the time. I’m hoping it turns out good for my first time!!!
I love all your recipes!! Can I make this on stove top? Will it still be flavorful? I’ve got a sick child and need it in a hurry. She doesn’t like my traditional chicken and dumplings.
Yes, absolutely!
Two of my three kids have colds now and am planning on making this soup for them – looks so darn good and comforting!
I may use some leftover (frozen) Thanksgiving turkey and “better than bouillon” brand turkey or chicken base because I have it on hand.
Can’t imagine leaving out any of the ingredients from the original recipe – would be a pretty bland soup without the seasoning/herbs. I suppose you could purchase some savory/seasoned chicken broth for a short cut…
I have enjoyed so many recipes on “Damn Delicious” – think I’m going to purchase the cookbook very soon!
I made this recipe yesterday but with Turkey tenderloin instead of chicken breasts (didn’t have chicken breasts on hand). AWESOME on the first day – better on the second day. Thanks for sharing!!!
Next recipe of yours I’m making is the English Toffee – another A+ recipe 🙂
Okay to use canned chicken broth as opposed to stock? I think only slightly different?
Yes!
And use raw chicken, correct? Thanks in advance
Yes.
I made this for dinner tonight. I started it about 4 hours before we were going to eat. It was so quick and easy to assemble and put together. I used fresh lemon juice from the squeeze bottle instead of a fresh lemon. It turned out awesome. I kept all the ingredients the same. I added extra carrots and celery only because that’s what I like. I used a little over two pounds of chicken breast. The house smells amazing while it was cooking. I recommend this recipe.
Omg looks delicious! I just unboxed my new crock pot and found your blog. Food looks amazing and recipes straight forward. So excited to try them! Thanks for sharing them!
Yum it was really good, loved the spaghetti, never knew it was so perfect for soup, will make this again!
Can I use different noodles? Maybe like an egg noodle.
Yes!
I have a whole chicken, would you follow the recipe exactly or cook chicken before putting all other stuff in?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
Lol @ less ingredients for soup. When I make chicken soup I use way more ingredients than what’s listed here; soup is not something I make if I don’t actually feel like cooking it; it requires some preparation
Some added suggestions:-
Pumpkin – it adds a richness and so much flavour
Scallion – yes as well as the onion
Scotch bonnet – it’s not as scary as it sounds; put it in with a couple of hours to go it imparts so much flavour, just don’t let it burst. It will turn a good tasting soup to something that is amazing
You’re welcome 🙂
If I got a late start on this recipe for tonight’s dinner, would it be okay to cook it all on HIGH for a few hours instead?
Yes, absolutely.
I made two big mistakes while making this recipe. I chose penne noodles (which I thought would be fine), but then we poured in the whole bag! I never stop to think about what happens next. So it took a long time to cook… it’s honestly still gummy, but we had to stop the cooking since all the broth is gone. So lots of gummy noodles and no broth. =( I’m so silly. Next time I’ll stick to the 8 oz. of spaghetti. The flavor was great though! I love the lemon.
I make something similar except I brown the chicken before I put it into the pot. Just gives a little bit more of a savory taste. I personally like to use Kluski for the noodles as they don’t tend to get mushy.
Just made it using the required ingredients! Usually alter recipes to my taste, but left this be. As a 68 year old expat living in Europe,,with veggies and meats from everywhere and do much cooking,,,it turned out great!!!!!!!!!!!! Only one change,,I cook the noodles alone and ladle the soup onto them. The noodles get less soggy! Plus,,, I have every kitchen devise known to man which prepping much easier and get to keep my fingers if I forget my glasses!
Any suggestion on a substitute for garlic? At the moment, I cannot include garlic in my diet due to the fact that I’m nursing and baby does not react well to garlic. Such a shame, because I love garlic!
You can omit as needed.
Thank you, this was delicious! Also we loved that it was in the slow cooker–it smelled awesome all day. Also, I was able to use my pots for other things while the soup was using none of them.
I now realize that the reason I don’t make chicken soup is because I don’t know what to do with the chicken afterward! You taught me that shredding it and adding it to the soup makes it more like a meal–thank you! We did make some changes–used wide egg noodles and left out the lemon juice. It’s just what we are used to. But I might try some lemon juice in my portion when we have it again tomorrow. Love your recipes. Like you, we just can’t wait for the weather to say it’s time for soup. Last week it was cold, today it’s 80! Will probably make your slow cooker chicken on Friday; there was a sale on new potatoes at Sprouts!
Everyone needs a chicken noodle soup recipe, and one for the slow cooker is just a “bonus.” Going to pin this and keep it on hand!