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Homemade Chicken Soup is full of chicken, veggies, and herbs in a flavorful broth. My Chicken Soup Recipe is nostalgic comfort food that’s warm and soothing and ready in about an hour.
Try one of our other favorite soups next – Turkey and Rice Soup or Hamburger Soup!
Why I Love This Easy Homemade Chicken Soup Recipe
- It’s Semi-Homemade – Using store-bought chicken broth and boneless chicken gives you a rich flavor without spending hours cooking.
- Doesn’t Take All Day – I love when I can get slow-cooked taste in about an hour!
- Customizable – Use whatever cut of chicken you like and customize the vegetables and herbs to suit your taste.
Ingredients
- Olive Oil and Butter
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts or Thighs – Chicken thighs offer the best flavor, but chicken breasts are leaner and cook faster. Bone-in chicken will add more flavor while boneless is a lot faster, and cooked in broth will still have great flavor.
- Chicken Stock or Broth – I cook the chicken in a mixture of 4 cups broth and 4 cups of water, then use this broth for the base of the soup, adding more boxed broth as needed. Opt for a low sodium variety for better flavor control.
- Veggies – Onions, garlic, carrots and celery chopped.
- Herbs – Dried thyme leaves, oregano, and bay leaves. I do use fresh parsley for its vibrant color at the end.
- Lemon – A squeeze of fresh lemon juice at the end really brightens up the whole pot.
How To Make Chicken Soup
See the recipe card below for full, detailed instructions
Saute the vegetables – Cook the veggies and herbs in olive oil and butter for a few minutes to soften them. Add the minced garlic and dried herbs and saute them with the veggies for a minute.
Simmer – Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and add the chicken. Simmer for at least 20 minutes (long enough to fully cook the chicken).
Shred chicken – Once the chicken is fully cooked(165℉), shred it and add it back to the soup. *Before adding chicken back to the soup, skim off any foam.
Final touches – Stir in fresh chopped parsley and lemon juice. Ladle into bowls and serve.
Adding Flavor To Chicken Soup
The herbs that you use are what is going to really impart the most flavor to your soup. That, and salt. I used dried thyme leaves, oregano, bay leaves, parsley, minced garlic, salt and black pepper.
Salt is an important component to the flavor profile, as it will heighten the flavor. Season with a pinch of salt at each step – not too much – then taste before serving and add more.
If you have access to fresh herbs, use them! You can leave them whole and pick them out before serving or tie them up with cheesecloth or kitchen twine.
Serving Suggestions
I love serving bread with soup because it’s perfect for soaking up the flavorful broth! Try my simple Garlic Cheese Biscuits, Sour Cream Cornbread, Beer Bread, or Homemade Parker House Rolls.
Or for something more hearty, serve with a Club Sandwich or Oven Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.
Storage
Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in your refrigerator and eaten within 4-5 days. In the freezer, it will remain fresh for at least 4-6 months. It can be eaten beyond that, but won’t be at its peak.
Reheat soup on the stovetop. If you add rice or pasta to your soup, keep it separate to avoid mushy soup when reheating.
Pro Tips
- If you know you will have leftovers, cook any starchy additions separately, like noodles or rice. As the soup simmers, the starches absorb the liquid. As the soup sits, the liquid continues to be absorbed and can result in a mushy soup.
- I always use low-sodium chicken broth so I can control the saltiness of the soup. While I often choose what’s on sale, I generally avoid generic brands. Swanson or Imagine are my go-to choices.
- For the ultimate shortcut, use leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken, shredded or chopped, for a super simple soup that only takes 20 minutes.
Chicken Soup Recipes To Try Next
- Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Caldo de Pollo (Mexican Chicken Soup)
- Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup
- Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
- Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
Homemade Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small onion diced
- 3 medium carrots peeled and sliced into bite sized pieces
- 3 celery stalks sliced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs I like to use a pound of each
- 2 quarts chicken broth or water
- Salt
- juice of one lemon
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
Optional:
- cooked egg noodles or rice if desired
Instructions
- Heat olive oil and butter in a 5-quart stock pot or dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add the onion, carrots and celery to the pot and saute, stirring frequently, until softened; about 5 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt.
- Stir in minced garlic, dried oregano, dried thyme leaves and bay leaves and saute for 1 minute.
- Pour in chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the chicken. Bring back to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low.
- Simmer for about 20 minutes, or util chicken is cooked through and shreds easily. Pro tip – keep a meat thermometer handy so the breasts don't overcook.
- Remove chicken from the pot and transfer to a cutting board. Shred with two forks or cut into large, bite sized pieces. Skim off any foam or bits of fat from the broth and return the chicken to the pot.
- Stir in fresh chopped parsley and lemon juice and serve hot.
- *Optional: while the soup is simmering, cook 1-2 cups small pasta or rice in a separate pot to add to the soup when you serve it. Store rice or pasta separate from the soup.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
This soup is AWESOME! We’ve made it a couple of times now, and it’s a perfect winter dinner. We buy French bread to make garlic bread to eat with the soup. It’s just my husband and I, so we have enough extra to put some in the freezer for another easy meal soon. Oh and also, the last time, I put a handful of egg noodles in it. It was glorious! Thank you for this fantastic recipe!
You are so welcome Toni! Love the feedback, thanks for the awesome comment.
EXCELLENT recipe. If I am reading the recipe correctly you need 2 32 oz Containers of Chicken stock, one listed as step 1, when you cook the breasts/Legs and another when you put everything together, step 5. Can I suggest that in the ingredient list you list 2-32 OZ containers?
This my new favorite Chicken Soup recipe and I have been making Chicken Soup for almost 40 years!
Thank you so much for your kind words. I adjusted the recipe because the additional stock at the end is really optional and based on personal preference for how much broth you want to end up with. But I did note 64 ounces in the ingredients.
The best chicken soup ever. Delicious. Thank you.
You are so welcome Susan! Thanks for stopping by.
Just made this last night and had it with a French baguette from Panera. It was delicious and is a new weapon in my dinner
thank you, the recipe is very easy to understand
Ahhhhh-MAZING!!!!!
Thank you Marissa! Thanks for stopping by.
This is the best chicken soup I’ve ever made! Delicious
That’s awesome! Thanks for stopping by.
I made this for my boyfriend when he was sick and he and his daughter loved it! I’m making more… they’re sick again. Also, I use golden potatoes in place of pasta. I didn’t add salt as they do not like salt. I am a vegetarian so lucky for me this is a great recipe! Thank You!
You are so welcome Anna. Thank you so much for stopping by.
Hi Kristin can I put some small pieces of potatoes in this recipe?
Sure! If you cook the potatoes with the broth keep in mind the starch is released and will thicken the soup a bit.
how many servings in the homemade chicken soup ?
It will make 4-6 decent sized servings.
I have made this twice for my family & can’t wait to make it again. It’s sooo amazingly good. It’s an easy recipe to follow & cook.
Thanks Joe! So happy that you and your family loved this recipe!
How many servings does this recipe make? I was thinking of cutting it in half as it sounds like too much for two people.
It does make a lot, but it makes great leftovers! Freezes beautifully, too.
I made this Chicken Soup and yes, it IS SO GOOD! I used cooked rotisserie chicken, barbeque flavored, from the local grocery store, instead of cooking a raw chicken. It is MUCH faster and you are assured that the chicken is cooked. I just took the chicken off the bones and put in the cooked vegs. with chicken broth and water mixture. I also used Orzo pasta, a whole 1 lb. box, and put it dry, right in with the broth and chicken to cook that way. It softened up just fine and delicious! I also used small baby carrots packaged instead of slicing up large whole carrots. That was delicious too because by the time the little carrots were soft, the pasta was cooked. It is so delicious and is my FIRST TIME EVER making homemade chicken soup. Yummy! And Thank You so much for this recipe! 5 Stars
Love that you made it your own!
Yumm, Chicken soup is my husband’s favorite. I added a little fresh lemon juice, it perks up the soup a little and sneaks in a little Vitamin C!
I go the cooked rotisserie route, too. One added game changer, add 1/4th cup of fresh dill weed chopped at the end when you add lemon zest and juice. Sometimes I add a handful of fresh kale or other greens at the end, too. I don’t add in wide egg noodles anymore. I found this freezes better without pasta and it does freeze very well. I cook this for my two adult children and they love it. One question: if you don’t have fresh thyme sprigs, would you use the ground thyme and if so, how much? Thanks.