Table of Contents
Is Chicken & Vegetable Soup Healthy?
How To Make Chicken Vegetable Soup
Start by cooking your base vegetables – onions, celery, carrots, potatoes and squash – in a little olive oil. Once these have softened you can start building your soup!
Add your stock – chicken or vegetable broth are both fine. Then you have several options for the chicken itself. You can, as I have here, use chicken tenders which poach in the soup.
But you can also use leftover roast chicken, shredded rotisserie chicken or even a whole chicken.
I prefer to use mini chicken breasts (chicken tenders) as they cook really quickly. I also like to add a little tomato paste for some color and flavour, but you can leave it out if you want a clear broth.
After the chicken and vegetables have simmered for about 20 minutes you can add any vegetables that quick quickly such as zucchini, corn or green beans.
Remove the cooked chicken from the soup, shred it and stir it back in, together with plenty of fresh herbs. Always check the seasoning at this stage, adding salt and freshly ground pepper as needed.
Serve the soup with lemon wedges on the side, maybe with a little grated Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top and a slice of crusty bread. Have I already said how freaking yummy this is?
How To Add Flavour To Your Soup
The vegetables and chicken will naturally add lots of flavour to your soup. Using a good chicken stock is a no-brainer, but I have had great results using bouillon powder, such as Kallo.
For extra flavour you could try using bone-in chicken (or a whole chicken). It adds a bit of work to this otherwise very simple recipe, so I usually go for the easy option, especially if I am battling a cold!
Add plenty of fresh chopped parsley, a little lemon juice and some grated Parmesan when you are ready to serve. For a real flavour boost you could stir in a little pistou.
How To Thicken Your Soup
The potatoes and squash break down while cooking and add a lot of thickness to this soup. The pasta also makes it very hearty and since pasta absorbs water you might find you need to dilute your soup with a little hot water when reheating.
Can You Use This Recipe To Make Instant Pot Chicken Vegetable Soup?
Yes, you can make instant pot chicken vegetable soup. Here’s how to make it:
- Set your instant pot to sauté for 10 minutes. Sauté onions, garlic, and celery for 10 minutes.
- Add in carrots, potatoes, chicken breasts, chicken broth, tomatoes, and spices and stir together. (make sure to scape bottom)
- Cover and set to sealing, manual pressure for 12 minutes.
- Once cooked, quick release the pressure, remove bay leaves and chicken. Shred chicken and return to pot.
- Stir in frozen corn, peas & green beans and ENJOY!
How much liquid do you put in instant pot for soup? You use the same amount of liquid in instant pot soup that you do for regular soup. It doesn’t change the recipe!
What Vegetables Do You Put In a Chicken Soup?
The beauty of this soup is you can really customize it to fit whatever vegetables and protein you already have in the fridge.
Don’t have chicken? Try ground beef or smoked sausage. Other great add-ins or substitutions include
- Pasta
- Beans
- Butternut Squash
- Leeks
- Peas
- Ham
- Bacon
What If I Don’t Have All The Ingredients?
Don’t let that stop you! You can use your favourite vegetables in this soup and feel free to substitute what I have used. I would keep the base vegetables – onions, celery and carrots – and freestyle on the rest.
If you leave the chicken out and use vegetable stock then this soup easily becomes vegetarian/vegan. By the way, if you are avoiding pasta you can easily leave it out or replace it with rice, beans or chickpeas.
Can You Cook Raw Chicken in Soup?
Yes, you can put raw chicken directly into soup. If you are going to be boiling the soup or cooking it for an extended period, it’s totally fine to put raw chicken into it.
Chicken breasts need to cook for at least 15 minutes. I’d cook them for at least 30 in a soup.
How Long Does Chicken Take to Boil?
Chicken breasts typically take around 15 minutes when boiling to cook through. If you are worried about it, you want the internal cooking temp of chicken to be 165°.
How Do You Make Slow Cooker Chicken Soup?
You can easily adapt this recipe for the slow cooker. Simply combine all the ingredients except for the parsley in a crock pot and cook on LOW for 2-4 hours or until the potatoes are tender. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
Storing & Freezing
You can store the soup for 3-4 days in the fridge and up to three months in the freezer. I like making this on a Monday and having it for lunch through the week – I really never tire of it.
If you plan on freezing it I would advise leaving the pasta out and adding it when you are reheating the soup.
Always make sure the soup is piping hot when you are reheating it. Remember you might need to add a little hot water to dilute it as it tends to get thicker the longer you keep it.
Love Chicken? If so – here are some of our other healthy chicken recipes you may like:
This is such a quick and easy recipe to make, I hope you enjoy this unique Chicken Vegetable Soup!
Chicken Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 cups vegetable stock, divided
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 2 cups canned diced tomatoes, with juices
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste
- 1 cup finely chopped cabbage
- 1 cup chopped sweet potato
- 1 cup peeled and chopped carrot
- 1 cup peeled and chopped turnip
- 1 cup chopped okra
- 1 cup chopped cooked chicken, or to taste
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot; cook and stir the onion in the hot oil until translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Whisk 1/2 cup of vegetable stock and the peanut butter into the onions until the mixture is smooth. Beat in remaining vegetable stock, diced tomatoes with their liquid, and crushed red pepper flakes; bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and cook at a simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the cabbage, sweet potato, carrot, and turnip; simmer, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 30 more minutes. Stir in the okra and chicken and simmer until the okra is tender, about 30 additional minutes.
