When my body is tired and achy, or I’m feeling a bit under the weather, I always throw together this Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup recipe. The aroma that fills my house as it cooks is absolutely soothing to the soul, and the “from scratch” chicken soup flavor makes it the ultimate comfort food. There’s no bouillon or canned broth here folks, because this chicken soup is the real deal. But don’t worry, despite being made from scratch, this surprisingly simple and easy recipe makes the BEST homemade chicken noodle soup with very little hands-on time!
This post contains some affiliate links, which means that we make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
Ingredients for Chicken Noodle Soup
Making chicken noodle soup from scratch doesn’t require a lot of complicated ingredients. All you need is chicken, a few simple vegetables, herbs, and spices, and you’re good to go! Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this easy chicken noodle soup recipe:
- Vegetables: I use a simple mirepoix (onion, carrot, and celery), plus a little garlic for extra depth. This medley of vegetables simmers with the chicken to create an incredible homemade broth for the soup. The vegetables also add a lot of color and texture to the soup.
- Bone-in Chicken: Using bone-in chicken is critical to creating the most flavorful chicken noodle soup. I use skinless chicken breast (bone-in) so my soup has delicious pieces of white meat throughout. If you’re more of a dark-meat person, feel free to use thighs or drumsticks. I like to remove the skin to reduce the extra fat, but you can leave the skin on while simmering and remove it later if you want an extra-rich soup.
- Herbs and Spices: A combination of basil, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, and pepper give this soup its classic warm flavor. And of course, we add some salt to really help the natural flavors pop!
- Water: The chicken, vegetables, and seasoning simmer in water to create a truly amazing homemade broth.
- Noodles: I use wide egg noodles for chicken noodle soup because I love their light texture, but you can use just about any pasta shape you like! Try using stars, alphabet pasta, fideo, or ditalini.
Can I Use Rotisserie Chicken?
You can make this homemade chicken noodle soup recipe even faster by swapping out the raw chicken with shredded rotisserie chicken. Pull the chicken meat from the bones before you begin making the soup, then add the leftover carcass to the soup pot and simmer that with the vegetables instead of the whole chicken breast. Remove the bones before adding the shredded chicken back at the end.
Or, instead of simmering the bones, you can use a pre-made chicken broth and simply add the shredded rotisserie chicken at the end. This is a super fast method for making chicken soup, but the flavor won’t be quite as amazing as making your own broth!
Tips for Making Chicken Noodle Soup More Flavorful
To make sure your homemade chicken noodle soup has the most flavor possible, follow these easy tips:
- Use bone-in chicken, not boneless. The bones give the broth a TON of flavor.
- Make sure your dried herbs are fresh. Dried herbs lose flavor over time, so check those expiration dates!
- Don’t rush it. This soup needs to simmer for quite a while to get the most flavor out of the chicken, vegetables, and herbs. But don’t worry, it doesn’t require much attention as it simmers away.
- Don’t forget the salt. Salt doesn’t just make food taste “salty,” it actually helps our tongue distinguish different flavors. So make sure you salt the soup to taste at the end to get the full effect of all of those delicious flavors.
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
This recipe adapts very easily to the slow cooker. Click here for our Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup recipe (with step-by-step photos).
Freeze the Leftovers!
This recipe makes a big batch, so I always freeze about half of it for days when I’m really under the weather. A quick reheat in the microwave or in a pot and this soup instantly makes me feel better. To freeze this soup, first divide it into single portions, make sure it is chilled completely in the refrigerator, then transfer it to the freezer, for up to about three months.
Pairs perfectly with homemade No-Knead Focaccia Rolls!
The Best Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Servings 8 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1 medium yellow onion ($0.37)
- 3 cloves garlic ($0.24)
- 1/2 lb. carrots ($0.49)
- 1/2 bunch celery ($0.83)
- 2 split chicken breasts, bone-in ($6.64)
- 1 tsp dried basil ($0.10)
- 1 Tbsp dried parsley ($0.15)
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)
- 1 bay leaf ($0.15)
- 1/4 tsp Freshly cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 2-3 tsp salt ($0.05)
- 6 oz. egg noodles ($1.00)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the onion, garlic, and olive oil to a large pot and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft and transparent.
- While the onion and garlic are sautéing, wash and slice the carrots and celery. Add them to the pot and continue to sauté for a few minutes more.
- Pull the skin and any excess fat from the chicken breasts. Add the breasts to the pot along with the bay leaf, basil, parsley, thyme, some freshly cracked pepper, and 8 cups of water. Cover the pot, bring it to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for one hour. Make sure the pot continues to simmer for the whole hour. If the heat is turned down too low and it is not bubbling away, the chicken will not shred easily.
- After an hour of simmering, remove the chicken from the pot. Using two forks, pull the meat from the bone and shred it slightly. Season the broth with salt. Begin with one teaspoon and add more to your liking. I used 2-3 teaspoons. The flavor of the broth will really pop once the salt is added.
- Add the noodles to the pot, turn the heat up to high, and boil the noodles until tender (about 7 minutes). Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Taste and season again with salt if needed (I didn’t need to). Serve hot!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Video
Love chicken soup? Then you’ll LOVE my Chicken Stew. It’s like chicken noodle soup’s heartier, more rustic cousin!
How to Make Easy Chicken Noodle Soup – Step By Step Photos
Begin by dicing one onion and mincing three cloves of garlic. Place them in a large pot with 2 Tbsp olive oil and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent.
While the onion and garlic are cooking, clean and slice 1/2 lb. carrots and 1/2 bunch celery (3-4 stalks). Add them to the pot. Continue to sauté the onions, carrots, and celery together. You’ll only use half of a one-pound bag of carrots and half of a bunch of celery, but the rest doesn’t need to go to waste. You can clean and slice the rest and freeze them to make another batch of soup later. I do it every (other) time. It takes just a few more minutes and is super convenient later!
Remove the skin from two split chicken breasts (2.5-3 lbs. total). Split chicken breasts come with bones and rib meat, both of which add a LOT of flavor to the broth. They will also sometimes be labeled “bone-in chicken breast with rib meat”.
Add the chicken breasts to the pot along with 1 tsp dried basil, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, 1 Tbsp dried or fresh parsley, 1 bay leaf, and about ¼ tsp freshly cracked black pepper.
Add eight cups of water, cover, and bring up to a boil over high heat. As soon as it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to low and let simmer for one hour. Make sure that you don’t turn the heat down so low that it stops simmering. It needs to simmer the whole time.
After an hour, it will look something like this. Pull the chicken out of the pot…
Use two forks to pull the chicken from the bone and shred it into bite-sized pieces.
Add 6oz. egg noodles to the pot while you’re working on the chicken, turn the heat up to a boil, and cook until tender (about 7-10 minutes). You can use any noodle that you like, but I really like egg noodles for this soup. They have a nice firm texture and they don’t disintegrate in the soup. Season the broth with salt, beginning with one teaspoon and adding more until the flavor of the broth really pops (2-3 teaspoons).
Add the shredded chicken back to the chicken soup, stir to combine, and you’re ready to eat! It’s never a bad idea to give it one last taste and adjust the salt if needed.
This chicken noodle soup recipe makes about 12 cups, so it’s not a bad idea to freeze some for later. Always refrigerate the chicken noodle soup fully before transferring it to the freezer. When making big batches, it’s a good idea to divide it up into smaller portions before refrigerating. This helps the hot liquid to cool down faster once in the refrigerator.
My chicken came out really tough :( is there a way to prevent this ?
Did you use bone-in breast? It sounds to me like the chicken maybe just got overcooked. The heat should be on low when you add the chicken so that it cooks low and slow. If your heat was up too high or you didn’t use bone-in, those could be good reasons why it was tough.
Made your chicken noodles soup, it was awesome
I just making soup and it’s great 😊. Love it
How do you keep the vegetables from overcooking?
Once you bring your soup to a boil make sure to turn it down to low! It will maintain its heat but look low enough that the vegetables don’t turn to mush. When you’re cooking it for so long, you want to make sure the heat is low.
I usually make beef vegetable soup but decided to try this recipe…
I added a little more water and boiled then peeled a few potatoes…( my family’s request)
Diced and added at the end..
It turned out wonderful..
Thank you!!
I’ve never made a chicken noodle soup that I actually loved until this recipe! Followed the directions exactly and it turned out amazing! I chose to use wide egg noddles instead of extra wide, only for preference and ease of smaller eaters to spoon it up. Served with some bread and butter and the whole family, including picky kiddos gobbled it up! Will be saving this recipe to make again.
These dishes sound amazing! The Tomato Salad is fresh and vibrant, while Chicken Tortilla Soup offers comforting warmth. Keto Salmon Bites are a tasty low-carb snack, and Green Enchilada Soup is a flavorful twist on a classic. Perfect for a variety of cravings!
I’ve made this soup many times! Thank you!
I do add a whole Knorr chicken bouillon cube. My favorite bouillon.
I cook the noodles separately.
I can’t find the link for the slow cooker version. Do you have the link? Thank you!
Here you go! :) https://www.budgetbytes.com/slow-cooker-chicken-noodle-soup/
Can you use chicken broth instead of water?
Absolutely! You might need to reduce the salt amount though depending on the broth you use to make sure it’s not too salty.
COOK YOUR PASTA SEPARATELY!
I was super excited to make this while I’m sick, took the time to make everything perfect, come back to my pot after adding the pasta and ALL of my broth was completely absorbed! I called my grandma and was surprised this recipe had me cook it in my soup.
family favorite for a long time! just sent the recipe to my daughter who moved away and was craving! thank you
Was a great soup I made for pot luck soup day at church.
Love this recipe! We have been freezing it in portions. If I leave out the noodles am I able to pressure can this?
We’ve never tried that so I’m not sure!
I won’t be adding any type of pasta. What adjustments should I make to the recipe?
Will you be adding something in it’s place? If you’re just omitting it, you’d likely want to also omit a lot of the broth as it would be too liquidy without noodles or something else to fill it out.
Thank you for adding directions with pictures for those of us who are visual learners; it helps so much! Great recipe, my kiddo loved it. Thank you ☺️
This Chicken Noodle Soup recipe is fantastic! The broth is rich and flavorful, and the noodles are perfectly tender. It’s the ultimate comfort food, especially on a cold day. The recipe is easy to follow, and the results are consistently delicious. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful dish!
Really great recipe! The only thing I would change is cooking the noodles separately and then adding them to the soup once cooked. When I cooked the noodles in the actual soup they absorbed so much of the broth that there was barely any broth left.
Thanks for the recipe, I added chicken stock to suit the kids & used chicken thighs. Really good, will make again!
I absolutely love this recipe. It’s delicious!! And so easy to make. People think I can actually cook when I make this. It’s my go-to recipe. I nail it every time. Thank you so much.
Since it’s difficult to find split chicken breasts with bone-in, if I use a rotisserie chicken do I add that at the beginning or shred it and add after the rest of the soup is cooked?
It doesn’t matter too much! I would just do it whenever you add the liquid.
Made it, oh so tatesful!! Loved it. Thanks
Made this tonight. Easy yes but no flavor even with salt. Use chicken broth!! Can’t stress this enough. Otherwise, with all the spices, vegetables and chicken it tastes good very good and it’s incredibly easy!!
Did you perhaps mean to say 1tbs fresh parsley instead of dried? Just curious as it seemed like quite a bit of dried parsley and the pics look to be fresh. Still a great recipe and love your site!!! We use it all the time :)
Yes you can do either! We used fresh this time but like to give dried as an option so people don’t have to buy a whole bunch just for a tablespoon. We like a lot but you can definitely do less!
Ok thank you! It turned out great!
Great soup, and it found me at just the right moment. Story time: I prepped the celery, carrots, onions and peeled some garlic cloves ready to make your lentil & sausage stew, but came down with covid the day I was going to cook, and lost all momentum for cooking. By the time I was better, the sausage had taken a turn 🤢 But I had some chicken drumsticks and a little homemade stock in my freezer, added in some more carrots and celery, and this soup came together with wonderfully little effort (just some time for that broth to get excellent). Only other change I made was using baby shells instead of egg noodles because it’s what I had with a similar cook time. Thank you for making completely-from-scratch chicken soup so easy and tasty!
One of my favorite recipes. Always comes out beautifully!
Loved it. I did use chicken stock instead of water which gave it a rich chicken flavor.
Absolutely delicious. I made using rotisserie chicken. I’m not a big fan of soups in general, but I found myself craving this. And lucky for me, I got sick recently and had leftovers in the freezer. I did notice 8 cups of water isn’t enough though. The noodles seem to absorb the broth tremendously. Any solve for that?
I cooked the noodles separately, strained it and just added to the soup at the end.
This was delicious! Tasted like my favorite chicken noodle soup from the deli! I added tomato paste and omitted celery. Also added adobo and greek seasoning and veggie broth for more flavor. Perfection!
yummy in my tummy lalalal
This soup is delicious!! The seasonings are balanced perfectly as written, and I love how simple the ingredient list is. We like dark meat, so I used a pack of 8 drumsticks in place of the breasts. This site is so great for easy, healthy recipes!!
Yummy!
I made this with rotisserie chicken and homemade pasta. Five stars, changed nothing. Thank you.
I’ve made this several times, absolutely delicious!
With noodle soups, if I know there will be leftovers, I like to cook the noodles separate and drop them in when serving. Keeps them from blowing up and soaking up all the broth in the fridge.
The recipe’s simplicity allowed for an easy and enjoyable cooking experience.
I never made soup before. I ran across this recipe and it is amazing. I would add additional water and more egg noodles. I used the better than broth in the jar (2 tsp) to give it more flavor and only 1 tsp of salt.
Great Post!
I made this with boneless skinless chicken breasts because we just purchased a ton on sale at Costco. We also used 2 containers of chicken broth and added no salt. This worked out very well. I typically use the “Ultimate Chicken Soup” recipe from google which calls for chicken thighs but this recipe is really quite good as well. Not as good but I think it’s pretty good. Enjoy!
The family loved this recipe as a winter warmer on a cold snowy day in January. I slightly upped the amount of noodles (personal preference) and they were gluten-free for family dietary requirements, but otherwise this went off without a hitch. Was tempted to add boullion at the beginning, but spiced as direct, there was no neef. Really great “comfort food” recipe.
Best chicken soup recipe ever! I season the shredded chicken with poultry seasoning before adding it back to the pot and the soup is so good! Thanks for the recipe
Found this recipe on Instagram and it has become a staple in our family during sick season. My nieces loved it (5&6 yrs old) and now my little baby (18 months) loves it too she will finish her bowl and even lifts it to drink juice my husband said “wow I’ve never seen her love something so much”. I grew up with the Mexican caldo my mom made us but was always too intimidated to try and make but this recipe made it easy to try and I’m so glad I did because it’s a favorite now. I add corn on the cob and potatoes and some cabbage (taking some of my moms Mexican caldo ingredients) at the end since they don’t require too much cooking time. About 10-15 mins cook time or when I add the noodles. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe I follow your IG for easy yummy recipes.
This was the best soup I have ever made! Thank you so much for sharing your recipe. My husband wanted to eat the whole pot!
This is a great recipe. Soup was delicious. The only thing I did differently was to add the carrots and celery after about 1/2 hour of cooking the chicken onions and garlic. I like the vegetables to be a bit more firm.
Great recipe! Very simple and easy to follow, and so flavorful, warming, and hearty. I hadn’t used the bone-in chicken for soup before, and was a little intimidated, but it was super easy. I will definitely make this again and try the slow cooker version, and chicken stew, as well!
Amazing recipes, thank you! I’m about to cook a pot of chicken noodle soup right now.
how are you all freezing it’s just in a plastic bag? or what’s the deal
You can absolutely freeze in a freezer bag or a freezer-safe container. You can also buy silicone cube trays that allow you to freeze specific portions!
Would it make sense to replace, say, half of the water with low-sodium chicken broth or stock?
Yep, a lot of people have mentioned that they do that for this recipe. :) Just make sure to adjust the amount of salt added at the end to taste.
First time making the soup from scratch. I hope my lady likes it
Thoroughly enjoyed Your recipe I didn’t use bone in chicken breast just chicken breast. it freezes well and is very tasty
Chicken soup looks great! I precook my chicken. Cuts the time, then simmer with rest of ingredients. Thx.
So delicious and easy to make! I followed the recipe exactly and it worked perfectly. One little detail that I added in the prep is that after shredding the chicken breast and while my “orecchiette” were cooking, I put the meat in a bowl and covered it with some of the broth so it wouldn’t dry out.
This is definitely my go to chicken noodle soup recipe, your measurements were spot on! Thank you, Budget Byte$!!
It was good, but found a flaw in the written instructions part 3. When the number of servings needed was increased or decrease. The amount of water required didn’t change.
So the water needs to be added to the ingredients list section so that then the amount of water will change, just as the other amounts of ingredients change when adjusting the number of servings required is changed.
Thanks for bringing that to my attention! I just fixed it. :)
Knocked it out of the park. 3 tsp of salt was perfect. Followed it to a T and the bone in chicken makes a huge difference I agree!
First time making this soup, and made it EXACTLY as written.
Beth is absolutely correct about the salt. Don’t be bashful!
This one is a homerun!
Absolutely delicious! Cooking the noodles in the soup gives it a delicious rich and starchy depth. I’m so enjoying this on a cold fall day! I didn’t get bone-in breasts, but the little strips of breast meat, which just ended up falling apart so effortlessly. In order to supplement the flavor, I made half of the water broth. I was worried the noodles would break down in the liquid after a day or 2, so I actually drained the broth into a separate container. Not sure how that will turn out, but I just wanted to get the most out of this as possible! Thanks so much for another delicious one!!
Incredible recipe! I love saving the plastic and making a homemade stock I’d never done this before but will from now on!
Amazing Flavor. Family really loved this recipe!!
This is an easy recipe to prepare and has a fantastic result. I used 2 large bone-in chicken breasts, and I’m sure you could use bone-in thighs if you prefer. I kept it simple with onions, celery, and carrots, but you could add peas, green beans, mushroom, etc. I love that you are making your own broth with this recipe! I used thin egg noodles and made a loaf of rosemary garlic sourdough focaccia to serve with it during this stormy nor’wester weekend. ! Everyone loved it!
Really excellent, easy, comforting soup! I made this when my husband and daughter came down with a cold and it hit the spot. I used bone-in chicken thighs and they worked very well. I also added 8 oz of sliced mushrooms and a cup of frozen peas for extra veggie goodness. Keeping this in my back pocket for future sick days and chilly winter evenings!
This soup is so nourishing and delicious! Didn’t change a thing
I’ve made it twice in one week!
Made this for family who were coming out of the hospital and it got rave reviews. It made enought for several bowls each for five people, plus some leftovers. While I will admit that there’s probably some bias in the form of a long day in a bland place, it was called the best chicken noodle soup my mom had ever had, and my dad makes a mean chicken noodle. This is doubly impressive because I’ve never cooked chicken before in my life.
My only suggestion for alteration is to add more noodles. I did about 10 oz. and the broth probably could have handled more.
I’m so glad it was such a hit!!
Very good!
I add 1-2 Knorr bouillon cubes.
Sometimes I use some of the chicken to make chicken salad! Tasty!
I’ll be cooking this soup next Saturday when my sister comes over for dinner. Sounds yummy!
I have been using this exact recipe for years and it honestly is the best chicken noodle soup ever. I use a Tbsp of italian seasoning instead of the dried herbs and it is perfect (and I don’t have to buy the herbs separately). I just wanted to leave my comment as I am very grateful for this recipe!
So classic, and so easy! Really pleased with this recipe. I’d never used bone-in breasts before but definitely will be buying again for this, and other shredded chicken needs.
My identical twin sister is the one who made your recipe for Chicken Noodle Soup and said it was extremely easy to make. Thank you for making it easy for most of us! Scrolling down I see many more recipes and I can hardly wait to try each one of them! It is very much appreciated by myself and I dare say all that look into your website! Thank you for making it easy peasy for us and also on a budjet friend way! God bless you for sharing!
I’ve made this before and this recipe is great! I want to make some but the only thing I have on hand is frozen bone-in chicken? Can I add frozen chicken to the boiling water or do I have to thaw first?
I would definitely thaw it as much as possible first to ensure a successful outcome. If you have an instant-read kitchen thermometer, you can give it a shot and just keep cooking until it reaches 165*F in the thickest parts. Otherwise, I’d say…if it’s still a little icy in the center, it’s will be fine…but if totally frozen, it likely won’t cook properly. ~ Marion :)
was delicious! I love it!👌
Delish. So all I had were 2 boneless breasts. I put 4 cups water and 4 cups chicken broth. Seasoned it to my liking and it was spectacular. Otherwise I followed the recipe. Thanks! Also added a teaspoon of better than chicken for extra flavor.
Thank you, Beth! I like this recipe & look forward to using it
Do I need to do anything differently if I use bone in, skin on chicken thighs instead of breasts?
Hands down the best chicken noodle soup I have ever had! My father and my boyfriend are obsessed! I’ve only ever used chicken breast (couldn’t find bone in chicken breast where I live) and I use bone broth as well.
I live in the UK and I haven’t been able to find wide shaped egg noddles like in the US. Would you use regular pasta for this instead?
Hi, Christina! You can definitely use regular pasta! I would just consult the package directions for a suggested cook time since egg noodles cook a bit faster than regular pasta. — Marion :)
I made this today and it was delicious. The only substitutions I made was that I used chicken thighs instead of breasts, as I’d already had them on hand. Also, kosher salt instead of iodized or sea salt. I’ll definitely make this again and try it with the breasts next time.
Do you think I could make with chicken breast’s the same way? That’s all I have on hand.
The recipe calls for chicken breasts, so yes. XOXO -Monti
Can I use boneless chicken breast if that’s what I have on hand? I’ve made this before using bone in but that’s what I have
Holy cow! (Or chicken?) I don’t even consider myself a fan of chicken noodle soup but this was so flavorful!
Was excellent!
I added one can of creamed chicken soup one can of cream of celery soup and it was fire. I’ve made chicken before but these spices in it are amazing thank you
Find u ever add chicken broth to ur chicken soup when cooking? Mine never has any taste . It tastes like water.
Chicken stock has a more pronounced flavor than chicken broth. Try switching to Better Than Bouillon. It’s more economical that the boxed stuff and has WAAAAY more flavor. XOXO -Monti
Added a few mushrooms for the umami flavor. turned out delicious.
I want to cook the noodle seperately from the soup base. Should I reduce the amount of water and if so , how much would you recomend reducing?
The recipe sounds very tasty!
Just follow the directions on the box and drain. XOXO -Monti
Forgot to mention when to take bay leaves out, 🤪😌
Hi Beth, Take out the bay leaves before serving. XOXO -Monti
Wow this was absolutely delicious! And my 3yo daughter even loved it!! Was very impressed and definitely on a budget with things that were mostly already in my pantry.
This soup is delicious. I only cook the chicken for 30 minutes then I take the chicken off the bone and put the bone in for the last 30 minutes. After that I add the chicken back in. When I left the chicken in for the whole hour I found it too tough. Sometimes I make this soup low carb by leaving out the noodles and adding in rutabaga at the same time as the carrots and celery.
This is, by far, the best homemade chicken noodle soup I’ve ever had! Delicious! Excellent! Thank you for sharing it. My family and I love it.
Do not use just plain water. I have tried this with all chicken broth and then using just half water with the rest chicken broth and my h knew right away the difference. He was upset and asked what i did to the recipe.
I found using just the water, it tasted bland. No amount of salt could get rid of the watery taste. And heads up, its 3/4 carrots and about 3/4 celery is a bunch.
Do you know how chicken broth is made? This soup literally MAKES broth!
I’ve made this soup so many times. It’s a favourite in my household. I sometime add silverbeet or spinach and chilly for some extra greens and a kick . Delicious!!
Arent the carrots and celery like mush after boiling for an hour?
No, they’re delicious. :)
Very good! This is my go-to chicken soup recipe, but I use gluten free rotini instead of egg noodles.
How would I make this in the crock pot. I don’t want to use chicken broth and I can’t seem to get the recipe correct.
Here is my slow cooker chicken noodle soup recipe. I don’t use premade broth in mine, so you may need to experiment some. You’ll definitely need to adjust the salt at the end depending on how much salt your broth contains.
Can you use boneless chicken breast and just sub the water with chicken stock?
Great recipe by the way! Simple and delish.
Yes, but the boneless breasts will probably cook a bit faster, too, so just be careful not to over cook them.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! I have tried SO MANY chicken soup recipes on Pintrest and this is AMAZING BY FAR THE BEST not to mention the easiest… THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing your yummy recipe.
How much potassium is in this soup?
Unfortunately, I don’t have that information.
Going to try this recipe! Is that green thing parsley in the last picture?
Yes :)
Will be making this tomorrow. Can I use a whole rotisserie chicken carcass with lots of meat on it like I make Turkey soup. Just pull out the carcass and shred off the meat once everything else has finished ?
Yep, that should work. :) I might take the meat off first and add it at the end, though, so it doesn’t end up overcooking the meat.
I’ve been making this in the instant pot with great success. It really deepens the flavors. I just add the noodles to boil after pressure cooking the soup while I’m shredding the chicken. We also do regular rotini noodles due to egg allergies, and add extra chicken broth in addition to the water because I like my soup extra soupy. I really love the spice balance in this recipe, it’s just right. Not to herby, but super flavorful and so cozy.
How long do you cook it for in the ip? Or how. I thought this was an ip recipe for some reason. Have everything in it ready to cook.
Could we use chicken thighs or wings for the meat & bone aspect in this recipe? Thanks for the recipe. I love your stuff!
Yep, if you prefer dark meat you can definitely do that. :)
Quick, simple, comforting, great to stock the freezer.
PS, the link for “Chicken Stew” just comes back to this page.
Oops! Thanks for catching that! Here’s the link if you still want to check out the chicken stew (I highly recommend it). :)
This recipe is easy and delicious! I’ll be making it again.
So delicious! I made everything by the recipe except I added a bit more seasoning and garlic than called for. It was perfect! Everyone in my family enjoyed it and for a mama who struggles to find dinners everyone will eat that was a win! Also as someone who recently started adding animals foods back into my diet I’m enjoying branching out and trying more budgetbytes recipes I know I can trust☺️
This really is THE BEST chicken noodle soup!! 🤤 Definitely helps to use bone in, split chicken breasts in making such a tasty broth. Penzey’s spices–California basil and Turkish oregano– also help it shine. The thing that sets it over the edge: add a fresh squeeze of a whole lemon at the end. It adds a fresh brightness and plays nicely with the salt and pepper. So, so good! I’ve made a many a Budget Bytes recipe through the years and this one takes the cake– so much so I decided to add a review! Thanks, Beth, for this true gem of a recipe!
Honestly one of the best chicken noodle soups I’ve had. And easy! Will be making again and again!
I woke up feeling under the weather yesterday and this soup just hit the spot. I had about 4 cups of shredded cabbage that was going to waste so i threw them in with the noodles. It really beefed up the soup and i loved it. I also added a little cayenne pepper.
This morning I heated up the leftovers with an egg and added lemon juice (must add lemon juice!)
So good!
I put an extra serving in the freezer. I’m crossing my fingers the noodles freeze well.
Delicious! I made this today and it is perfect. I did have about 3 cups of store bought chicken stock that I needed to use so I substituted 3 cups of the water with the stock. I will definitely make this again!
Absolutely our favorite, go-to recipe for. Chicken Noodle Soup! Divine!! Only added a touch of lemon juice to kick it up a bit (tip from a chef).
Made this recipe a bunch of times. My family loves it. Thank you beth and crew!!
This recipe was amazing! Only thing I did different was add a can of Campbells cream of chicken soup and a tad , pit more seasoning 😋
yum! i had to add boullion but delicious!
This is now my go-to chicken soup recipe! It’s so good and flavorful
I loved this!
This is the only chicken soup recipe I ever use! I just don’t like dark meat chicken, so this is the one I like. I have some cooking on the stove right now and everyone is very happy and the house smells delicious!
This soup is easy and very good. I used 4 chicken thighs as a preference (I like dark meat) packed full of flavor. Just like the. Recipe say salt varies I used 1 & 1/3 tsp. It’s raining today. The perfect comfort meal.
This afternoon I made this recipe minus the carrots. Yes it was delish and I will make this again!
Do the noodles soak up the broth?
Yes
Used 2 bay leaves and sprinkled in some extra thyme, basil and parsley. added a couple tsp of better than bouillon and used 1 tsp salt. I have to say, I’m sorry. I hate it when people rate a recipe and then change it. I definitely followed it basically. It was very good.
One of the best recipes for chicken noodle soup! I always come back to this recipe every time I go to make the soup. The ONLY thing I add is extra garlic & a little bit of tumeric for the health benefits.
Can I just use boneless, skinless chicken breasts
How long can this go in the freezer for?
How long food lasts in the freezer depends on so many variables, so I can’t give an exact time frame, but I usually try to use up my frozen foods within three months. :)
Really great tasting soup.
Can I make this in a crockpot?
Yes, here is a link to th slow cooker chicken noodle soup.
Made this last night, it turned out amazing. I used half bone broth and half water.
Got adventurous and threw in a splash of Merlot too.
Definitely making this again.
Austin, I like the way you think. :)
If I am making only 4 servings with one chicken breast, do I still use 8 cups of water? I have never made soup!
Nope, I would reduce the water by half as well. :)
the recipe sounds great I will be trying it and will let you know how good it is, thanks for the recipe!
I always leave the skins on the chicken, to me that little extra chicken fat is for a more hearty broth and I always cook my noodles separate so they don’t suck up the broth. Will be trying this tonight.
Can I use bone in thighs instead? Will it change the cooking time?
Yes, you can use bone-in thighs instead. The cooking time shouldn’t change. :)
This was my first attempt at chicken noodle soup and it was so much easier than I had anticipated. Thank you so much for the images and easy to follow recipe that pleased the taste buds of my whole family. Freezing some to share with extended family.
I had left over rotisserie chicken and put the entire chicken bone and all in 2 quarts water with powdered chicken bouillon. heated until boiling. Then let cool and picked chicken from the bone. I then followed the directions, except I cooked my noodles in separate bouillon broth. Everyone added their own amount of noodles. This keeps the noodles from absorbing all the delicious broth. It is the BEST Chicken Noodle soup I’ve ever made. Thanks so Much for this recipe!
My entire family loved this recipe!
Can you use fresh basil instead of dried?
Somehow I only have fresh right now.
Yes, but it can be a bit more potent than dried, so I would probably use a little less. :)
Love love love this recipe! My go-to from now on! Has so much flavor but still reasonable price
Omg this was a terrific and easy recipe. I used four cups broth and four cups water and one can of diced tomatoes. It was exactly what you would want on a cold autumn or winter day. Thanks!
I’ve been making chicken soup with this recipe for years and it’s been absolutely perfect!! Tonight I’ve got a bag of chicken leg quarters to get rid of so I’m going to try it with those instead of the split chicken breasts. Thank you for the delicious and budget friendly recipes!!
Is there a way to make this in the instapot?
Soups usually work very well in Instant Pots. I haven’t done this particular one, so I can only guess at the best method. I would probably use the sauté function for the aromatics in the beginning, and then maybe use the poultry setting once everything is added. The cook time will be determined by how long it takes that chicken to become tender enough to shred, which is why I would choose the poultry setting instead of the soup setting.
Just made this. I should have sized down because my noodles turned into mush before it was even cold enough to put in the freezer. They WERE egg noodles, but still. Great, I’m going to be eating mush for the next few meals. Next time I’ll stick to my favorite non-sticky rice.
Mine was the same mush before we even ate it😢 I ended up digging through the soup and got out as many noodles as I can. The noodles sucked up all the broth so will have to add more broth and try to salvage all this chicken and veggies and use frozen noodles! Good flavored broth but was very disappointed in the soup😢
Could you have cooked the egg noodles in the pot for less time sothey were more firm?
Can I make this in the crockpot and if so what adjustments should I make. Thank you.
Here is the recipe for the slow cooker version. :)
Thank you for this recipe. I used a pressure cooker and it came out so yummy!
Great recipe! Had a lot of flavor
What if I have chicken bone broth and chicken breasts with no bone or connective tissue? How do I tweet it
I’d have to test it to know for sure, but I’d try simmering the chicken for only about 30 minutes, or just until it’s shreddable. The bone broth should make up for the flavor that you’re missing from using boneless chicken breasts. :)
This is my GO TO Chicken Soup recipe, I have been making it for a couple years now. WE LOVE IT.
Great recipe, whole family loved it. I made the following substitutes: used a whole chicken instead of split breasts, added 1 1/2 – 2 cups more water to cover the chicken & little bit more of the spices to make up for the extra water, also subbed 1/2 zucchini for the celery since my family doesn’t like celery. I cooked linguine noodles (egg allergies so no egg noodles here) on the side so my family could add as much as they wanted to their bowls and I used rice since I’m gluten free.
How would I make this in an instant pot?
Sorry Micaela we haven’t tested this recipe with an instant pot.
I’ve made this a few times now and it’s always turned out good. The only thing I do differently is use fresh parsley and add it right after the noodles are done.
I also like to add potatoes sometimes.
Question: I have a whole small roaster chicken, can this be used instead of the chicken breasts?
Oh yes that would be delicious!
Delicious! I just made it, and added some potatoes cause I had some left in the fridge, and some sour cream and it turned out fabulous!
Can you use frozen chicken breast? I began the recipe and didnt have as much chicken in the fridge as I thought. Is it ok to use frozen/semi frozen? Thanks!
Yes, I’d try to defrost it in the microwave if you can for a bit. But it should be okay.
I love this recipe. I’ve made it probably a dozen times. Simple and fast. The only thing I sometimes add is chicken bullion, I taste the broth after I pull the chicken out to cool and adjust it to my taste. Depends on what type of chicken used, the broth will be stronger/ weaker. I like using chicken thighs with the skin pulled off. Like others have said, I also cook the noodles separate and add to the bowl. Otherwise the noodles will suck up all the broth.
A delicious recipe and so easy to follow. I add two cups broth, 6 cups water. I garnish with fresh grated parmesan reggiano and a touch of lemon. I will be making this again very soon!
Hi,
I loved this soup, it was delicious! Just one question: I noticed when I made the soup, a lot of the liquid got absorbed by the noodles, so after a few servings there wasn’t enough liquid compared to the amount of noodles/veggies left. Would you recommend making the noodles separately and just putting the broth in? Or is there some other way to avoid this issue?
Yes you can do that for sure. I find it stays longer in my house if I do that.
I always cook my noodles separate and store separately as well. When I serve reheated, I dunk the noodles in boiling water for moment and then spoon the hot soup over top of them.
I usually add a little extra water to start because of this. I still cook the noodles in the soup, but once they’re done cooking, I take the noodles out first to put into a storage container and let them cool separate from the rest of the soup. Then I store everything together once it’s all cooled, so that the noodles don’t absorb any more liquid.
Made this last night!! This was one of the easiest, yummiest recipes I have ever made. The chicken fell right off the bone to shred! (although mine took a little under an hour to fully cook because it simmered on a higher heat than I had intended) , so I would suggest to make sure to check it regularly during the hour it is simmering.
I used fresh basil for the heck of it and 1 cup of chicken broth in addition to 7 cups water (instead of the 8 cups just water). SO SO SO GOOD. I am going to make this on a regular basis now! :)
(I also now feel like the one cup of chicken broth may have been unnecessary and that water would’ve worked just fine)
I’ve made this quite a few times and it’s always such a hit :) thank you! I’m making it now and accidentally put the salt in with all the other seasonings before I simmered, will it still turn out ok?!
Sorry for the delay! But yes you’ll be okay just may be on the saltier side.
This is my go-to chicken noodle soup recipe. I make it every few months and freeze it so that I can have delicious, nutritious soup whenever I’m feeling under the weather.
I’ve added things like kale, peas, red pepper flakes, or jalapeno before, and it has been perfect every time.
Thanks for making such an easy, lovely recipe!
I have made this soup dozens of times! I use 1/2 chicken broth 1/2 water and then dilute as needed.
I love this soup – I have been using this recipe for years and it is delicious.
Love this recipe. Have made it probably a dozen times. I end up needing a bit more of salt and sometimes I add fresh dill.
I do have a question, could you use this same method (chicken breast on the bone boiled in the soup) to make this like a lemon chicken orzo soup?
Thanks!
You could certainly give it a try but just make sure you cook it long enough. Not a soup, but we’ve got a delicious Lemon Chicken Orzo recipe here.
This soup is delicious!! I made this recipe as written, except I added in a generous splash of heavy cream at the end for a slightly richer broth. I will be freezing a portion of this for the next time I don’t feel well and need a good bowl of hot soup. Simple ingredients and recipes. I love this site! Thank you.
Can you make this recipe in the crock pot and if so what would be the best way to make it
You could try our other version here Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Very easy recipe. I used 4 cups water and 4 cups broth instead of 8 cups of water. When soup was done I added another can of broth because it was a little too thick. Served with biscuits. Delicious !!
One of my absolute favorites! I couldn’t wait to make this for my roommates and share something so delicious! Hopefully its okay, but I am definitely linking this post in my upcoming blog post!
I used whole chicken, Fresh squeezed lemon also I had to toss in some king Cajun blackened pepper, Jalapeño diced, onion powder & red pepper flakes for bit more spicy ness! Such delicious soup!
Delicious additions Kassandra!
Making chicken noodle soup from scratch can be intimidating but this recipes is THE best. Very simple to make and packed with flavor!
This recipe is easy. I added 1/2 jalapeno pepper, chopped with seeds, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, & 3/4 tsp smoked paprika to give it a kick. Instead of noodles I serve it over brown rice. Yummy!!
Thanks Karen! Great additions for some heat!
Just tried it! Really good, a keeper!
Happy to hear it!!
I used boneless chicken breasts (3) and did 4 cups chicken broth and 4 cups water. As I already thawed 3 boneless chicken breasts Delicious soup!! My husband and I both have a cold and this was a delicious feel good meal :)
Love that you used what you had on hand! Happy to hear that it worked out great!
Very good. My new “go to chicken noodle soup”. I did add a little bit of my own seasoning. I like fresh rosemary. It was perfect. Will be making a lot this winter!!!
Hooray! Thanks Cheryl!
Made this today and it’s honestly the best chicken noodle soup recipe! Only thing I could add is try using your hand mixer to shred the chicken! Super easy
Happy to hear it Keda!
Made this again yesterday – always a hit! I do add more water and a bit more noodles – serves us for 3 meals :)
That’s great! Thanks for sharing Maggie!
My favorite chicken noodle soup recipe–ever! It freezes well and tastes delicious. Thanks for sharing it. :)
Thank you Lydia!
This was really good. I added jasmine rice because I didn’t have much noodles. My honey got sick and I always have these veggies and herbs on hand. I also used chicken thighs. I removed the skin. I had fresh parsley and added a little red pepper as well. Love it
Easy and tasty! Made it several times already
Happy to hear it Sean!
This is the best chicken noodle soup! I never want to use another recipe! Next time I think I’ll add a cup more water just to have a little bit more broth and a couple more carrots.
Thank you Katherine!
Can I add can of veg-all I don’t have carrots
Sure! You can use what you have on hand.
I’ve made this recipe twice, and both times it seems like there isn’t nearly enough broth, despite following the directions exactly. There’s only enough broth for one good bowl, and I’ve had to add a carton of broth to leftovers to make it soup-y again. Not sure what I’m doing wrong here.
Why not use a whole chicken. Cheaper per pound than bone in breasts, and a tons more flavor and meat for the same or less cost.
Is it the same cook time with the whole chicken?
This is theee best chicken noodle soup recipe!!! We’ve added it to our recipe list. So yummy : )
Thank you!
I made this today. Excellent recipe. Thank you!
Thank you Sandy!
Soothing and comforting chicken noodle soup – my daughter was sick with tonsillitis and she loved it. I wasn’t sick and loved it, too – recipe is a keeper! 😊
Oh no! I hope she’s on the mend. Enjoy!
Great recipe. I had boneless chicken breasts so I used 6 cups chicken broth and 2 cups dry white wine instead of water. Delicious!!!
Could you use chicken broth instead of water
Yes most definitely!
How many bone in chicken thighs would you use in place of the chicken breasts? Thanks!
I would use about 4 thighs, about a pound would work.
The best chicken noodle soup I have ever made! I used 2tsp of salt and that was plenty. My kids were swarming me to get some because it smelled so good!!
That’s awesome Pam!
Best chicken soup recipe I have made ,,,,,thank you.
Made this for my grandson as he wasn’t feeling well. Everyone loved it
This will be a permanent recipe for chicken soup in my household.
Happy it helped him feel better!
Awesome recipe and soup!
It is so easy to make, economical and convenient to take a batch from the freezer for work!
I have made this several times and love it each time!!!!
Thanks for sharing👍
Happy to hear it Brian!
How many cups of egg noodles did you add? I feel like 6 oz of noodles is too little.
The recipe amount is correct. Egg noodles do not weigh a lot so six ounces is plenty.
I made this today because my daughter and I have a bad cold.. my husband just landed from a business trip too so it’s a perfect lunch! It tastes great, I didn’t alter a thing ! My husband said it tastes like the same chicken noodle soup his mother made ❤️ This warms the soul!
Happy to hear it warmed you all! Get better soon!
Would chicken leg quarters work instead of the split breasts?
Yes that would work fine.
Great recipe!!! So easy yet flavorful. I added one chicken bouillon cube and 2 tsp of salt. I left out the parsley since I’m not a fan but overall will def make againz
I love this soup and trying it in the insta pot. If there is a link on these instructions I missed it. Wish me luck!
Did you have any luck with the instant pot? I’m going to try it tonight – same recipe exactly just cook it 10 minutes in IP and natural release. Does that sound right?
Always a hit with my family
LOVE this recipe! I’ve made it at least a dozen times. I use chicken broth instead of water but otherwise follow the recipe exactly. Best chicken noodle soup i’ve had!
When freezing, don’t the noodles become mushy? I’ve never had good luck freezing with noodles.
The texture change isn’t noticeable to me, but if you’re sensitive to textures it might be unpalatable to you.
Excellent! I used bought chicken broth instead of water and boneless chicken. Whole family loves it.
Absolutely amazing! Very easy to do! My 3year old loved it as well! I am definitely saving this recipe.
Love this recipe! I use 4 cups chicken broth and 4 cups water for more flavor. I freeze in individual servings for lunch at work.
I loved this recipe, thank you for sharing it.
Love this recipe!!! Too lazy to cut veggies so I use a 12 oz bag of frozen mirepoix blend. For my third go round, I’m thinking of using rice, hmmmm……..
This was super easy and delicious. I doubled the recipe for 8 adults. I had a bowl sized portion left after seconds. I used bought chicken broth in place of water and didn’t use bone-in-chicken. I used what I had at home. I like a little more liquid than this so I would add some extra water than called for. It had a great flavor and we ate it with a baguette.
I will never make another chicken noodle soup recipe again because this is the one I will make forever! Teenager approved too!
Okay … found this recipe a couple of weeks ago when my wife bought bone-in breasts with no plans. Used whole grain ronies. Delicioso! This time I bought the breasts with the sole purpose of finding and cooking this recipe again! I did cook it with the skin on and trashed it before shredding. This time, less thyme. Thanks
I tried this soup recipe tonight. It’s cold and rainy out plus a hot flour tortilla add lemon to the bowl and served.
Booyah a winner, keeper!!
Thank you.
We are always looking for ways to stretch our food budget. When I spied this recipe in search of a surplus chicken solution I quickly grabbed it and ran to the house. Here is my variation that should be very useful to anyone. Our local grocer has a fantastic grab and go in the afternoon. Sometimes barbecue smoked ribs, chops, wings, or a good rotisserie chicken. Well a plump rotisserie chicken for 5 bucks is quite bonestly a steal. I had purchased one of their pre-cooked
rotisserie chickens a few days ago and we (2) enjoyed the leg quarters and stored the remainder. I found this recipe and went into action. You can easily add this pre- cooked chicken to the pot and remove it, shred it and hold it until the noodles are done and it is perfect. We had also entertained the night before and had enough cut carrot and celery from un eaten hor d’oeuvres to fill the pot. We also added chicken stock plus more noodles becauxe we had them amd plan on stretching this pot out an extra meal. This was a very satisfying and comforting soup. Enjoy!
I made this chickn noodle soup, instead of water I used vegetable broth it makes the soup more flavorful.
Excellent. Quite flavorful
Let chicken simmer for ninety minutes. Thank you
My new go-to for a snowy or sick day. So easy to make. I also added the juice of one lemon to this before the the hour of simmering (and then more as needed squeezed on top of each bowl) — lemon is such a game changer and would recommend for anyone to try
This soup is awesome , all the times I have made it even when using 8 cups of water, I seem to have more of the shredded chicken and vegetables then broth. What would you suggest to adding more liquid so it balances out when serving?
Thank you
You can simply increase the water, and you may have to increase the salt slightly to compensate, but nothing else should be needed. :)
Was very tasty but add veggies at end to avoid over cooking
I made this last night and it was delicious! I added 3.5 tsp of salt and the broth was amazing. I can’t wait to have it for lunch today :).
Do you cover the pot while is simmers for an hour?
Yes :)
Am I supposed to simmer with the cover on? I’ve made this twice now and have simmered uncovered and that delicious broth keeps cooking down too much.
Yes, cover the pot as it simmers.
Came out absolute amazing. My whole family loved it. Loved how less salty it was . so good and hearty .
Can you make this with a whole cut up chicken?
Absolutely amazing. So much flavor and the chicken is so tender. Perfect comfort dish, have made twice now. Leftovers are equally as good if not better. This is a keeper!!!!
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this recipe! So simple and easy to make, yet so full of flavor! The amount of seasoning used was perfect and thank you for the note on the amount of salt to use. The first time I made it, I slightly under salted it. The second time, I used 2 teaspoons exactly and as you said, the flavor of the broth really did “pop!”
Also, for anyone looking to freeze this, it freezes beautifully even with the egg noodles! A month after initially making this, I pulled out the remainders and although I forgot to defrost it during the day, I ended up putting the frozen “lump” into a pot on low heat and let is slowly defrost/heat up, which took roughly 30 minutes.
Can this recipe be made in an instapot?? Or does it have to be modified??
Unfortunately I haven’t tried this one in an IP, so I don’t have specific instructions, but I’m sure it can be done. :)
thank you for your post my wife is not feeling well and it was a nice easy meal it made her feel better God bless and marry X mass
Hi, can I use legs or thighs instead?
Yes. :)
I made this for the first time and it was awesome! I didn’t have bone-in chicken so used chicken breasts, substituted half of the water with chicken broth and added a couple of bouillon cubes. Next time I’ll try to find the bone-in split breasts. I will also cook the noodles separately as they soaked up most of that glorious broth! This week-end I’m going to make the chicken and dumplings. Thanks for all of your recipes and tips:)
This was incredibly easy and SO, SO good! Seasonings were spot on. Definitely adding this to the regular winter repertoire!
Do you add more water if you aren’t doubling the recipe ????
I’m not sure I understand your question. If you aren’t doubling the recipe, you add 8 cups of water, as the recipe states.
This is the 4th soup I’ve tried and the first time I’ve made homemade chicken soup. Sooooo full of flavor and filling. I just cannot get enough of your soup recipes. They last me for 3 days for lunch and dinner…Great on the budget! You’ve got it going on Beth!!!! Slow cooker recipes next…Hooyah!!!
Hi, If I have a left over Rotisserie Chicken, and use chicken broth, will that work?
It definitely won’t be the same, but it will make a quickie version of chicken noodle soup. :)
Mine turned out great! My first attempt at chicken soup….I have been cooking all my life…..and this was one that I needed to finally make. Delicious. I regards to the noodle/rice element? I cook them separately and add them when serving, for as you can see – the noodles will suck up all your wonderful broth. Same when you make goulash (tomato, hamburger and macaroni). Cook your pasta separately. Keep the left over pasta in a zip lock bag for next time and add to goulash when serving. Even if serving immediately….let your guest/family add as much pasta/rice as they want to their soup or goulash.
OMG, I’ve never made chicken noodle soup from scratch and this was so flavourful, the chicken so moist, and SO EASY TO MAKE. I continue to rep this website to all my friends. Every recipe has been a winner so far.
This is my family’s favorite chicken soup recipe! After some experimentation, I’ve found that leaving the skin on AND adding chicken wing tips (6-8) that I’ve saved from summer grilled wings makes the broth incredible!!
I made this soup and I’m actually making it a second time! It’s so good. I have boneless chicken and it’s still good. Not bland at all. I’ve added dumplings too. Mmmm it’s a hit with my four boys and in laws. Thank you!
Love this recipe! I’ve made it several times and my family loves it.
Could you swap chicken drumsticks instead of bone in chicken breast? Trying to use up chicken in the freezer.
Yes, you sure can. :)
I don’t have bone-in chicken breasts. Can I still make it with boneless chicken breasts?
Yes, but the soup will have a lot less flavor.
When I’m sick and need soup to help recover, I cheat and use Better than Bullion chicken broth and a teaspoon of fish sauce to help get that depth of flavor.
I just made this soup. It is fantastic. Easy to make.
Delicious!! It was super easy to make and my picky husband could not stop raving about about it! I also substituted low sodium chicken broth for the water and 11/2 tsp of salt was plenty. Thank you so much for this recipe. It is definitely a keeper!!!
I made this soup for my grandkids. Now they ask for it every time they visit.
Like Carley, I’ve been making chicken soup for years. I usually make the stock with fryer chicken and veggies first, then separate the chicken meat and give the veggies (no onion!) and chicken scraps to my poochies with their kibble. This was much less time consuming and delicious! I did leave the skin on(confession) and used unsalted chicken broth instead of water for more flavor. I used fresh basil and parsley, dried thyme, bay leaves and I always add turmeric to chicken soups. I used orzo for the pasta this time but I always boil the pasta separately and add a portion to the soup bowl and pour the hot soup over it so the pasta is al dente. Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
I’ve been making chicken noodle soup for years….. this is by far the best! My kids even raved about it. Definitely my new way to make this dish.
I made it yesterday. It was very good
I have been super sick with cold/flu like symptoms. Unfortunately my partner had to go to work and I’m no longer a child so my mom wasn’t around to take care of me old day. I knew I needed to do make something that I could eat all day so I went to Pinterest and found this recipe. I was nervous about getting the chicken but luckily found some at a grocery store close by. These photo instructions are so helpful and it turned out amazing!! I felt great that I didn’t use any store bought chicken broth. This is definitely going to be how I make chicken noodle soup from here on out!
I’m so glad you liked it and I hope you’re feeling better!!
Sitting here smelling the soup right now. Super stoked to try it. My first time making soup and it was pretty easy. I’m sure it’ll taste like how it smells which is deff lit. 🙌🏼🤘🏼
Hi! This soup is delicious! However I’ve never frozen chicken noodle soup before but Ive readthat freezing the soup with noodles is not a good idea. What’s your experience with the texture of the noodles after you defrost?
They definitely get softer, but that doesn’t bother me a bit. I still gobble it up. :)
I’m making this as we speak!! Smells heavenly right now!! Can’t wait to try it!! How long will it keep in the fridge?
Made this today and love it! I followed the directions as written but might have used a bit more noodles (I didn’t measure the ounces). Remember to add the salt at the very end, not with the rest of the herbs/spices. Very easy…this will be my go-to chicken noodle soup from now on. Thank you!
You mentioned that freezing the soup works well. I’ve found that freezing chicken often changes the texture of the chicken, which I’m not fond of. Does that happen with this? Or perhaps freezing chicken in a liquid is different than freezing it on its own?
Honestly I’ve never noticed a texture change with freezing chicken, which might mean that it’s just be something you’re more sensitive to than I am, so I’m not sure if that would happen here or not. :(
When I eat chicken, I save the bones and add them with my fresh chicken for stock !
Double up on the bones ! LOL
Liz
Do you have any suggestions on making a vegetarian chicken-less noodle soup?
Hmmm, I think that idea would take some development. It’s a great idea, though, and I’ll add it to my list!
Made it… loved it! Super good and easy!
Love it made it today 😍
I make this soup using a Rotisserie chicken. Sometimes I use 2 chickens for a big batch. First remove chicken from bones, chop, reserve. Then put chicken carcass into pot with 8 to 10
cups of water, carrots, celery, onions and garlic. Add parley, bay leaf, dash of poultry seasoning and tumeric. Bring to boil. Simmer at least an hour. Strain and discard bones and veggies. Chill broth, skim fat. Proceed with soup recipe.
Note: If I don’t have time to make the broth, I freeze the bones and cook several packs of bones to make a big batch of broth.
Love it!!
I’ve been sick a lot this year so I’ve been making this recipe a lot and it’s delicious every time. I make just a few tweaks based on my preferences: I add extra garlic because I always do, and I prefer a more brothy soup so typically do 10 or 11 cups or water instead of 8 and up the seasoning a bit in proportion to that. The last couple times, rather than taking the skin off, I browned the chicken a bit to carmelize the skin and get some extra flavor from that, took the chicken out to sauté the veggies, and then put the chicken back in and proceeded with the recipe. I think it adds a little more chicken flavor.
As a Jersey girl who grew up with Jewish delis surrounding her, I’ve also sometimes made this chicken noodle and matzoh ball soup with a box of matzoh ball mix and adding the balls at the end around when the noodles go in (depends on cook time).
Delicious every time. Thanks, Beth!
Can I use chicken broth instead of water?
Yes, just be sure to adjust the added salt accordingly.
Came down with a cold and needed some soup. I’m not a fan of chicken noodle but sometimes you gotta eat it to feel better. This was easy to make and came out good ( surprisingly!).
I didn’t have parsley or chicken breast but used thighs and legs as that’s what was in our inventory and went sans parsley. And I used fettuccine instead of egg noodles too. But the base soup was pretty darn good, thank you for sharing!
This is great soup. I made a mistake and added the salt first, but it turned out amazing still. I have a question, in other recipes, they talk about skimming the fat off the top, but the spices are all there as well. What do you do?
Since the herbs have already simmered in the soup, they’ve probably already released a lot of their flavor into the broth, so it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. :)
Got caught with strep throat and a sinus infection, made a batch of this and has been my recovery food for the week. Much more affordable than canned and easy to make as well, thank you so much Beth!
If I just have shredded chicken all ready to go . How long do I have to cook the onion celery and carrots before adding in the noodles?
Just until they’re tender. It shouldn’t take long. But keep in mind that because you’re not boiling the ingredients with the chicken, your broth will not be as flavorful.
Hello
I want to make this soup tonight with leftover chicken and homemade broth. Any pointers so it still turns out yummy.
My concern is the soup will not taste as good because you are using precooked chicken. The chicken and bones are what gives the soup its best flavor.
I just made it splitting the recipe in half and using 3 cups water and 1 cup broth. Came out soooooo good. Absolutely delish!
This is the second chicken noodle soup recipe I have tried and I definitely am keeping this one as my go to! I could not find bone in chicken breast in my store so I used boneless and substituted plain water with chicken broth. If you do this definitely watch adding salt at the end as the chicken broth added enough salt for my taste. Everything else I kept exactly the same and oh my this is delicious. Since I am currently sick I would have to say this soup was easy enough to make.
Does this work without bone in chicken?
Technically it “works” but the flavor is not as good.
I’m not a big fan of chicken noodle soup but omg this soup is amazing and so easy to make. 5 star
This recipe looks and sounds wonderful. We’re having a snow storm tomorrow night and I can’t wait to try it.
Take a whole roaster chicken…boil it for a couple of hours …take it out of what is now your chicken stock…add carrots onion and celery to the stock. When the chicken cools…debone it…use what you want in the soup…use the rest for sandwiches or whatever you like. Cook it all together…LET IT COOL …cook the noodles and add them…if you add the noodles when the soup stock is still hot…they will over cook and turn to mush!
This soup recipe is Amazing. It’s the best soup I’ve made. I will be making it again very soon!
This is a simple yet wonderful recipe! I have made it several times and get rave reviews each and every time! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
What a wonderful recipe! I DO have a question though! When freezing some of the batch, how should we properly go about reheating? :)
I usually just use the microwave because it’s fast, but you can certainly also do it in a pot over medium-low heat. If you think ahead, place it in the refrigerator the night before to get the thawing process started and make reheating a bit faster and easier.
Thanks so much for the reply! I will totally think ahead and pull it out! One of my favorite recipes, now! :)
The best Chicken Noodle Soup I have ever made. I am 75 years old and that says a lot. Followed the recipe, didn’t change a thing. Served with cornbread. Delish and will be making it again real soon.
This is such a great recipe, I am makes me this a second time in 2 weeks! Thanks
K
Delicious!! Although I used rice instead of pasta and 4 cups vegetable broth/4 cups water like the other poster mentioned. Brings back fond memories of my grannie’s chicken & barley soup recipe.
Great recipe! I made a few modifications: 4 cups Chicken stock and 4 cups water. Also squeezed a lemon in there so the acidity from the lemon brought out the flavor of spices!
This recipe was excellent! I was too far into the process when I realized I didn’t have parsley or enough chicken broth for 8 cups. I made it work, though, and used 4 cups chicken broth and 4 cups of water. Instead of using bone-in chicken breasts, I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I used 2 and cut them in half, and that shortened my cooking time by 20 min. After removing the chicken to shred it, I added two cups of water to make up for the evaporated water/height of the broth without the chicken in it. This recipe was so yummy! Also, this was my first time making chicken noodle soup :)
Do you cover the pot when simmering? It does not specify, I just don’t want the carrots and celery to be soggy.
Yep, cover the pot (step 3). Since the carrots and celery will be in the simmering water, the lid will not make a difference in their texture. They will get quite soft as they simmer in the soup.
I have no comment, however I need to have to know if broth is used salt should NOT BE USED, but I need to make soups without SALT, CAN YOU GIVE ME SOME SUGGESTIONS? My husband should NOT HAVE ANY ADDED SALT, but I’m NOT CLEAR ON THIS! He is in a Rehab Center & they cook with salt, but more salt CANNIT BE ADDED! What to do? A low sodium broth container has more salt in it than Stock!! HELP PKEASE,,,,
You can definitely make it without salt, although the flavors will be very mild without it. Salt really helps make flavors more pronounced and distinct.
Try a salt substitute seasoning like SaltSense and no sodium broth or stock! Should still be delish!
Making This recipe right now looks and smells good haven’t tried it yet
Forgot to add the stars! Loved it!!! 💯
Amazing!👏🏻
Do you know how to convert this recipe to an instant pot one?
I would check the cooking time tables in the IP manual for the correct cooking time for bone-in chicken breast and cook the whole soup on that setting (minus the noodles). Then after it releases pressure, shred the chicken, add it back to the soup along with the noodles and boil it on sauté until the noodles are cooked.
Beth, what about how to convert to doing this recipe with a Slow Cooker/Crock Pot? I’m asking because I often use the larger capacity of my crock pot for soups that might require a taller pot after all those ingredients are being added in. (I want to avoid overflow before I start)! : )
I think you could probably just add everything to the pot (minus noodles) and cook on high for four hours. Shred the chicken, add it back and then maybe add the noodles? I’ve never done noodles in a slow cooker, though, so I don’t know how long they take to cook.
If I’m using a slow cooker/crockpot, when does one add the noodles, during the time it’s on high (for example), and for how long?
Probably closer to the end or else they’ll get mushy. I’ve never made a noodle soup with the slow cooker, though, so that’s just my best guess. :)
Been making my own recipe for years. Yours is better. The spice blend was on the money.
This is delicious soup. Thank you for sharing the recipe
I used broth instead of water
What would you recommend to do if i use chicken broth instead of water? please and thank you!
Just use an equal amount of chicken broth as the water listed, and only add salt at the end if needed (instead of the 2-3 tsp I have listed in the recipe).
Made this last week and my husband said it was the best chicken soup he’s ever had. He demanded I make more and double the recipe haha I’m not sad about it. Thanks for the easy and delicious meal!
Just made this in my crock pot and just finished slurping down a big bowl. So tasty and really clean feeling! The only thing I would change next time is using more celery (I love veggies) and if using the crock pot, not using a whole 2 tbsp of olive oil… maybe you wouldn’t even need any if you’re using the crock pot! Will definitely keep on rotation.
Made it today. Love it!!!
Yes! Thank you.
Do the carrots and celery hold up to such lengthy cooking?
I feel like they do. :)
This is my go to starter. I have made it several times now and tweek it a bit for different nights. I use only chicken broth as my base to add flavor.
I used 3 split with bone in chicken breasts with extra 2 c of water and a few more veggies, we love our chiken in soup and extra veggies, it smells wonderfully good…ive made it with 2 chicken breasts and it was excellent..
My family and I love this chicken and noodle soup! YUM-YUM! I would like to share I have celiac disease, I do use GF noodles. I would encourage you to prepare you noodles in a separate pot, once al-dente, drain and add to your soup. I find this works better, than adding uncooked GF noodles to the soup. Hope this helps for GF diets!
Thank you! I was thinking of using rice instead of GF noodles. Maybe I’ll try this instead!
I used this recipe for my first time making chicken noodle soup and it was super easy and delicious! The only thing I would suggest is to put more than 8 cups of water (I had leftover chicken, veggies, and noodles with no more broth).
I’ll definitely be making this again because it’s seriously tasty!
Thank you for the recipe :)
Wow, excellent recipe. I used Spaetzle noodles from Aldi and this was incredible. My whole family loves it.
Can this be done in an instant pot to speed up the cooking time?
Yes, this would probably work very well in the IP. :) I’d try the soup button or check the manual for the suggested cooking time for boneless chicken breasts and use that.
I just made this and it was delicious! I have a gluten allergy/celiac disease, so I substituted noodles with rice and it was just as good! :)
I have been following your recipes for years and I love almost every single one, but this is by far the one I make the most. Even when I’m sick, I prefer to make this soup myself than buy a can of the bland stuff. My boyfriend isn’t a big soup person but has requested this be on our weekly rotation. I add my “secret ingredient” which in reality is just a dash of tumeric for color and a boost of flavor. I will NEVER go back to canned soup after making this. If I don’t have bone-in chicken on hand, I will just substitute boneless breasts and use stock instead of water. I love your recipes and I even have an entire pinterest board dedicated to your site.
A dash of tumeric in any kind of chicken soup is magical! My husbands favourite is a chicken and dumplings recipe that always ends up being super thick and hearty and more stew like but it’s a fantastic wintertime dinner.
This is the best chicken noodle soup recipe!! My husband and I love it. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
I tried this and failed entirely….everything was good up until I added my egg noodles…..the egg noodles ruined the whole thing….the soup is nothing but starch now. I feel it would have absolutely been amazing….maybe next time I’ll cook the noodles before adding.
First time making chicken noodle soup and I have to say it was very easy and tasty !! This will now be a recipie I’ll be making a lot !
Any cooking suggestions for using rotisserie chicken instead?
Hmm, I don’t think that will quite work the same since the chicken is already cooked and you really need to cook the chicken in the soup to get that nice broth.
I do this by removing the chicken from the bones and keep refrigerated while you make stock with the bones. You’ll get a lovely broth to use in your soup. You can use the 8 cups of water called for in the recipe. All those bones will make it delicious. Strain into the celery carrot mixture and cook the noodles, then add the chicken chunks you saved.
Just made this and I have to say.. it is so good!!! Such a simple recipe to follow. I will say, I put the lid on while it simmered for the hour and I still had to add 2 cups of water when I added the noodles but it wasn’t a big deal. I am very proud of how this turned out!
Made this soup.; it was very good and a hit with my girlfriend’s family (scored some points, thanks). I used half water half chicken stock. Had to add a decent amount of salt and pepper but I made twice the original serving size. I did not leave the skin on the breast, but I would probably do this next time for added flavor. I usually do not sauté my veggies, but I loved the outcome and will definitely be doing this in future recipes. I also added leeks to my soup, as I love my soups filled to the brim with veggies for heartiness. Tomatoes would probably be good in this as well. Thanks!!
I LOVE this recipe. My husband, Mom and sister all do too. I always end up giving some away when I make it. I’m just making it again as the cold weather is returning and I could have SWORN that in the past I added two cups of water at the end to account for evaporation. Am I totally off?! It seems like I could use more water at the end. I tend to add an extra ounce of noodles because I like it extra noodley so maybe that’s the issue.
I don’t recall that being in the recipe, but you certainly could add more water at the end if you feel it needs it. :)
Thank you for the reply! I’m 30 weeks pregnant and probably just confusing the addition of water for another recipe. Love you blog and thank you for the response!
Hi Jen,
I’m so glad you remember being told to add water too! I remember being told to add extra water at the end of simmering the soup but before the addition of the noodles too. I even remember the explanation being to account for evaporation. I’ve made this a half dozen times and but needed to check back for the exact measurements of the seasonings. When I looked tonight and didn’t see the extra water I was confused. I was going to leave a comment asking about it but then I saw yours. Maybe it was edited at some point?
Also, I just realized there is another Lisa who commented right before me. I’m a different Lisa haha
I found this recipe last September and have been making it ever since!! My family loves it and it is absolutely delicious! I followed the recipe completely however I do add more water before I add the noodles so that it gives it more broth. I also add a little bit of Tumerick powder and red pepper flakes and an an additional two cups of water.
Approximately how much black pepper do you add?
I made it, and it tastes great! Easy to make, too. But, I’m a new cook, and it is difficult for me to “add things to taste.” LOL. Thanks
I never really measure, but maybe about 10-15 cranks of my pepper mill?
I made this once before and it was amazing. I actually put a rotisserie chicken in there that had been cooked previously with half of the meat left on it and instead of all that water I replaced a couple cups with chicken broth. I had a problem when I was ready to serve it, there was no juice left. It still tasted delicious but there was no broth. Would it help to cook the noodles separate so they don’t soak up all the juice? What do you recommend, I’m planning to make this tonight.
Amazing! So good, much better than any canned chicken noodle soup, that’s for sure! I used thigh instead of breast because I find it’s a little more flavorful, and it came out spectacular, I made it twice in a week it was so good! Try it with drop dumplings too instead of the noodles!
LOVE THIS SOUP!
Would cooking the chicken with the skin on add even more flavor?
And once the water is brought down to a simmer, do you still leave it covered ?
Thank you so much ! I love your website !
Yes, leave the lid on so that the soup doesn’t evaporate away. :) If you boil with the skin on you’ll get more flavor because there will be a LOT more fat that renders into the soup. But then your soup will be very oily, so it’s up to you. :) Definitely remove the skin after boiling, though, because it will be very slimy.
Thank you. I just made this with chicken back ( that is what I had in the freezer). It was perfect for a rainy day.
Tried it, loved it. Best chicken noodle soup I’ve ever made
This turned out to be delicious! And it was so easy to make. I like that it didn’t take 6+ hours just to make the broth. Very flavorful. Thanks for a great recipe (again)!
I’d like to try the recipe but there’s no way to print it!
There is a print button in the top right hand corner of the recipe card, just under the thumbnail image. It will open a separate tab with just the recipe and no photos or frames.
This was good, but not great. It tastes much more like canned chicken soup than a homemade one. I did not enjoy the basil flavor and ended up scooping out the dried herbs as much as possible. Still, it was flavorful. Chunky Chicken Noodle sort of way.
Wow I really like what you are doing in this blog. The step by step photos are wonderful. Simple, informative with bright pops of colour. Just what I need when in hurry and not really able to concentrate with kids buzzing around me. Thank you.
How to convert this using instant pot?
Thank you.
WONDERFUL FLAVOR, DELICIOUS
Absolutely love this recipe! The only things I changed are: Adding 1 parsnip (extra flavor), and I slightly blacken a whole onion on a small skillet on as many sides as possible then placing it in with everything else. My parents from Poland always did that with the onion and it definitely adds a nice touch to chicken soup! Happy cooking and smacznego!
This recipe sounds perfect. I like how you didn’t get too long-winded during the intro and the step-by-step instructions with images. There is no way that you got split breast vegetarian fed and antibiotic free chicken for under $6! I can’t get it for less than $10.
Tried making this today for my son, and the chicken turned out to be really dry. Any tips on how to avoid that problem going forward?
Hmm, by dry do you mean tough? If so, you can try simmering it in the soup a bit longer until it gets to that nice “fall apart” stage. If that’s not the issue, try using thighs instead of breasts. Fattier meat stays much more moist when cooked.
This soup was excellent!!! The best I ever made! Thanks
It is soooooooo good my son loves it so much
Dou uleVe the bay leave I the soup after all is done
You can pull it out so that it doesn’t accidentally end up in someone’s bowl. :) It won’t hurt the flavor to leave it in, but you don’t want to eat it.
Sick family decided to make this as a feel good dinner, OMG it was so good! It will be a normal on the menu for sure!
Great recipe thanks for sharing!
This was so easy and tastes fantastic. IThis is now my go to and only chicken soup recipe. I will make sure to have some in the freezer t get me through the Canadian winters here! I have made a tonne of your recipes over the years. Thank you so much!
I made this recipe today. I made some minor modifications. It was so simple and taste amazing.
My husband & I love this soup! Seriously, not enough words of praise!
It’s the simplest from scratch chicken noodle soup recipe I’ve made and it simply cannot be beat.
We use chicken thighs since they are usually less expensive per pound than breasts.
Now that it’s getting a little cooler out (& the hubs is already on his first round of cold season) there will be plenty of this soup passed around the dinner table.
This recipe is very popular in our house. It has become a weekly staple.
Thank you. You have no idea how you have saved my life
This recipe is one of my go to soups. It is so easy and delicious! I do undercook the pasta just a bit (cook for the low end of the time range) since they still soak up liquid while in the broth. I overcooked them once and they were a mushy mess! Otherwise, everything I do is spot on to Beth’s recipe and it is SO GOOD.
can u tell me a crock pot version of this
Beth – I have made this several times. But today I am tripling the recipe. Should I simmer for 3 hours instead of one?
You shouldn’t have to triple the cooking time. It may take longer to reach a simmer, but once it’s there you can probably cook for the same amount of time.
Do you think I could substitute White northern beans and brown or white rice? I was thinking about adding chicken broth to give it that chicken flavor. What do you think?
I’m not sure I understand what your substituting here.
I decided to put my own spin on this recipe by adding leftover bell peppers and spoonful of turmeric. So wonderful.
I made this today. I found it a little bland. I roasted one of the split breasts (I had three) while the pot bubbled away and then added it and strained drippings to the pot and the flavor was much richer/deeper. I also added a pinch of saffron to make a really golden broth. We had three feet of snow today so this soup was right on time!!
Excellent recipe! I’ve made it several times already. I never have dried basil, so I always omit that and double the thyme. So good!
Thank you so much for this easy recipe. I made this for my family this week and they loved it.
I made it during a cold today, it’s awesome. Highly recommend, it’s affordable but tasty and easy. As a medical student surrounded currently by pediatric snot bombs, believe me, it’s worth every carefully counted penny :) and I have about a week’s worth of dinners prepared now so woohoo! I added salt, hot sauce and sour cream to the individual bowl
Bingo!
This is the ONLY chicken soup I ever make. YUM!!!!!
Have been making this recipe for years I love this soup! I just froze carrots and celery for my next batch! If I’m making in the crock pot should I thaw the celery and carrots ? Also do I add the noodles at the beginning or end of the crock pot cook? Thanks!!
I would thaw them just because I don’t think it’s safe to add anything frozen to a crock pot (it can cause it to take way too long to get to a safe temperature). I would also add the pasta at the end so that it doesn’t disintegrate with the long cooking time. :)
I froze half of the ingredients last time I made and want to make again. This may seem silly but do you thaw the chicken and veggies or just start cooking from frozen?
Because you can heat things through so fast on the stove top, it would be safe to put them in the pot frozen. Just make sure to keep the heat on high until it starts boiling.
So you don’t thaw the carrots and celery before cooking with onion and garlic? Just double checking.
You shouldn’t have to. All you’ll need to do is sauté the onion till soft, as normal, then toss in the frozen vegetables and sauté until they are thawed through. I’ve done it a few times and it still works great. :)
This soup is amazing! I use the egg noodles and they hold up both in the fridge and the ones I’ve frozen and reheated to eat.
My boyfriend and I are obsessed, I make a double batch and freeze all the time.
I don’t ever add the cooked noodles to the soup until right before I eat it. I cook them in a separate pot and only add cooked noodles the individual servings. Also for storing I just canned it up with my pressure cooker and it made about two jars full.
Making this recipe right now! I had some spare drumsticks in the freezer so I’m using that instead of the chicken breasts. Smells great!
Thank you for this! I am newly pregnant and experiencing morning sickness. I’m supposed to eat small meals around the clock like now at 3:30 AM. The problem is, I have no desire to eat let alone cook regularly right now. I made a double batch of this soup though and have been heating it up for some veggies and protein. My husband liked it too and had two bowlfuls this humid June evening. Thanks again, Beth.
I’ve never had good luck freezing chicken noodle soup. The noodles fall apart. Any suggestions?
I think the only option is to slight undercooked them to begin with. Also, experiment with different brands of pasta because I’ve found that they’re not all equal.
In my experience the noodles don’t freeze well, they pretty much fall apart. I love the idea of freezing portions so I can eat soup whenever I want.
Made this a few nights ago (again) and it was delicious. Love this site! :)
Just made this today and it was very delicious. Thank you for the recipe!
Could I half this recipe?
Yep, just divide all ingredients by half and follow the recipe as written.
I made a batch of this last night with frozen boneless, skinless chicken breast + frozen chicken stock that I made myself + homemade noodles. Smelled fantastic cooking and was a hit all around.
I have to admit that my previous batches of chicken noodle soup were a little bland, but the spices you’ve recommended for this were a terrific blend. Can’t wait to have some for lunch. :-)
Thanks for sharing your recipe. Made this today with some minor tweaks and it turned out great. Kiddos both said it was a keeper.
Cooking this now … It’s smells pretty good! The only thing I didn’t do was use the chicken breast w/ bone. I instead used cut up boneless-skinless chick breast that I already had in my freezer. Can’t wait till it’s done !
I’m making you soup as we speak. What kind of containers are you using and how large are they? I look forward to making more of your recipes.
Cheers
Louise
I use the Ziploc resealable containers and they’re a square that holds about 2 cups (I don’t fill them all the way, though). Gladware or any of the generic versions would work just fine.
When you made this for your SNAP challenge, did you skip cooking the chicken to make the broth and instead use your slow cooker broth and the rest of the rotisserie chicken meat? I would think this would cut down on cooking time as you already have cooked meat and a flavorful broth.
Yep. It really only needed to simmer about 30 minutes. I just threw the broth, pre-cooked chicken, and veggies into a pot and let ’em simmer until the vegetables were tender. I added the noodles and cooked for a few minutes more. Pretty easy. :)
Hi there! Just wondering how you used your crockpot chicken broth in this recipe. Does it replace the water? Thank you!
Yep! I basically just added all of the other ingredients in the recipe to my 10 cups of broth that I had made.
thanks for this easy recipe! I made it even easier by using frozen chopped up celery, onion, carrot mix- I’m sure fresh is much better but it still tasted good and and was so easy and quick! :)
Just curious, is the frozen celery/onion/carrot mix something you can buy or something you made yourself?
The frozen mix is definitely something you can buy. Check the freezer section at your local grocer. It will be labeled “recipe ready” or “seasoning mix” or something like that. They cost a little bit more but are great in a time crunch.
sorry for the late reply! I buy it my local Kroger grocery in frozen veggies section but I’m sure you could also freeze yourself :)
This soup is amazing! I’ve made it many times. The only thing I do differently is use bone-in chicken with the skins on, removing skin and bones after cooking. It just adds a little more flavor to the broth. It is delicious either way. My whole family loves it.
I have been craving this for a while. I made this with a few adjustments. I have a digestive disorder, thus I follow a very restrictive diet. I cannot eat garlic, onion, or gluten (amongst many other things), so I made this with instant rice noodles, scallions (just the green part), and garlic-infused oil. It turned out amazing! I could not stop eating it.
Thank you so much for the recipe!
I’m teaching myself to cook and wanting to try something ambitious, but not complicated. I liked the idea of making soup because many commercial soups are too salty for me, without the same flavor.
I did mess up and spilled in more pepper, so i put in more of the other spices (I also added sage), but it turned out just fine. I do usually double aromatic herbs for most recipes, so it might be just me. Regardless, this recipe is very resilient, so it’s good for beginners!
It was also easy to make. No advanced techniques required, just cutting veggies and letting things sit. The most complicated thing was shredding the chicken to get all of the meat the bones had to offer, haha.
Also had the same lack of broth problems as others, so I think next time I’ll cook the noodles separate. After the first serving it’s barely a stew, but I still consider it successful since it’s so delicious. It also can serve four for two nights.
FINALLY, a chicken soup recipe with rich, full bodied flavor. Seasonings were perfect! I have been in search of the perfect chicken soup recipe and I have finally found it. My husband doesn’t like a lot of broth in his soup so I used 8oz of noodles and only added one cup of water at the end. Other than that I followed the recipe exactly. Wonderful!
this recipe is so easy to follow and great tasting. My house smells amazing every time I make this soup..A MUST MAKE IF YOU HAVEN’T YET!
What additional seasonings should I put in if I use boneless skinless chicken breast? I have a lot of those in my freezer, got a group deal from a distributor so that is what I will use.
I HAVE made this several times before with the bone in chicken and it is always a kit.
Thanks for the help and this great, easy recipe.
I’ve made it with skinless, boneless breasts before and it was still good. The flavor won’t be quite as rich because the bones weren’t boiled, but that’s not something you can fix by adding more seasoning.
Made this tonight with a few substitutions – minced onion and celery seed b/c I didn’t have any fresh on hand. Used GF noodles. It turned out beautifully.
More importantly, my friend shared your site today and I couldn’t believe it – this is exactly what I need (price analysis) and was dreading… so thankful that you’ve done this work for me! I’m certain I’ll be using a lot of your data to help trim our grocery budget.
Thanks so much! I look forward to trying more of your recipes – especially the global section!
This soup was very good! I did double it to make a large pot for my family and everyone lived it. The flavors come together so well. I used dark meat instead of chicken breast.
I always make my chicken broth in the crockpot and no matter what type of bone chicken I use I can never get the flavor I want. I saw someone wrote that thighs worked. My question is. What type of chicken will give me the best flavor if I’m making it in the crockpot. P.S. I don’t want to use bouillon or store bought stock. Thanks.
The best flavor will always come from bone-in chicken. Luckily, after cooking it for a long time in the the slow cooker, the meat just falls off the bone so it’s really easy to remove them later.
Thank you for this wonderful and easy recipe. I was looking for a chicken soup that was completely homemade (no canned chicken broth) and this is it! I followed exactly as it and will make this again and again.
Thanks for posting this! Made this for my family tonight and it was great. I shared this with our page at http://www.smallchangesbigpicture.wordpress.com
I agree that the soup lacked some broth, even when I added an extra cup at the end. However, I also used an extra half chicken breast and the entire 12oz package of noodles, so it was super chicken-y and super noodle-y. Nothing wrong with that, though!
Next time will probably stick to about 1-1.5 lbs chicken and maybe 3/4 of the package of noodles.
My kids loved it! Another winner!
I’ve made this and it is absolutely delicious. So clean tasting. You really feel you’re eating something wholesome.
Thank you for the recipe.
Bayushizero – The amount of salt you add can be completely up to you :) You can make it salt-free, but I find that it needs at least a little just to make the flavors pop. It’s a big batch of soup, so even if you add a teaspoon or two, it will still be a very low sodium content per serving. Good luck!
Miss Beth, a question.
Is the salt necessary?
Unfortunately, I am on a very-low/no sodium diet as ordered by my Nephrologist; as I have a really dire kidney condition.
It’s to a point where can soup is just plain not possible, given how much sodium they pack into those little cans. I’m a summer-loving person, and don’t do well in the cold, and can’t even have most soup(s) in the cold months. I miss a good hot soup. =(
I made this soup today and it’s fantastic! I agree that the seasoning is absolutely perfect (especially for someone who isn’t fond of thyme). I will make a slight change in that I’ll either cook the noodles first then add them to the soup or add less because they’ve completely taken over the soup. I had to add a third up of water and even then it’s still lacking broth.
Regardless, it’s amazing soup that is wholly worth the effort of working out my issues with the noodles. It just means I’ll have to make it several times until I get it right. Darn.
I had a roast turkey leftovers so decided to mashed up this recipe with another I found about how to make turkey stock from a turkey carcass: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/moms_turkey_soup/. Follow this soup recipe as usual, only substitute the stock for the water and the leftover turkey meat for the chicken. It won’t need to boil an hour since the turkey is already cooked.
Un-freakin’-believable. This recipe provides the perfect seasoning.
It’s a good recipe but, for full flavour, taking off the skin after it cooks gives a better broth. This recipe can be made with rice noodles to make it gluten-free.
That’s what I did. It’s still delicious.
I made this soup a few days ago and it is absolutely wonderful!!! It’s as close as you can get to my grandmother’s amazing chicken noodle. Thanks so much for the recipe– I cannot wait to make it again!
Ashlee – I’ve made it with just boneless skinless breasts before, and it’s still awesome. I’ve never made it with just thighs, but I’m sure it would work just fine (it just won’t have the pretty white pieces of breast floating around, but probably more flavor). Or, you could use a combo of the two.
You can put the meat in there frozen, it will just take a little longer to bring it back up to a boil. Just wait for it to come up to a boil, then turn down to low and simmer for one hour as usual. Everything should be the same from that point forward :)
I hope you feel better!!
I lied…I have 2 pounds of frozen bone-in chicken thighs, which I have no idea what to do with. I remember why I bought them; I got them for $1.09/lb, and they’re all-natural and hormone free. Can I use those, or should I use the frozen boneless/skinless chicken breast? Do I need to thaw them first, or can I just let them simmer for an extra hour or so?
I already have frozen boneless skinless chicken breast, as well as a pound of frozen bone-in thighs (which I’ve had for like 2 months and have no idea what to do with). Which should I use, or should I use a combination? Do I need to thaw first, or can I just let them simmer another hour?
I’m sick, so my head isn’t totally with me. I NEED this soup! :)
I just made this recipe yesterday. I only had boneless chicken breasts (sales), and some nature’s promise chicken stock (1 c. with 7 c. water), so I just used that. I do know the bones add a lot of flavor, but my soup still turned out great. Thanks for the recipe Beth :)
Many thanks! Will be trying this!
Anon – It’s two chicken breast halves (after being split from the bone). I referred to them as “two chicken breasts” only because most people don’t realize that a whole chicken breast really includes both “halves”… hahaha, I hope that didn’t make it more confusing! The pictures should help. It shows both pieces (two halves to the whole).
is it too late to ask a question? Is it two chicken breast halves with bone?
or is it two whole chicken breasts, split (with bone)?
I’m enjoying your blog! Thanks.
I was feeling a little under the weather today and this was the perfect pick me up! SO flavorful and easy! It was my first experience cooking with chicken on the bone. Thank you for your blog!
Soooo, I made this on a budget tonight. It was AMAZING!! I didn’t really follow directions and just threw a bunch of stuff in a crockpot for 8hrs on low. ADD THE NOODLES RIGHT BEFORE IT’S ALMOST DONE if using a crock pot or it turns it to mush. Mine was super thick and turned out more of the chicken noodle STEW than a soup..but it was perfect! I will be eating this dish throughout the week and making some for my boyfriend. :3
Thanks for sharing the recipe! The chicken with the bones & Skin makes a SUPER difference!
Anon – it was at my local grocery store, which is usually pretty expensive compared to national chains like Walmart. Every now and then they have great deals on chicken, though. I usually stock up when it happens :) I’ve even gotten boneless/skinless breasts there for less than that (they had been frozen, the store must have over ordered and frozen the excess).
I just took a close look at that package of chicken. Where are you able to buy no-antibiotic, vegetarian-fed chicken for $1.99/lb?! I wish I could find it that cheap!
I made this last night and it was sooooo good! Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks for posting a very detailed recipe. You really did a great job on this.. I love cooking like you!
Wonderful recipe, and very detailed especially it is easier with photos. I got to try this chicken noodle soup, it seems good!
Just made this tonight, unfortunately with no bone for adding flavour but it still turned out amazing :)
I also added some sweetcorn to the mix, just after I initially submerged the chicken with water. Delicious!
Wonderful, thanks so much for the recipe! I’ve been linking it to everyone.
I had the feeling this would translate nicely to chicken thighs in the crockpot, and I was right! It looks, smells, and tastes delicious. I’m in awe of what a wonderful chicken broth comes of four bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, eight cups of water, and seven hours. I’ll never make my chicken soup another way again. :D
Holy cow.
First of all, this was really good. I usually resort to using chicken stock or cubes to add flavour because I find my attempts bland. This one was PERFECT.
Two: My two and a half year old is going through a phase where he hardly eats more than two bites at every meal… he ate two bowls of this stuff. Magic.
Daktari – Well, I think that’s really a subjective issue. I used bone-in chicken breast (not boneless) and found that there was enough chicken flavor for me. If you’re used to using a whole chicken, it may not be what you’re used to :) Using a mix of bone-in chicken breast and thighs might be an adequate compromise!
This recipe looks amazing, but I have a few questions. Normally, I’d use chicken stock or chicken broth to make a soup. You use a different mix of spices than I’d normally use, and I imagine that ramps up the flavor, but still, I want chicken soup to taste like chicken. Did you really get enough chicken flavor out of those two boneless, skinless chicken breasts to make this a really chicken-flavored soup? I like the idea of not using broth, bouillon cubes, or stock–especially boxed–because it holds down the salt content, which is one of my biggest complaints about ready-made soups. When I can, I try to buy chickens whole (I even tried my hand at chicken farming this past year–what a ride that was!), boil the entire thing and portion up the chicken into a variety of dishes all at once. It *really* cuts down on the cost of each recipe since the meat is generally the most expensive part of the meal. Anyway, just wondered.
I remember my grandmother used to make the most amazing soup with homemade noodles. Craving it one day, I asked my mom for the recipe: 1 cup flour, 1 egg, pinch of salt, and a little water. Mix until it forms a dough, roll it out, and cut into noodles. You can throw them straight into your simmering soup (no drying needed) and 10-ish minutes later, you have chicken soup with rustic, homemade noodles! I’ve also found that the homemade noodles survive reheating especially well since they’re thicker than the store-bought kind.
Thanks so much for the homemade noodle recipe. They were so easy to make and turned out great!
Kate -THANKS! I don’t know why I was thinking 10 servings when I did the math :) Not a Debbie Downer at all, I *need* people to catch these things for me :P Fixing it now…
Not to be a Debbie Downer, but I think there is a little math error on the pricing. If the total cost was $9.10 and it made 8 servings, then it would be ~$1.14/serving, right?
Otherwise, soup looks good! My tip for great and cheap broth is to keep a large container (or seal-able plastic bag) in the freezer. The odds and ends (peels, trimmings, etc.) from veggies and the stems from herbs just get tossed in there. Bones from chickens also make it into the freezer. Every once in a while, I just grab it all, dump it in the crock pot, top it with water and then let it go all day before straining it. It’s almost like getting stock for free because it was stuff that you would have normally thrown away.
I am fully converted to homemade chicken broth – no bouillon! I make my chicken broth with a Costco rotisserie chicken. I tried it in the crockpot with a store bought raw whole chicken, but there was only a dollar difference in cost and I like the flavor of rotisserie (and the meat is less shreddy when it is cooked that way). I cut off all the meat and cube it up into quart freezer bags, then I can pull it out to use for taquitos or as a pizza topping or whatever. Then I trim the fat and simmer the carcass in a big pot of water with a heaping Tbs of salt and several tsp of dried herbs like thyme and sage and a bay leaf. After about an hour of simmering it is ready and I drain it into mason jars, chill in the fridge then freeze for future soup use. It makes such a huge difference in flavor, and the nutrients gained from the bones and cartilage are important.
Thanks Beth! I feel like it sounds like a silly question.. but I’m a terribly ignorant cook you are helping to reform :) Thank you.
Anon and Laura – I like to freeze my soups in the plastic containers so that I can reheat them right in the same container. I usually eat them up within a few months and don’t notice freezer burn being a problem :) To reheat, I just microwave! They make great “grab n’ go” lunches for days when I’m too late to make a lunch. If you don’t like the idea of microwaving, you can run it under warm water until it loosens enough to free from the container, and then transfer it to a small pot and reheat that way.
I’m also curious about the freezing as I want to try this over the week and love the idea of freezing half of it in batches like you did! .. my question though, how would you recommend reheating the soup back up from the freezer? Just popping in the microwave?
Looks great! I always have frozen my soup in plastic bags so there’s less air exposure (and presumably, less freezer burn), but I noticed you did tupperware, which I’ve never tried. Do you find that works okay for you? Just curious.
I just love your blog. We are full time Rvers and on a strict budget. As soon as we get our RVing lives on track, I will be trying out many of your recipes.
Thank you
Mike and Dee
gonerving.blogspot.com
I love that you made this recipe doable for someone like me who is seriously intimidated by the idea of making chicken soup with a whole chicken.