Homemade Chicken Vegetable Soup (2024)

Why you’ll love this Chicken Vegetable Soup Recipe

• WELL SEASONED. Garlic, onions, herbs, ground mustard, paprika and a pinch of red pepper flakes combine for an alluring tapestry of flavor.
• TENDER, JUICY, FLAVORFUL CHICKEN. Chicken thighs are seasoned, seared, then braised directly in the broth until fall apart tender, creating a golden fond which infuses the soup with unbeatable flavor.
• OR SHORTCUT CHICKEN. Instructions to use rotisserie chicken instead!
• LOADS OF NUTRITOUS VEGGIES. The flavor/texture contrast creates a craveable medley of good-for-you ingredients that fill you up without weighing you down.
• KITCHEN SINKNESS. This recipe invites invention and kitchen-sink-ness – use whatever you have on hand!Swap the veggies for any of your favorites, add rice, orzo, quinoa, etc. – see variations section for ideas!

Vegetable Chicken Soup ingredients

This recipe is extremely flexible, but let’s take a closer look at my favorite combination of ingredients (measurements in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post):

• Chicken: I recommend juicier, more flavorful, boneless, skinless chicken thighs. However, you may swap out for chicken breasts (take care not to overcook) or better yet, use rotisserie chicken.
• Onion: Use one diced yellow onion. When a recipe doesn’t specify a certain kind of onion, use yellow onion.
• Garlic: Use 4-6 cloves depending on how garlic forward you want the soup.
• Celery: You’ll need one cup sliced celery which is about about 3 stalks. Chop them on the thicker side, about ⅜ inch thick, just shy of 1/2-inch. This ensures they don’t fall apart or get lost in the soup.
• Carrots: You’ll need one cup sliced carrots, about 2-3 medium carrots sliced 1/4-inch thick.
• Potatoes: Use Yukon gold potatoes peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes.Don’t substitute with Russet potatoes because they can fall apart and turn mealy in the soup, whereas Yukon gold potatoes remain intact and buttery.
• Green Beans. I like fresh green beans but they are not my favorite vegetable – but guess what?! I LOVE them in this Chicken Vegetable Soup! They add a fresh pop of flavor and texture – I highly recommend them. Please use fresh and not canned = they taste far superior!
• Corn: I love the sweet pops of flavor! Use fresh, frozen or canned.
• Chicken broth:Use low sodium chicken broth so we can also use chicken bouillon – it’s like salt with flavor.
• Chicken bouillon:Use bouillon powder, bouillon cubes or bouillon base (like Zoup! or Better Than Bouillon). Add it to the soup without dissolving in liquid first. If using cubes, you will need 2; crush up and add directly to the broth.
• Fire roasted diced tomatoes: These tomatoeshave been roasted resulting in a complex smokiness, deeper flavor and lower acidity than regular tomatoes.
• Seasonings: Dried parsley, dried oregano, dried basil, ground mustard, paprika and a pinch of red pepper season the Chicken Vegetable Soup to perfection.
• Parmesan: A finishing of Parmesan adds a nutty, salty dimension of YUM!

How to make Chicken Vegetable Soup

Let’s take a closer look at how to make this Chicken Vegetable Soup recipe with step-by-step photos (full recipe in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post):

• Step 1: Sear Chicken. Season chicken with salt and pepper then sear until golden in sizzling olive oil, about 2 minutes per side. Remove to a plate but leave drippings.

• Step 2: Sauté Onion, Carrots, Celery. Sauté onions, carrots and celery until onions are tender, scraping up the golden bits on the bottom of the pan. Addgarlicand sauté one minute.

• Step 3: Add Rest of Ingredients. Add chicken back to the pot along with the potatoes, fire roasted tomatoes, chicken broth, and seasonings.

• Step 4: Simmer Soup. Partially cover the soup and simmer the until chicken is tender enough to shred. Remove chicken to acutting board to cool. Shredchicken once cool enough to handle (don’t add back to soup yet).

• Step 5: Add Green Beans and Corn. Add green beans and corn to the soup and continue to simmer until potatoes are tender.

• Step 5: Add Parmesan. Reduce heat to low and addParmesanadd shredded chicken to the soup.Stiruntil Parmesan is melted.

• Step 6: Garnish. Season to taste and garnish with parsley if desired.

Best Chicken Vegetable Soup Recipe Variations

• Swap vegetables:Use whatever veggies you have on hand or mix it up just for fun. Zucchini, peas, bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, kale or spinach, etc. would all be delicious. Just be aware of different vegetable cooking times.
• Different protein:Use any of your favorite proteins in place of the chicken – lean ground beef, ground turkey, ground chicken, etc. Ham would also be a tasty swap. Add ham at the end of cooking and heat through. Ham can be quite salty, so reduce the bouillon to 1 teaspoon and omit the salt in the recipe and add salt to taste.
• Make it vegetarian: Omit the chicken completely and bouillon and use vegetable broth. Add additional vegetables, beans, rice or your favorite meat substitute instead of chicken.
• Chicken Vegetable Soup with Beans:Add cannellini beans for their slight sweetness, creaminess and meaty texture. Add them instead of the potatoes or in addition to and be prepared to add additional broth.
• Chicken Vegetable Soup with Rice: Swap the potatoes for rice. Add white rice to the soup the last 10 minutes or so. Simmer gently until rice isalmost tender. (The rice should have a little “bite” to it because it will continue to cook while the hot soup sits.) ***NOTE: Rice cooking time may vary depending on your rice and how long it takes to bring your soup to a simmer so I suggest checking the rice often until done.
• Chicken Vegetable Orzo Soup:Swap the potatoes for orzo. Orzo pasta will take about 7 minutes to cook to al dente.
• Chicken Vegetable Barley Soup:Pearl barleyis another delightful swap for potatoes. Thepearl barleywill need to simmer for a total of about 30 minutes.
• Chicken Vegetable Quinoa Soup:For a higher protein option, swap the potatoes for quinoa, rinsed and drained and simmer for about 25 minutes.
• Chicken Vegetable Tortellini Soup:Swap the potatoes for 12 oz. uncooked fresh cheese tortellini. Tortellini only requires a couple minutes to cook, so watch them closely!

Chicken and Vegetable Soup recipe tips and tricks

• For the juiciest chicken:This recipe will work with chicken breasts or chicken thighs, but for best flavor, use chicken thighs or shredded rotisserie chicken.
• Rotisserie chicken hack:Stock shredded chicken or rotisserie chicken portioned into 2 1/2-3 cup freezer bags so you always have it ready to add to any soup.
• Don’t burn the bits:When searing the chicken, you don’t want blackened bits, or they will make your soup taste burnt. If the chicken is browning too quickly, turn the heat down.
• Cook the chicken at a gentle simmer:After you bring the soup to a boil, reduce to a gentle simmer so the chicken doesn’t become rubbery.
• Simmer chicken until tender:Whether using chicken thighs or breasts, check the pieces individually for tenderness because they may cook unevenly. Be prepared to remove pieces of chicken at different times. The chicken is ready when it easily pulls apart with two forks, or reaches 165 degrees F. Thicker chicken breasts will take longer to cook than chicken thighs.
• Don’t over cook chicken: Chicken breasts will dry out if overcooked, so take care not to overcook.
• Vegetable size:Pay attention to the vegetable chop size in the ingredients so they will be tender at the same time and not overcooked.
• Scale up or down:This recipe can easily be scaled up or down (use the sliding scale that appears when you hover over the servings).

What to serve with Vegetable Chicken Soup

• Salad:Greek Salad,Caesar Salad,Wedge Salad,Apple SaladorPear Salad.
• Bread: Mopping up soup with bread is always a win! Serve this cozy recipe with a big loaf of crusty bread,Moist Sweet Cornbread, softy and fluffyDinner Rolls,Parmesan Breadsticks, orGarlic Bread
• Fruit: Bright, fresh fruit is always a welcome side to soothing soups. Go as simple as grapes, melon, etc. or you’ll loveFruit Salad orWinter Fruit Salad.

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