Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup is the ultimate comfort recipe. Hearty, comforting, and perfect for cold weather. Let your crockpot do the work. Just add all the ingredients and let it cook all day.
Ingredients You’ll Need to make Chicken Noodle Soup in your Crock Pot:
- Yellow or White Onion
- Carrots
- Celery
- Garlic
- Boneless, Skinless, Chicken Breasts
- Chicken Stock or Broth
- Spices: Dried Bay Leaves, Dried Thyme, Dried Rosemary, Salt and Pepper
- Egg Noodles
- Lemon Juice
- Fresh Parsley
Can this be made in the Instant Pot?
Absolutely! In fact, I have a whole post detailing how to make Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup. Find the recipe here.
Check out this quick video!
What size of crock pot should be used?
This recipe perfectly fits in a large, 7-8qt crockpot. If yours is smaller, just adjust the amounts accordingly. The cook time should remain similar.
What can I add for extra flavor?
There are several things that gives this recipe its flavor.
- The classic is the mirepoix (celery, carrot, and onion).
- I also include garlic and dried spices (thyme, rosemary, bay leaves) – you could always increase the amounts to your taste.
- My favorite flavor addition is the lemon juice and finely chopped parsley at the end. They add so much freshness!
Is this chicken noodle soup freezer friendly?
Yes! Although I recommend freezing without the noodles as they will become mushy.
Follow the recipe instructions, don’t add the noodles, allow to fully cool and store in freezer bags in the freezer for 3-4 months.
Then when ready to eat, thaw, reheat, and cook up some noodles separately to add to the soup.
Can I make this in advance?
Absolutely! But I prefer to not add the noodles and cook them fresh. Or slightly, undercook the noodles in the crockpot as they will become softer as they sit in the leftover soup.
Can I use a different pasta instead of egg noodles?
Yes! Egg Noodles are the classic choice for this soup, but you can use a different pasta of your choice. The cook time may differ, so adjust accordingly.
Some other Slow Cooker Soups
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup – another easy dump and cook crock pot recipe!
- Crock Pot Chicken Wild Rice Soup
- Crock Pot Chicken Tortellini Soup – just like chicken noodle soup but with cheese tortellini!
This recipe is featured in a roundup of Best Slow Cooker Recipes. Check it out!
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Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
- Total Time: 7 hours
- Yield: 6–8 servings 1x
Description
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup is the ultimate comfort recipe. Hearty, comforting, and perfect for cold weather. Let your crockpot do the work. Just add all the ingredients and let it cook all day.
Ingredients
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 medium carrots, sliced into rounds or half moons
- 4 stalks celery, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 cups chicken stock or broth
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 1.5lbs
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 8 ounces egg noodles
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Add the Ingredients. In a large slow cooker, add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, chicken stock, chicken breasts, bay leaves, thyme, and rosemary. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- Shred Chicken and Add Noodles. Remove the chicken breasts and chop or shred with two forks. Add back into slow cooker. Add in egg noodles and stir together. Making sure the noodles are submerged in the liquid. Recover the slow cooker and cook for another 5-10 minutes on low until the noodles are just tender.
- Serve and Enjoy. When the egg noodles are cooked, stir in the lemon juice and fresh parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Egg Noodles will continue to cook in the hot soup. If you prefer noodles that are not as soft, you can also cook them separately on the stove (following package directions) and ladle into individual bowls of soup.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 hours
- Category: Main Dish, Slow Cooker, Soup
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup, Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup, Easy Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
I now realize that the reason I don t make chicken soup is because I don t know what to do with the chicken afterward! You taught me that shredding it and adding it to the soup makes it more like a meal thank you! We did make some changes used wide egg noodles and left out the lemon juice. It s just what we are used to. But I might try some lemon juice in my portion when we have it again tomorrow. Love your recipes. Like you, we just can t wait for the weather to say it s time for soup. Last week it was cold, today it s 80! Will probably make your slow cooker chicken on Friday; there was a sale on new potatoes at Sprouts!
I’m so glad to hear this! Thank you so much for your comment. Wide egg noodles are perfect :). I find the lemon juice adds a little brightness, but I’ve omitted it when I don’t have it on hand and it’s still just as good. Thank you for using my recipes!
I accidentally added the parsley in the beginning, Will the soup be ruined if the parsley cooks in it for eight hours?
Not at all! The parsley will just soften. It will still be fabulous 🙂
How many carrots and celery do I add?
Hi Jennifer – the recipe calls for about 4 medium carrots and celery. But it is very forgiving so you can use a little less or more, if you prefer.
I am wondering if you cook the egg noodles before you put in crockpot, or they cook in there?
★★★★★
No need to cook the noodles first! They’ll cook in the soup. Just add them at the end and they should cook in 5-10 minutes.
I made this today and it was great!! The only thing I recommend though is cooking the noddles outside of the slow cooker so you can drain the noodle water then add them to the soup so the chicken broth is still brothy and tastes better.
★★★★★
Thanks for your comment! Making the noodles separately is a great option – that’s my preferred way if I’m making it in advance too so the noodles don’t continue to soak up the broth. Glad you liked it!
Can this be cooked on high in the crock pot instead of low? If so how long on high?
Hi Leanne. Yes, you can cook on high. I would say around 3-4 hours but use your best judgement. The veggies should be tender and the chicken breasts should be cooked through.
Has anyone tried freezing the left overs? And if so should I just cook noodles on the side and add? I’m making this right now and doubled the recipe to save for a couple weeks of dinner for the kids
You can definitely freeze the leftovers. I prefer to leave the noodles out when freezing and then add separately as they will get softer from the freezing/reheating. I hope you love it!
I make mine on the stovetop with a rotisserie chicken from the market but I’m sure it would work in the crock pot adding the shredded chicken, cream of chicken soup and cooked egg noodles at the end. I pretty much make your recipe with the following changes/additions. While I am shredding the chicken, I boil the cut up celery and carrots in a couple of cups of broth to start their cooking process. After shredding the chicken and sautéing the onions/garlic in a little butter in the soup pot, then toss the broth/carrots/celery in the soup pot when they are about half to 3/4 softened. Then add the rest of the chicken stock to the soup pot and let it all simmer til veggies are completely soft. At the end, add the shredded chicken, then a large can of low sodium Campbell’s cream of chicken soup a large spoonful at a time stirring as you add. This thickens up the broth, gives it a nice consistency and adds a little more flavor. At the very end, carefully stir in 8 ounces of cooked egg noodles. Any sooner and the noodles start to soak up your broth and it is no longer soup and makes the noodles mushy. The lemon juice adds a nice little tang to the soup. Enjoy!
Thank you for sharing, Mary! Your version sounds fantastic. Never too many chicken noodle soup recipes 🙂
Oh I accidentally added the 3 tablespoons of parsley in the beginning, Will this ruin the taste of the soup?
Nope! The soup will still be great! 🙂
I’m making the soup for the first time. I accidentally added the lemon juice and parsley in the beginning. Will that make a difference in the flavor of the soup? Making for my son and his family! Also, says to cook on slow for 6-8 hrs. Can I cook on high for fewer hrs? Thank you.
Hi Maryjane. It should be just fine that you added the lemon and parsley first. The parsley will just become more cooked and incorporated in the soup and the lemon may be more mild. You can always taste at the end and add additional fresh lemon/parsley. Yes you can cook on high – around 3-4 hours on high. The chicken should be cooked through and the veggies should be tender. It’s a very forgiving recipe 🙂
Can I use frozen chicken breasts for this recipe, or do you recommend I thaw out the chicken breasts prior to adding them to the crockpot? Thanks!
Great question! I like to be cautious about food safety guidelines, so I do not cook frozen meat in a crockpot as the meat can be in the ‘danger zone’ for temperature. So I would thaw the chicken breasts before adding to the crockpot.Enjoy!
I’ve made this recipe at least 5 times now as it is amazing! The best chicken noodle soup recipe! Thank you!
★★★★★
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that. Just made my day 🙂 thank you!
If I use 3 chicken breast do I need to add extra everything else?
Hi Alyssa! Overall the recipe is pretty forgiving. If you’re okay with a higher ratio of chicken to veggies, then you don’t need to add extra carrot/celery/onion. You may need to add a little more broth, but you can always do that at the end too after the noodles are cooked. Just depends on your preference. Enjoy!
Super easy to make. However my egg noodles totally fell apart and are unrecognizable in the soup. Gulp! Did I stir too much to get them deep into the soup? Anybody else have this trouble?
★★★★★
Hi Kirsten! I’m sorry that your noodles fell apart. I have not had this happen when I’ve used regular wide egg noodles, but I have a couple guesses. Egg noodles are a softer noodle vs regular pasta so they can get too soft/mushy if they’re cooked too long. Perhaps that was the case? If you decide to make it again with the same kind of noodles, you can also just cook the noodles separately on the stove, drain, and then add to a bowl and ladle the soup on top. Hope that helps!
This slow cooker chicken noodle soup was a hit with my daughter! She’s an adult with 2 small children! I made this a month ago because her family had the sniffles. This is my second time for this recipe and I know this will be a great comfort food to get her and her family through. Thanks so much!!
★★★★★
Yay! Thank you for your comment, Vicki. I’m so happy to hear that the soup has been comforting to your daughter and her family.
I’m making this now. My daughter is allergic to eggs, so I want to make it with regular noodles instead of egg noodles. Has anyone tried this? Do I follow the same steps and put them in for the last 5-10 minutes?
You could also cook the pasta separately on the stove and add to the soup at the end before serving. Enjoy!
Ughhhhh I used chicken broth instead of stock…will it still be okay?
Yes! You can use either. It will be great!
I plan on trying this tonight, but my mother hates thyme so I’m going to keep that out. Will it throw everything off too much, or is there something I could replace it with?
You can totally leave out the thyme. If you want more herbs – you can add some extra rosemary or sage is also great in chicken soup. This recipe is very forgiving and easy to tweak 🙂
Try using orzo instead of noodles!
Nice little change! (Orzo is pasta shaped like long grain rice)
About 1/2 cup, only needs about 10 min to cook.
Love the orzo swap!
I made this recipe for my family and they absolutely loved it. Most chicken noodle soup is too salty but this recipe is spot on.
Thank you, Shelby! I’m so glad your family loved it. Thank you for your comment 🙂
Very good and love the celery and all the other vegetables and I used a rotisserie chicken already cooked very easy
★★★★★
Love using rotisserie chicken to make it easy! I’m glad you liked it!
Hi! Have you used rice as a substitute for the noodles?
I have not, but it sounds great! I recommend cooking the rice separately and adding to the soup.
Is there an easy way to double this recipe? This is the second time making it because it’s so good! The first time I made it I had extra chicken in the crockpot and just added extra stock/broth after cooking it to balance out the ratios. Thoughts on doubling the veggies and seasoning in the beginning and then adding the extra broth at the end again? Hoping to make some for now and some for the freezer (sans noodles). Thanks so much!!
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I think your idea of adding extra chicken/veggies/seasoning at the beginning and then more broth at the end sounds great! When slow cooking, you just want to make sure the chicken/veggies are mostly submerged in broth so it all cooks properly. The great thing about this recipe is that it’s super forgiving!