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.
Using your crockpot to make soup is the best! It's the perfect set it and forget it meal. I also love making this Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup and Crock Pot Chicken Wild Rice Soup.
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⭐Why I Love It
- Makes a Big Batch - Perfect to feed the whole family or to have leftovers.
- Slow Cooker Does the Work - This recipe doesn't get much easier!
- Cozy and Comforting
- Very Forgiving and Customizable - This recipe is easy to tweak to your tastes. Use more/less veggies. Different herbs and spices. The list goes on!
🥘Ingredients Needed:
- Onion, Carrots, Celery - To save time you can also buy store-bought mirepoix which is just these three vegetables already chopped up
- Garlic - Fresh minced garlic is always best but you can also use the kind in a jar to save time
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts - These are added whole to the crockpot. No chopping needed! You can also use chicken thighs - see variations below!
- Chicken Stock or Broth - I recommend using low sodium broth so you can control the salt.
- Spices: Dried Bay Leaves, Dried Thyme, Dried Rosemary, Salt and Pepper
- Egg Noodles - These can be cooked right in the crockpot or you can cook them separately.
- Lemon Juice and Fresh Parsley - This is added at the end of cooking and it gives the soup a nice freshness.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
📖Variations and Substitutions
- Swap for Egg Noodles - Egg Noodles are the classic choice for chicken noodle soup soup, but you can use a different pasta of your choice. The cook time may differ, so adjust accordingly.
- Chicken Thighs instead of Breasts - You can swap in boneless, skinless chicken thighs for the breasts and the recipe steps remain the same.
- Cooked Chicken - If you have leftover cooked chicken (or even a shredded rotisserie chicken to use up), then cook the soup as the recipe states WITHOUT the cooked chicken until the veggies are tender. Then add the cooked shredded chicken in the last hour of cooking to warm.
- Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup - Instead of using your slow cooker or crock pot, you can also make chicken noodle soup in the Instant Pot!
How To Make This Recipe on the Stove
This recipe can also be made on the stovetop!
- Quickly Sauté Veggies - Start by heating a large Dutch Oven or other pot to medium-high heat and add the oil. Add the carrots, celery, and onion to the hot oil and sauce for about 3 minutes to soften slightly (they'll finish cooking in the soup).
- Add Aromatics and Broth - Add the garlic and spices and cook for about 30 seconds then add all of the broth.
- Cook Chicken - Bring to a low boil and add the raw chicken breasts (if they are very large, you can cut them in half so they cook faster). Allow the chicken to simmer, fully submerged, for 12-15 minutes (depending on size of chicken breasts) until fully cooked (chicken internal temp of 165 degrees F.).
- Cook Noodles - Remove the chicken to a plate. Add the egg noodles to the soup and simmer for 5-7 minutes, until al dente. Meanwhile, shred up the chicken breasts.
- Finish Soup - Once the noodles are just tender, add back in the shredded chicken, lemon juice, and parsley.
🍋How to add Flavor to soup
A good soup gets its flavor from more than just the broth and stock. There are several things that gives this crockpot chicken noodle soup 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 or even use fresh herbs!
- My favorite flavor addition is the lemon juice and finely chopped parsley at the end. They add so much freshness!
🔪Step by Step instructions
Making Chicken Noodle Soup in the Slow Cooker is easy! Just add most of the ingredients to the crockpot at the beginning of the day and let it cook low and slow all day long.
- Add the Ingredients. In a large slow cooker, add all ingredients except for the fresh parsley, lemon juice, and egg noodles
- Slow Cook - Cook on low for 6-8 hours. The chicken should be fully cooked and the veggies should be tender.
- 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 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!
See the recipe card for full information on recipe steps.
🍽Leftovers and Storage
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Be aware that the noodles will soften more in the fridge. If you want your noodles to stay firmer, you can cook the noodles separately from the soup and store the noodles and soup separately in the fridge as well.
👩🍳Recipe FAQs
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.
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.
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.
Yes! But it's important to add the uncooked noodles at the very end of cooking. Do not add them at the beginning with the remaining soup ingredients.
🍲Related Soup Recipes
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PrintRecipe
Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
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.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 hours
- Total Time: 7 hours
- Yield: 6-8 servings
- Category: Main Dish, Slow Cooker, Soup
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Add at the Beginning
- 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, low sodium preferred
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 1.5lbs
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- salt and pepper, to taste
Add at the End
- 8 ounces egg noodles
- ½ lemon, juiced
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
Instructions
- Add the Ingredients. In a large slow cooker, add all ingredients except for the fresh parsley, lemon juice, and egg noodles. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Slow Cook - Cook on low for 6-8 hours. The chicken should be fully cooked and the veggies should be tender. The cook time will vary on your crockpot and the size of your chicken/diced veggies.
- 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. Alternatively, you can cook the noodles separately in a pot of boiling water on the stove.
- Serve and Enjoy. When the egg noodles are cooked, stir in the lemon juice and fresh parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Noodles - 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. This is also my recommendation if you're storing leftovers.
Stovetop Variation - This soup can also be made on the stovetop in a large pot. See the Variations section above in the blog post for the how-to.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 276
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 410.1 mg
- Fat: 5.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 21.6 g
- Fiber: 2.9 g
- Protein: 34.7 g
- Cholesterol: 93.7 mg
M’kae says
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.
Kathleen says
Love the orzo swap!
Samantha says
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?
Kathleen says
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 🙂
Kathie says
Ughhhhh I used chicken broth instead of stock…will it still be okay?
Kathleen says
Yes! You can use either. It will be great!
Heather says
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?
Kathleen says
You could also cook the pasta separately on the stove and add to the soup at the end before serving. Enjoy!
Vicki Ferris says
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!!
Kathleen says
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.
Kirsten Finnigan says
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?
Kathleen says
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!
Alyssa says
If I use 3 chicken breast do I need to add extra everything else?
Kathleen says
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!
Emeline Hoblick says
I’ve made this recipe at least 5 times now as it is amazing! The best chicken noodle soup recipe! Thank you!
Kathleen says
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that. Just made my day 🙂 thank you!
Shakira says
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!
Kathleen says
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!
Maryjane says
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.
Kathleen says
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 🙂
Annie says
Oh I accidentally added the 3 tablespoons of parsley in the beginning, Will this ruin the taste of the soup?
Kathleen says
Nope! The soup will still be great! 🙂
Mary says
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!
Kathleen says
Thank you for sharing, Mary! Your version sounds fantastic. Never too many chicken noodle soup recipes 🙂
Marie says
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
Kathleen says
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!
Leanne says
Can this be cooked on high in the crock pot instead of low? If so how long on high?
Kathleen says
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.
Paige says
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.
Kathleen says
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!
Treat Simply.Com says
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!
Kathleen says
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!
Annie says
I accidentally added the parsley in the beginning, Will the soup be ruined if the parsley cooks in it for eight hours?
Kathleen says
Not at all! The parsley will just soften. It will still be fabulous 🙂
Jennifer Karner says
How many carrots and celery do I add?
Kathleen says
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.
Scott says
Super easy and delicious! Thank you for my go to chicken noodle soup! Delightful!!!!
Kathleen Hansen says
I’m so glad you like it! Thank you for your comment 🙂
Megan polson says
I am wondering if you cook the egg noodles before you put in crockpot, or they cook in there?
Kathleen says
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.