This Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup is as comforting as it is delicious. Packed with juicy chicken, tender vegetables, and hearty noodles it is a satisfying soup that practically cooks itself!
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Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup is an absolute winner, especially on busy weeknights when you don't have the energy to whip up a complicated meal. Here are some reasons why I think you will love it too:
Reasons to Love this Recipe
- No Pre-Cooking: Once you have chopped your vegetables you can literally throw everything into the slow cooker and walk away with no need to sauté anything beforehand.
- Everything You Need in One Bowl: With fresh vegetables, lean protein from chicken breast, and carbohydrates from the pasta, it's a well-balanced and satisfying bowl of soup.
- Dinner Time Breeze: You can have everything prepped in the morning and when you come home in the evening you have a delicious hot meal waiting for you.
- Cozy and Comforting: There is just something about a bowl of chicken noodle soup that feels just like a warm hug! This is the perfect soup to cozy up with on a cold day or when you are feeling under the weather.
Video Tutorial
Ingredient Information (With Alternative Suggestions)
For the full recipe, with ingredient amounts, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Chicken Breast: You can also use thighs if you prefer.
- Onion & Celery: This is the flavour base of the soup. You can replace the celery with extra onion or vice versa. You could also use leek.
- Carrots: The carrots add a little sweetness (as well as providing vitamins and fibre). You could try replacing them with other root vegetables such as parsnips.
- Garlic: Adds depth of flavour to the soup.
- Dried Thyme: Adds a warm, earthy flavour to the soup. Rosemary could be used as an alternative.
- Bay leaves: Adds an earthy flavour. If you don't have any you can skip them.
- Chicken Stock/Broth: This is the liquid base for the soup and adds flavour. Vegetable stock/broth would also work instead. If cooking for young children use homemade chicken stock or low sodium.
- Spaghetti: You can replace with other types of pasta, such as macaroni or farfalle.
- Lemon Juice: Added to the end of cooking to add a tangy, citrus flavour to help balance out the richness of the broth.
- Parsley: Added to the end to help balance out the soup and add brightness and freshness.
Step By Step Instructions (With Images)
- Add Raw Ingredients to Slow Cooker: Add all the ingredients except the pasta, lemon and parsley. Cook on low for 6 hours (or high for 3.5 hours).
- Cook Spaghetti: Once the soup has cooked for the set time, snap the spaghetti into thirds and cook according to pack instructions.
- Remove Chicken Breasts and Shred: Transfer the chicken breasts to a clean chopping board and use two forks to shred the chicken meat.
- Return the Chicken and Add the Spaghetti
- Finish with Lemon Juice and Chopped Parsley: Don't skip this step, it really elevates the soup by adding brightness and freshness.
Recipe FAQs
As there is a good bit of liquid in this recipe I recommend you use at least a 6-quart slow cooker (5.6 litres). If your slow cooker is smaller I would recommend cutting the recipe in half.
No, you can use thigh meat if you prefer it. Cooking with the bone in will also provide more flavour.
It is not recommended to cook frozen chicken in a slow cooker due to the extended time required for the chicken to reach cooking temperature. This can increase the risk of food-borne illnesses. You should always thaw the chicken in the refrigerator prior to slow cooking.
Yes, you can easily customise this recipe. I do feel the carrot, celery and onion give the soup great flavour but I often add some extra vegetables. Just consider the cooking time. I often add some peas or corn but always towards the end of the cooking time (when I add the noodles).
I grew up with chicken noodle soup made with spaghetti noodles so that is how I enjoy it. You can, of course, use any pasta you wish. The cooking time may vary slightly. I recommend cooking it for the stated time and if not ready, continue to cook on high and check it every couple of mins until done.
The better quality the stock is, the nicer the soup will be.
If cooking for young children you want to make sure you keep the sodium levels down. I recommend using homemade stock but if that sounds too much like hard work then look for low-sodium stocks.
Any leftovers I usually store in the fridge and eat the next day. If you want to freeze it, I recommend freezing it before you add the noodles.
If making this for a baby I recommend that you use homemade chicken stock in order to keep sodium levels down. Alternatively, you can add water and use split chicken breasts (bone-in chicken breasts) which will provide more flavour in the absence of chicken stock/broth.
Make sure that the vegetables are cut so that they aren't a choking hazard and are cooked soft enough that you can squish them between your fingers.
A great way to serve this soup to a baby is to use a slotted spoon to remove the solid pieces into a bowl and then add just a little of the broth.
Read more about soup for babies.
Other Slow Cooker Recipes to Try
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Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup
Equipment
- Slow Cooker 6 quart
Ingredients
- 700g (1½ pounds) Skinless Chicken Breast See Note 1
- 1 medium Onion, finely chopped
- 240g (approx. 3 medium) Carrots, peeled and chopped See Note 2
- 80g (approx. 3 stalks) Celery, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoon Minced Garlic
- ½ teaspoon Dried Thyme
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 litres (8 cups) Chicken Stock See Note 3
- 200g (8oz) Spaghetti, snapped into thirds
- 1 tablespoon Fresh lemon juice
- 1 tbsp Fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Add chicken, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme, bay leaves and chicken stock to a slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low for 6 hours (or high for 3.5 hours). (Cook until the chicken reaches 74ºC (165ºF) adding more time if needed.
- Snap the spaghetti into thirds and cook according to the pack instructions, drain.
- Remove the cooked chicken breast and shred using two forks, the meat should fall apart easily.
- Add the chicken back into the cooker along with the spaghetti. Stir in the lemon juice and parsley and serve.
Video
Recipe Notes
- You can replace the breast meat with thigh meat if you prefer. Just remove the bone and shred it at the same stage as you would the breast meat.Â
- I slice the thinner part of the carrot to give rounds and then dice the thicker end of the carrot. Slice/dice to your preference.Â
- For young children you should use homemade or low-sodium chicken stock to reduce the sodium level. Alternatively, reduce the amount of stock and replace it with water.Â
Bonnie Jean says
Okay. The vegetable been in about 30 mins now. Do i just put the chicken in now? Then wait 30-20 mins shred it up before it finished cooking. My recipe that my friend given me is the same but without the spaghetti noodle. Do i just do what your recipe is? Since I dont get hers?
Amy says
Hi Bonnie, I am unsure what you mean. You put the chicken in at the same time as the veggies and cook on low for 6 hours. Then you remove the chicken to shred it, add the noodles and cook for a further 15-20 min 🙂
klebefolie says
That was delicious! I just made it. My Kids and I both loved it. Thanks for the recipe!
Amy says
So glad it was a hit all round, thanks for taking the time to let me know 🙂
Ben says
Just made this for my partner and I. It was so delicious! Partner said best chicken soup he ever had.
Amy says
Brilliant! Thank you 🙂
Hannah says
This is probably going to sound really silly, how do I make 2litres chicken stock?
Amy says
Hi Hannah, if you don't have homemade stock then you can buy stock or use stock cubes to make it. The pack should tell you how many cubes you will need to make 2 litres.
Stacey says
Hi iam looking forward to trying this I bought a slow cooker yesterday. Iam only cooking this soup for two and using chicken pieces is it still 6 hours to cook? Thanks
Amy says
Hi Stacey, I would personally stick to the recipe and freeze any leftovers. What do you mean by chicken pieces? Thighs / leg / wings etc? Thighs work well in this recipe. If you mean breast cut into pieces I'd be worried it would be too dry.
Jodie dean says
Hello do I need to add water x
Amy says
Hi Joidie, no just the 2 litres of stock. 🙂
katie says
Hi, Im making this tomorrow for my lunches at work whilst the weather is still chilly. Thank you for the recipe xx
Amy says
Thanks Katie, hope you enjoyed it 🙂
Melinda Nibbelink says
Made this yesterday! Took to a Christmas Eve family gathering! Was a hit! Very good! Will make again!
Amy says
Thanks Melinda, glad it was a hit! Hope you had a fantastic Christmas 🙂
Max Jordan says
I’m sure this soup tastes delicious. All of your recipes that I have tried have been an absolute success!
Amy says
Thanks Max!
Katrina says
i made this and it was YUMMO!! so good and not super heavy!!
Amy says
Brilliant! Glad you liked it, thanks for taking the time to tell me. 🙂