Chicken Noodle Soup

This is a hearty and satisfying classic chicken soup recipe. When the weather gets cold, a pot of this will warm your whole family up at the dinner table.

With easy-to-find, fresh ingredients, and some big flavor, this chicken soup is better than anything you could get out of a can. It’s worth the few extra minutes of prep, and most of the recipe time is spent relaxing while the soup simmers on the stove.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion
• 3 celery stalks
• 3 large carrots
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
• 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 8 cups chicken broth
• Egg noodles
• Fresh parsley for garnish
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• Salt & pepper

How To Avoid A Soggy Noodle Mush

The biggest issue I have with homemade chicken noodle soup is that the noodles can get soggy and turn the soup into a mushy mess. Avoid this by adding them at the very end of the soup cooking process and not adding too many.

Add your noodles back in after the chicken has already been cooked so that you’re not overcooking pasta while waiting for the chicken to be cooked through. I like to use about 8 ounces of dried pasta for 8 cups of broth.

If you plan on making this chicken soup ahead of time, cook the noodles separately and store them in their own container in the fridge. Only add them when you’re ready to heat and eat the chicken noodle soup. 

It is a little more work and a little less free space in the fridge, but it really does make for a more delicious bowl of chicken soup!

Instructions

Step 1 – Prepare the Vegetables

First, wash and dry all the produce. Dice the onion, peeled carrot, and celery into ¼ inch pieces. 

Step 2 – Cook the Vegetables

To a large dutch oven on medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add your veggies and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes.

Add the garlic, bay leaves, and fresh thyme. Cook for an additional 30 seconds.

Step 3 – Add the Chicken Broth

Pour the chicken broth into your pan and add the bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper, tasting to adjust as needed.

Step 4 – Cook the Chicken

Add the chicken into the broth and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to a medium-low simmer and cover the pan. Continue to simmer until chicken is cooked through, at least 35 minutes and up to an hour. I prefer to cook it for the full hour, but you can cook it to best fit your dinner schedule.

Step 5 – Chop the Chicken

You can chop or shred your chicken once it’s cooked through. Use tongs to remove it from the broth and place it on a cutting board. 

Using either a sharp chef’s knife or two forks, chop or shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. I like to chop mine only because I feel like it goes more quickly, and my kids prefer chunks to shreds, but either will work well in this recipe.

Step 6 – Cook The Noodles

While chopping the chicken, it’s a great time to add your noodles to start cooking. Pour in the noodles to the simmering soup and cook for 6-8 minutes, just until tender.

Step 7 – Add the Chicken and Finishing Touches

Put the chicken back into the soup, add the juice from one lemon and the chopped parsley and stir to combine.

Step 8 – Serve It Up

Ladle it into soup bowls and enjoy it nice and hot! Top with an extra squeeze of lemon and a couple more parsley leaves if you’d like. 

Cookware Used

Dutch Oven: I like using a dutch oven for my chicken noodle soup because it cooks the veggies evenly and is large enough for all of the ingredients. French brands Le Creuset and Staub both produce excellent Dutch ovens.

Or, a large soup pot works well, too!

Flexible Cutting Boards: Whenever I’m adding chopped ingredients to a pot, I reach for my flexible cutting boards. It makes transporting chopped veggies across my kitchen a breeze.

Chef Knife: A chef knife is a versatile tool and always useful when cutting. For the highest quality and appearance check out my Damascus chef knife guide.

Microplane/Grater: Instead of finely chopping sticky garlic, I use a grater to grate it directly into my soups. You get the incredible garlic flavor without all the work of finely mincing it.

Chicken Soup with Homemade Stock

I made this soup with chicken broth that I bought from the store, but you can absolutely make your own chicken stock instead. 

To make chicken stock, you’ll want to roast up a whole chicken for this chicken soup recipe. Alternatively, you can buy a rotisserie chicken from the store which is quick and just as delicious.

Remove all the meat from the cooked chicken and set it aside for the soup. Add the bones to a large dutch oven or soup pot.

Cover the chicken with water and add roughly chopped carrots, celery, onion, and season everything with salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil and then simmer for 2-4 hours. Drain the stock and use it for your soup as directed above.

Can You Use Other Cuts of Chicken?

This recipe is excellent using a whole chicken, or using bone-in skinless breasts or thighs. I make it more often with boneless skinless breasts because that is what I have ready in my fridge most often, but feel free to experiment!

If you can’t find bone-in skinless chicken, just remove the skin before cooking.

Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup

Instead of chicken soup, this recipe can be made with turkey. You can use turkey breasts from the grocery store or leftover turkey from Thanksgiving dinner. This is actually a great post-Thanksgiving recipe because you may have leftover onions, carrots, and celery from your stuffing!

If using turkey breasts, follow the same steps as above. If using leftover turkey, add it during step 7 of the cooking instructions, when you would add the chopped chicken back to the soup. 

I recommend also adding a little ground sage, about ½ teaspoon, at the same time as the chopped thyme.

Now, It’s Your Turn!

If you’re ready to sit down with your family to a steaming hot bowl of chicken noodle soup, now is the time.

Don’t be afraid to add some other herbs you might already have in your fridge or to try some fancy toppings, like avocado, for chicken avocado soup! 

I hope this recipe is an easy and quick, bone-sticking dinner that your family likes as much as mine does.

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