Easy chicken soup recipes with few ingredients

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Easy 30-Minute Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup — Classic, comforting, and tastes just like grandma made but way easier and faster!! This soup is AMAZING and it’ll be your new favorite recipe!!

The Easiest Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

Chicken noodle soup is one of the fondest memories I have of my grandmother’s cooking.

Classic, comforting, a cure-all for whatever ailed me, and I could taste my grandma’s love in it.

However, my grandma’s version took hours and hours. I don’t have time to watch a boiling pot for half the day and this version is easy, ready in 30-minutes, and has all the comforting qualities you want in classic chicken noodle soup.

My family loved the homey, classic flavors in the soup, raved about it, and asked when I’m making it again. It makes enough to stash half in the freezer for a rainy day or for winter cold and flu season. Chicken noodle soup is a miracle worker.

Chicken Noodle Soup Ingredients 

To make this easy chicken noodle soup recipe, you’ll need the following basic ingredients: 

• Olive oil
• Carrots 
• Celery 
• Sweet Vidalia onion
• Garlic
• Chicken broth 
• Bay leaves
• Fresh thyme
• Dried oregano
• Wide egg noodles
• Shredded cooked chicken
• Fresh parsley 

What Are the Best Noodles for Chicken Noodle Soup? 

Egg noodles in chicken noodle soup is the only way to go for me because that’s how my grandma made it, but if you like rotini or another type of pasta, use it instead.

How to Make Chicken Noodle Soup

Making homemade chicken noodle soup with egg noodles doesn’t get easier than this! Here’s an overview of how this simple recipe comes together: 

1. To a large Dutch oven or stockpot, add the oil and heat over medium-high heat to warm.
2. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and sauté until the vegetables begin to soften. 
3. Add the garlic and sauté for another 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Add the chicken broth, bay leaves, thyme, oregano, pepper, and bring to a boil. Allow mixture to boil gently for about 5 minutes or until vegetables are fork-tender. 
5. Add the egg noodles and boil the mixture until the noodles are cooked through. 
6. Add the chicken, parsley, optional lemon juice and boil until chicken is warmed through.
7. Remove the bay leaves and serve immediately! 

Tips for the Best Chicken Noodle Soup

To save time, make this chicken noodle soup with rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken that you have on hand. Of course you can roast or pan sauté chicken if you’re so inclined.

There are quite a few herbs used including thyme, oregano, bay leaves, and parsley. If you don’t have them all on hand, don’t want to buy a bunch of thyme for just 1 teaspoon, or aren’t fond of a particular herb, you can probably omit it. Your soup won’t taste exactly like mine, but it’ll be close.

Make sure to salt your soup to taste. I use low-sodium chicken broth and add a bit of salt to my soup so I can control the overall salt level. The saltiness of low-sodium broth varies among brands, and if you used a rotisserie chicken, salt levels vary. And everyone’s personal preference for salt varies so salt to taste.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup carrots, peeled and sliced thin (about 1 1/2 large carrots)
• 1 cup celery, sliced thin (about 2 stalks)
• 1 cup sweet Vidalia or yellow onion, peeled and diced small (about 1 medium onion)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 64 ounces (8 cups) low-sodium chicken broth, plus more if desired
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon pepper, or to taste
• 12 ounces wide egg noodles (or your favorite noodles or pasta)
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken (use storebought rotisserie chicken to save time; or roast or cook your own chicken in a skillet)
• 3 to 4 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice, optional
• salt, to taste

Instructions

1. To a large Dutch oven or stockpot, add the oil and heat over medium-high heat to warm.
2. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and sauté for about 7 minutes, or until vegetables begin to soften. Stir intermittently.
   Add the garlic and sauté for another 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Add the chicken broth, bay leaves, thyme, oregano, pepper, and bring to a boil. Allow mixture to boil gently for about 5 minutes or until vegetables are fork-tender. Note – If you like brothier soup, add additional broth, possibly as much as an additional 64 ounces because as time passes the noodles will continue to absorb broth.
4. Add the egg noodles and boil mixture for about 10 minutes, or until noodles are soft and cooked through. At any time while making the soup, if the overall liquid level is lower than you like and you prefer more broth, adding a cup or two of water is okay. At the end you will adjust the salt level.
5. Add the chicken, parsley, optional lemon juice (brightens up the flavor), and boil 1 to 2 minutes, or until chicken is warmed through. Taste soup and add salt to taste. I added about 1 tablespoon but this will vary based on how salty the brand of chicken broth used is, how salty the rotisserie chicken is, and personal preference. Make any necessary seasoning adjustments (i.e. more salt, pepper, herbs, etc.), remove the bay leaves, and serve immediately.

Notes

Soup will keep airtight in the fridge for 5 to 7 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

More Easy Soup Recipes: 

Immune-Boosting Vegetable Soup and Broth – Easy soup that’s healthy, nourishing, and keeps you healthy!  Bye-bye germs!

The Best Broccoli Cheese Soup (Better-Than-Panera Copycat) – Make the best soup of your life at home in 1 hour! Beyond words amazing!

Creamy Tomato Soup (vegan, GF) – Panera copycat that’s fast, easy, and healthy!

Roasted Carrot and Red Pepper Peanut Soup (vegan, GF) – Thick, rich, and loaded with smoky flavors!

Creamy Vegan Corn and Red Pepper Blender Soup – Ready in 5 minutes and packed with flavor!

Sweet Potato Red Pepper and Coconut Milk Soup (vegan, GF) – Ready in 10 minutes and so thick and satisfying!

Skinny Carrot Potato Soup with Honey Cream – Healthy, hearty, fast, and easy! Packed with flavor and you’ll never miss the fat and calories!

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