It’s a bold statement but, when it comes to a soup, this chicken and vegetable soup is about as perfect as it gets. It’s simple and straightforward to make. And it hits all the right comfort-food notes you’re looking for when tucking into a cozy bowl of soup. I love to make a pot of this on Sunday and enjoy it throughout the week.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s simple in the best possible way. No unique ingredients or fancy techniques. It relies on basic ingredients to create a soup that is the ultimate classic comfort food.
- It’s perfect for meal prep. Make a batch on Sunday and enjoy cozy soup for the week.
- It’s totally customizable. Don’t like mushrooms? Leave them out. Want to add peas or spinach? Do it. It’s the kind of soup that lends itself to using up veggies so they don’t go to waste.
Making Chicken And Vegetable Soup
Chopping is about the most “difficult” part of making this soup. Once you’ve chopped all the vegetables, you’re practically done.
For this chicken and vegetable soup, you’ll need…
- Boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Onion
- Carrots
- Celery
- Mushrooms
- Garlic
- Thyme
- Rosemary
- Bay leaves
- Yellow potatoes
- Chicken stock
- Lemon
See? Nothing fancy. But the end result is *chef’s kiss*. Here’s how you make it.
First, dice all your veggies into bite-size pieces. I like a ½-inch dice because it makes it easier to get a bit of everything in each bite. You can do bigger or smaller, just be aware it will affect the cooking time.
Next, heat up some oil in a large stock pot and brown the chicken thighs. It should only take 2-3 minutes on each side. You just want to give them a bit of that caramelized flavor. Remove the chicken thighs and set them aside on a plate.
Add a bit more oil to the pot, if needed, and saute the onions, carrots, celery, and mushrooms for a few minutes. Season with a bit of salt. You want the onions to begin to turn translucent and the mushrooms to have released their water.
Stir in the garlic, thyme, and rosemary and let that cook for about a minute until the garlic is fragrant.
Add the bay leaves, potatoes, chicken stock, and reserved chicken thighs to the pot. Give the pot a stir and increase the heat to bring it to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat a bit and let it gently boil/simmer for about 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
Remove the chicken from the pot and shred or dice it. Add the diced chicken and the lemon juice to the soup. Stir and check for seasoning.
Enjoy the soup as is or garnish it with a bit of fresh parsley and parmesan cheese, if you’re feeling fancy.
Store the soup in the fridge for 3-4 days or portion out and freeze for up to 6 months.
Tips & Notes
Make sure you prep all your veggies before you begin cooking. I know this is Cooking 101 but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve decided to get started with the cooking portion before all my veggies were diced only to have to turn off the stove and stop cooking so that I don’t burn something while I finish chopping and dicing.
You can use fresh or dried herbs in this recipe and the end result will be amazing either way. Sometimes fresh herbs really are worth the extra effort but this soup works perfectly with fresh or dried. And since I always have dried herbs in my pantry and don’t always have fresh, I most often make this with dried.
If you want to tweak the vegetables in this recipe, I suggest sticking with the carrot+celery+onion combo as your base since they’re the essential flavor base to this soup (and many other dishes). Beyond that, feel free to add or subtract veggies to your heart’s content. Any root veg works great in addition to the base or in place of the potatoes. Winter squash is also a tasty option. If you want to add a bit more green to the soup, I recommend adding things like chopped spinach, kale, or peas at the end of cooking since they only take about 5 minutes to cook.
I’ve made this same basic soup vegetarian by swapping the chicken for a can of white beans and using vegetable stock in place of chicken stock. You could also add beans to this recipe as-is to up the fiber and protein content. Add them in the last 5 minutes or so of cooking so they don’t overcook.
Other Posts You May Like…
Sausage, Potato, and Swiss Chard Soup Recipe
Simple Classic Gluten-Free Cornbread Muffins
Classic Chicken And Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1 pound)
- 3-4 tablespoons avocado oil
- 1 medium or ½ large onion diced
- 4-6 carrots cut into ¼-inch rounds (about 1-2 cups)
- 3-4 stalks celery cut into ¼-inch slices (about 1 cup)
- 8-10 mushrooms sliced (about 1-2 cups)
- 3-4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh
- 1 teaspoon dried minced rosemary or 1 tablespoon fresh
- 2 bay leaves
- 2-4 yellow potatoes ½-inch dice (about 2 cups)
- 6 cups chicken stock
- Juice from ½ lemon
- Minced fresh parsley and grated parmesan for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat avocado oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. While oil is heating, generously salt and pepper both sides of the chicken thighs. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken thighs and cook for 2-4 minutes, until browned. Flip and repeat. Remove browned chicken thighs to a plate and set aside.
- Add a bit more oil to the pan, if needed, and reduce heat to medium. Add the onions, carrots, celery, and mushrooms to the pot. Season with salt and stir to coat in oil. Saute vegetables for about 5 minutes, until the onions begin to soften and the mushrooms have released their water.
- Stir in the garlic and herbs and cook for about 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Add the potatoes, chicken stock, and reserved chicken thighs into the pot. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are tender and chicken thighs are cooked through.
- Remove chicken thighs from the soup and cut or shred into bite-sized pieces. Return the chicken to the pot. Stir in the lemon juice Taste and adjust seasoning, as needed.
- Serve garnished with minced fresh parsley and grated parmesan.
- To store, wait until soup has cooled to nearly room temperature. Then store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Or freeze soup for up to 6 months.
- See post above for tips on how to customize or make a vegetarian version of the soup.
