This Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup is packed with rich flavors from chicken thighs and sautéed veggies for a made-from-scratch, homemade taste. It’s an easy recipe with just a little bit of prep, and then the slow cooker will do the rest. Whether you’re feeling under the weather or need a soul-warming pick-me-up, this easy Chicken Noodle Soup recipe is for you.
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe
There’s a reason chicken soup is a classic comfort food. It just has that soul-soothing effect that makes all your problems melt away, especially when it’s homemade. This old-fashioned chicken noodle soup recipe is so much better than what you get from a can.
Browning the chicken and sautéing the vegetables before adding them to the crockpot makes all the difference. It gives the soup a depth of flavor that develops even further in the slow cooker. It might be a little extra work, but it’s worth every minute. You get the same depth of flavor cooking it slow as you do when making chicken and dumplings.
Give yourself about 20 minutes to chop and brown the chicken and veggies. The skin on the chicken will release fat and flavor when it’s browned and the carrots, onions and celery will absorb that flavor when sautéed.
You will need to boil the noodles before adding to the slow cooker at the end.
Once everything is prepped and tossed into the crockpot, the soup cooks for about 6 hours, so it’s perfect for busy days. Serve a piping hot bowl of soup with some garlic butter dinner rolls or buttermilk biscuits.
If you want chicken soup in a hurry, I love this chicken and orzo soup that you can make in less than an hour.
Why You’ll Love This Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup With Egg Noodles
- Comforting: Chicken noodle soup is the ultimate comfort food, packed with aromatic veggies, fresh herbs, tender shredded chicken, and delicious egg noodles.
- Easy: Once the prep work is done, the crockpot does all the work.
- Perfect for busy schedules: The soup cooks for 6 hours, so it’s perfect for those days when you don’t have a ton of time to cook.
Soup Ingredients
- Skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs: The skin and bone add a ton of flavor, especially since they’re seared in a skillet before adding them to the slow cooker.
- Mirepoix: This is a classic base for any chicken soup recipe. It consists of chopped onion, celery, and carrots.
- Garlic: Another aromatic that adds another layer of flavor. Use fresh garlic for the best flavor.
- Tomato paste: This adds a depth of umami flavor to the soup.
- Spices: You’ll need fresh thyme, red pepper flakes, fresh parsley, and bay leaves.
- Egg noodles: I like to use wide egg noodles for that old-fashioned chicken soup feel, but you can use regular egg noodles, or any other type of pasta you like.
- Chicken broth: This is part of the base for our soup and helps create the broth.
How to Make Chicken Noodle Soup From Scratch
Step One: Brown the Chicken
Start by drying and seasoning the chicken thighs, then cook them in a skillet until they’re nice and brown on both sides, then remove the skin.
Step Two: Sauté the Veggies
Next, you’ll want to toss the onion, celery, and carrots into the skillet and let them soften up. This is where all that good flavor really starts to come together.
Step Three: Add Flavor and Transfer to the Slow Cooker
Add the garlic, tomato paste, thyme and red pepper then add a splash of chicken broth to deglaze the skillet. Scrape up any brown bits from the skillet. Add everything to the slow cooker with the remaining chicken broth and the chicken. Let it cook on low heat.
Step Four: Shred and Add Noodles
Once the chicken is cooked, shred it and toss it back into the slow cooker with the cooked noodles. Give it a good stir, and it’s ready to serve!
Tips to Save Time
- Prep: Chop up the veggies beforehand and store them in an airtight container for 1-2 days. You can also buy pre-chopped mirepoix at your local grocery store.
- Pasta: Boil the noodles and store them in an airtight container for 1-2 days before adding them to the soup. You may need to run them under some water to break up the noodles before adding them to the crockpot.
- Taste: Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired.
Substitutions and Additions
- Chicken broth: Instead of regular, you can use low-sodium chicken broth.
- Herbs: Add a few sprigs of fresh rosemary along with the thyme for an even earthier flavor. If you don’t have fresh herbs, you can use dried, but the flavors might not be as intense.
- Chicken: You can swap the chicken thighs for chicken breasts.
- Veggies: Add more veggies like fresh chopped spinach during the last hour or so of cooking.
Storage and Leftovers
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Let the soup thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
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Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup with Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs with skin and bone
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 2 ribs of celery chopped
- 3 carrots chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme chopped
- ⅛ teaspoons red pepper flakes
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup wide egg noodles
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
Equipment
Instructions
- Use a paper towel to dry the chicken thighs, then season generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs and cook until brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and remove skin.
- Remove all the oil in the skillet except for a tablespoon. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook over medium heat until softened, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste, thyme and red pepper and cook for an additional minute. Add about a cup of the chicken broth scraping up all of the brown bits. Transfer it to the slow cooker.
- Add the remaining chicken broth and bay leaves, then add the chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
- Remove the chicken to a cutting board and remove the bones and shred into bite size pieces. Skim off any fat that has accumulated on the top of the broth and remove the bay leaves. Return the chicken to the slow cooker.
- Cook noodles in salted water per package instructions. Drain and add to the slow cooker. Add parsley, salt and pepper to taste.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- You can also use bone-in chicken breasts, but thighs will add more flavor.
- If you want this to serve more people, increase the amount of egg noodles.
Nutrition
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Wendy says
Question: Your recipe calls for 1 Cup of Wide Egg Noodles. Is that dry or cooked?
Barbara Curry says
It is 1 cup of dried egg noodles. You will cook them first then add to the soup.
Wendy says
Thank you! Can’t wait to try this.
Wendy says
This calls for 2 stalks of celery…do you mean “sticks” or ribs? Seems 2 stalks is an awful lot of celery to only 3 carrots.
Barbara Curry says
It is meant to be ribs, I call them stalks but I can see the confusion. I’ll clarify it in the recipe card. Thanks
Tina Thomason says
This was absolutely delicious!!! I left out celery (because I don’t like it). I also added spinach towards the end of cooking.
Barbara Curry says
So glad you liked it, spinach sounds like a great addition.