Servings: 8 (12 cups total) 1x
Scale
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or avocado oil
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced into rounds (~1½ cups)
- 2 medium stalks celery, diced (~1 cup)
- 1 small yellow onion, diced (~1 cup)
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 8 cups (64 oz) low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 ½ lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves, crushed
- ½ teaspoon dried sage
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 4-6 ounces wide egg noodles (use gluten-free, if needed)
- Optional for serving: chopped fresh parsley, crackers, or crusty bread
Instructions
Stovetop Directions:
- In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the carrots, celery, onion, and minced garlic; stir and cook until the onions are translucent and vegetables start to soften, 7 to 8 minutes.
- Add the broth, chicken breasts, thyme, rosemary, sage, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Stir, then cover with a lid. Bring the soup almost to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low to low and simmer gently for 35-40 minutes.
- Once the vegetables are tender and the chicken is cooked through, use a pair of tongs or a slotted spoon to remove the chicken to a cutting board. At the same time, remove and discard the bay leaves.
- Add the dry noodles into the soup.
- Shred the chicken and return the shredded chicken to the pot; cover with the lid.
- Simmer the soup until the noodles are al dente, another 8 to 11 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat and serve. If desired, garnish servings with fresh chopped parsley and serve with crackers or crusty bread on the side.
Slow Cooker Directions:
- Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a 6-quart or larger slow cooker. Add the carrots, celery, onion, garlic, thyme, rosemary, sage, salt, and pepper, and bay leaves. Pour the 8 cups of broth around the ingredients and stir gently.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 5 hours or on HIGH for 3 hours.
- When the cooking time is up, remove and discard the bay leaves. Remove the chicken to a cutting board or rimmed sheet pan. Shred the chicken then return it to the slow cooker.
- Add the uncooked noodles and stir well. Place the lid back on the slow cooker and cook on high until the noodles are tender, about 10 minutes more.
- Turn the slow cooker to the ‘keep warm’ setting and serve.
Notes
This recipe makes a more thick and creamy chicken noodle soup. If a more brothy soup is desired, stir in an additional 1 to 2 cups broth.
May use precooked and shredded chicken instead of the raw chicken breasts. If using precooked chicken, reduce the simmering time to 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Add the cooked chicken and noodles to the pot in Step 4 and cook until the noodles are al dente.
Want to brighten the flavors? Stir in 1-2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice or apple cider vinegar into the full pot of soup just before serving.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: 1½ cups
- Calories: 219
- Fat: 7 g
- (Sat Fat: 1 g)
- Sodium: 252 mg
- Carbohydrate: 16 g
- (Fiber: 2 g
- Sugar: 4 g)
- Protein: 24 g
- Cholesterol: 83 mg