Name: Chunky Chicken Noodle Soup
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 medium onion (chopped, approximately 1 cup); 2 cloves garlic (minced); 2 stalks celery (chopped, approximately 1 cup); ½ pound carrots (peeled, chopped; approximately 2 cups); 2 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts (approximately 6 ounces each); 8 cups water; 2 teaspoons dried parsley; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 4 ounces medium egg noodles (uncooked); salt (to taste); freshly ground black pepper (to taste); chopped fresh parsley (optional, to garnish)

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This homemade chunky chicken noodle soup is better than anything you’ll get out of a can! With chunks of tender, juicy chicken and plenty of veggies, this soup is warm and cozy and everything you could ever want from chicken and noodles. Make up a batch to enjoy right away, or stock your freezer for cooler months. You can’t go wrong either way!

Top-down look at a bowl of chunky chicken noodle soup with broth and sliced carrots.

🍜 What Makes This Recipe So Good

Homemade chunky chicken noodle soup is so much better than any canned version! Not only does it taste amazing, but the ingredients are filling and nutritious. You can always customize it to your tastes, too, with whatever spices or veggies you like best.
This soup honestly couldn’t be any easier to make! It all comes together in one pot, so clean-up is a breeze, too.
Like most soups, chunky chicken noodle soup is great for meal preps and freezer meals. I love to make a double batch whenever I’ve got the time (and/or when chicken’s on sale, or when I need to use up some chicken on hand) and freeze half of it for later. It just makes everything so much easier! We’ve included the info you need to refrigerate or freeze your soup in the recipe card down below.

💰 Our 2-Cents

Shop the Sales! Try and shop for meat and poultry when they’re on sale at your local stores. A lot of stores have a set rotating schedule for sales, but a lot will also do random manager’s specials when they need to get rid of overstock.
Stock Up on Your Go-Tos! If you can spare the freezer space or have a deep freezer, stock up on proteins when they’re on sale and freeze them to use later. Keeping some back-up essentials in the freezer is a total sanity-saver when grocery prices or sale timings don’t line up with your needs. And I’m not saying go extreme-couponing-stockpile wild or anything like that. Just a pack or two of chicken or ground beef tucked away for a hungry day.
Chicken Alternatives! Prices on chicken breasts can be a bit shocking sometimes. When that’s the case, switch to an alternative! Uncooked, unbreaded chicken strips (usually in the freezer section) will work well and the cook time wouldn’t be much different. You can also use chopped rotisserie chicken, leftover chicken, or canned chicken. Turkey breasts on sale? That’ll work, too!

👩🏼‍🍳 Chef’s Tips

I recommend taking the chicken out of the pot just before it reaches 165° Fahrenheit. That’s the food-safe temp, but not only will the chicken cook a little more as it rests, you’ll also be adding it back to the soup for another 5-7 minutes later on. If it’s fully-cooked before you take it out to chop it, it’ll be overcooked by the time your soup is ready to eat.
For more flavor, you can substitute the water with chicken broth. You’ll need 64oz. which will add $3-4 to your recipe cost, so be sure to factor that in if you’re debating the switch. The water will have a ton of flavor from the chicken breasts, the veggies, and the garlic, so your soup will still be delicious if you don’t use broth! You’re basically making your own here.
When you cut up the chicken breasts, be sure to add any juices back to the pot with the chicken. That’s flavor, baby!