Healthy chicken soup made with tender chicken, fresh veggies, herbs, and finished with lemon juice for delicious flavor. This simple and easy chicken soup recipe is nourishing, comforting, and the perfect healthy lunch or dinner.
Cozy and Delicious Healthy Chicken Soup
Soup! I am such a huge fan of soup, ok? It’s nourishing, usually full of veggies and protein, and most of all…SO EASY to make.
A hearty soup is my go to meal when I can’t figure out what to make for dinner or lunch. I love soup so much that I have a round up post dedicated solely to all of the best healthy soup recipes on All the Healthy Things.
This healthy chicken soup recipe is perfect for the cooler fall and winter months when cold and flu season arrives. It’s made with superfood ingredients like nourishing chicken broth, turmeric, fresh herbs, veggies, and protein packed thanks to chicken.
Watch How to Make Healthy Chicken Soup
Not only is it delicious and healthy, this chicken soup is also incredibly easy to make. After just a few minutes of prepping and sautéing, the soup comes together in around thirty minutes or less!
More Delicious Chicken Recipes
- One Pot Chicken Stew
- Healthy White Chicken Chili
- Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Soup
- The Best Chicken Taco Soup
Soup Ingredients
Chicken: You can use boneless skinless chicken breast, boneless skinless chicken thighs, or a combination of both for this recipe. It’s up to you!
Onion, Celery, Carrot, Garlic: These veggies and aromatics create a flavorful base for the soup. Sautéing the veggies and garlic for just a few minutes before adding in the broth helps to develop and build flavor for an extra delicious soup.
Fresh Herbs: This soup gets another boost of flavor from fresh herbs. Fresh thyme simmers in the soup to build flavor and fresh dill is added at the end for even more deliciousness.
Chicken Broth: You can use a homemade chicken broth or store bought for this recipe. If you use store-bought broth, I would choose a low-sodium variety so that you can control the level of salt in the soup.
Turmeric: This chicken soup gets its pretty yellow color from ground turmeric. Ground turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties and makes this healthy chicken soup even more healing.
Bay Leaves: These are a must-have in any good soup. Dried bay leaves add flavor and make this soup taste like it has simmered all day long.
Fresh Lemon Juice: If you have never added fresh lemon juice to your chicken soup, you are missing out! The combination of fresh lemon and dill is absolutely delicious and really brings this soup to life!
Helpful Kitchen Tools
This simple soup recipe is so easy to make but having a few of these staple kitchen tools will help make the process even easier!
Here are a few of my kitchen favorites:
How to Make Healthy Chicken Soup
Step One: First, heat the avocado oil or ghee (whichever you are using) in a large pot or dutch oven. Season the chicken with a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper on each side. Sear the chicken until browned on each side, around four to five minutes per side, and then remove from the pot and set aside.
Step Two: Next, it’s time to build the flavor base of the soup. Add the diced onion, garlic, carrots, and celery to the pot and sauté for 2-3 minutes until everything is fragrant.
Step Three: Once the veggies have sautéed a bit, add the chicken, broth, bay leaves, turmeric powder, salt, and thyme to the pot. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low to simmer.
Step Four: Let the soup simmer for 20-25 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked through. Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the soup and use two forks to shred the meat.
Step Five: Once the chicken is shredded, add it back to the pot and stir until everything is well combined. Turn the heat to low and stir in the fresh dill and fresh lemon juice. Give the soup a taste and add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice to taste and then enjoy!
Recipe Variations
This healthy chicken soup is a great base for any variations you want to make! Here are a few ways to get creative with this soup recipe:
- Add your favorite veggies. Baby spinach or tuscan kale would be great additions to this soup. Just stir the spinach or kale into the soup at the end and let it cook until wilted.
- Add more carbohydrates. This is a naturally low-carb soup so adding more carbohydrates to the soup is a great option. Some great ideas are yellow potatoes or gluten-free noodles. If you want to bulk up the soup a bit more while still keeping it low-carb, cauliflower florets are a great option.
- Make the soup creamier. If you are looking for a creamier soup base, you can try adding in a bit of full-fat coconut milk at the end of cooking for a creamier soup option.
Can You Freeze Chicken Soup?
Yes! This is a great recipe to prep in advance and then freeze for a quick healthy lunch or dinner later. To freeze the soup, add it to an airtight container or freezer safe storage bags. Freeze the soup for up to three months.
When you are ready to reheat and eat the soup, I recommend letting the soup thaw in the fridge first before reheating on the stovetop for the best results.
More Reader Favorite Soup Recipes
- Healthy Italian Wedding Soup
- Red Curry Chicken Soup
- Turkey Noodle Soup
- Easy Lasagna Soup
- Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
- Easy Loaded Baked Potato Soup
- Tomato Basil Soup
- Easy Turkey Taco Soup
I hope you give this Healthy Chicken Soup a try! It’s classic, cozy, and so delicious.
If you do give this recipe a try, I want to know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo & tag @allthehealthythings on Instagram. Your reviews help support All the Healthy Things and make it possible for me to continue to create the recipes you know and love.
Print
Healthy Chicken Soup
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Healthy chicken soup made with tender chicken, fresh veggies, herbs, and finished with lemon juice for delicious flavor. This simple and easy chicken soup recipe is nourishing, comforting, and the perfect healthy lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or ghee
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 celery stalks
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 2 dried bay leaves
- ½ teaspoons turmeric powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped dill
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
Instructions
- Heat the avocado oil or ghee in a large pot or dutch oven.
- Season the chicken with a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper on each side. Sear the chicken until browned on each side, around four to five minutes per side, and then remove from the pot and set aside.
- Add the diced onion, garlic, carrots, and celery to the pot and saute for 2-3 minutes until fragrant.
- Add the chicken, broth, bay leaves, turmeric powder, salt, and thyme to the pot. Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low to simmer.
- Let the soup simmer for 20-25 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the soup and use two forks to shred the meat.
- Add the chicken back to the pot and stir until everything is well combined. Turn the heat to low and stir in the dill and fresh lemon juice. Give the soup a taste and add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice to taste. Enjoy!
Recipe by: Ashlea Carver / All the Healthy Things | Photography by: Casey Colodny / THE MINDFUL HAPA
