You only need one pot and a few simple ingredients to make this incredible chicken soup recipe. My Grandma’s homemade chicken soup recipe is made from scratch with a whole chicken, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, and herbs. It is an easy chicken soup recipe with just a few easy steps. There is no pre-cooking; just add everything to the pot and turn on the stove. This old fashioned chicken soup recipe has been in our family for generations.
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❤️ Sandi’s Recipe Summary
The Quick Bite: My Grandma’s homemade chicken soup recipe has is a simple chicken soup with fresh ingredients. You can just add the ingredients to a soup pot, all at once, cover the soup pot and the stove does all of the cooking for you. If you need a recipe for homemade chicken soup, this is the recipe to make.
WOW! Delicious. Thank you, Ms. G., perfect chicken soup. Now that I am an adult and living on my own, your grandma’s homemade chicken soup came in just in time. My first time cooking chicken soup from scratch, and it would not be my last.”
Alex, Blog comment
Does your Grandma make homemade chicken soup? I remember my grandmother making this chicken soup from scratch every time we visited. She would heat it up in the kitchen while we sat at her small kitchen table catching on how everyone was doing. The memories come back every time I make it. She would dump the ingredients into a big soup pot; magic happened as it cooked. This old fashioned chicken soup recipe has been in our family for generations.
This classic chicken soup is what I call a “dump and go” recipe. Everything goes into the soup pot at once, the raw whole chicken, the vegetables, and the flavors all cook together from the beginning. You can add noodles or rice, though I recommend not cooking the noodles in the soup because they get mushy with the long simmer. Our family likes to add these Gluten-Free Matzo Balls to the soup.
This homemade chicken soup is what we make when anyone in the family isn’t feeling well. It is a great cold and flu buster. While you are visiting, check out all of my delicious homemade soup recipes!
The Vegetables For Traditional Chicken Soup:
This classic chicken soup recipe has onion, carrot, and celery. Over the years, I have added parsnips, turnips, and even rutabagas, with delicious results. In writing the recipe, I made these vegetables optional because I wanted to keep it close to my grandma’s recipe for this post.
Seasonings For Chicken Soup :
My grandmother originally created this soup without adding additional chicken broth. In the years I have been making this recipe, I found that adding chicken broth is a great time saver. It improves the depth of flavor in a shorter amount of cooking time. My grandmother simmered this soup for a whole day, adding more water as it cooked down. Today, with busy schedules, most people don’t have time to simmer a soup all day long.
This soup gets its rich flavor from these spices and herbs:
- Dried Thyme
- Dried Basil
- Dried Parsley – I prefer fresh parsley for the garnish.
- Garlic – I use fresh garlic cloves because dried garlic powder does not add the same flavors to the soup broth.
- Salt and Pepper
I grow fresh herbs in my kitchen window, so I always have fresh herbs to use in this recipe as well.
Making Homemade Chicken Soup (Step-By-Step)
I love making my chicken soup using a whole chicken. The raw chicken cooks in the soup, adding incredible flavor! If you do not have a whole chicken on hand, you can use other chicken parts…it is best to use bone-in chicken, as the bones add a lot of nutrients and flavor to the soup while cooking.
Step 1: Add your raw whole chicken to a large stockpot. Add in low-sodium chicken broth, seasonings, vegetables, and water.
Step 2: Cover the pot and bring the chicken soup to a boil. It should take about 10-15 minutes to boil, depending on the depth of the soup pot.
Step 3: Once the soup is boiling, reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer gently for 1 hour. Turn the heat to low and let the soup simmer for one more hour. It is ready, or you can simmer it longer. The flavors will also build overnight while the soup is in the refrigerator.
Step 4: When the chicken soup is done, remove the chicken from the soup carefully to a serving dish. I use two spatulas and carefully lift and remove the chicken from the soup pot to a serving dish. It is fall-off-the-bone tender, and it may fall apart a little as you do this. You can use a slotted spoon to grab any bones that fall back into the soup.
Next, I like to remove the chicken meat from the carcass and put some of the shredded chicken meat back into the soup. You can set aside the rest of the cooked chicken to use to make enchiladas or chicken salad if you want.
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Step 5: Serve the soup hot with rice or noodles.
Pair this soup with gluten free bread for easy dipping: Gluten Free Biscuits or this Gluten Free Dinner Roll recipe.
Prep Ahead:
This soup recipe is a dump-ahead recipe, meaning there is very little to prep. If you plan to prep this soup ahead to save some time, you can pre-chop the vegetables and store them in an airtight container. This way, you only have to dump them into the pot to make this chicken soup recipe in advance.
Common Mistakes to Avoid:
This soup is pretty fail proof, but the one mistake often made is letting the chicken soup liquid cook down too far. This soup simmers for a long time, so it is normal to add water in to keep the chicken covered.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Most chicken broth is gluten free, but I highly encourage you to read the labels. Look for any gluten-containing ingredients, such as yeast extract.
Some brands of gluten free pasta definitely hold up better than others. I like Jovial and Barilla pasta brands for chicken soup. As I mentioned above, you do not want to cook these in your soup…but these noodles will hold up to sitting in a bowl of soup for a little while.
You do not have to use a whole chicken to make this soup recipe. You can also use bone-in chicken parts. My neighbor loves using bone-in chicken thighs. You need to make sure your chicken pieces are bone-in, as the bone minerals are what make this soup so good!!
If you enjoy using your Instant Pot, I created a version of this soup that you can make in it! This Instant Pot Chicken Soup recipe has the same flavors, but it cooks in less time. Our family also loves making this Instant Pot Vegetable Soup with Chicken.
How to store leftover chicken soup:
This soup will keep fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container. You will notice the chicken fat congeals on top of the soup. You can use a spoon to scrape the fat off if you like. You can reheat it on the stove or in your microwave oven.
You can also freeze the soup. I highly recommend freezing it in Souper Cubes. These are one-cup-sized cubes that are perfect for a single serving! Freeze in the Souper Cubes, then move the frozen cubes to a freezer-safe zip-style bag. The frozen soup will keep fresh for up to 5 months.
More Homemade Soup Recipes to Try:
If you love chicken as much as we do, you will want to check out ALL of my delicious, easy Gluten Free Chicken Recipes!!
- This recipe is made without a roux and tastes amazing! Gluten Free Oyster Chowder (works well with clams for clam chowder too!)
- Another great winter soup: Turmeric Chicken Soup
- For my spice lovers, this Taco Chicken Soup is hard to resist.
- If you love wild rice, this Chicken Rice Soup is also delish!
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Grandma’s Homemade Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 1 whole raw chicken
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 1 large onion
- 5 chopped carrots
- 3 chopped celery stalks
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 quart chicken broth low sodium
- 4 cups water
- fresh parsley is optional
Method
- Add 1 whole raw chicken to a large stock pot. Add 1 quart chicken broth and then fill the pot with 4 cups waterto cover the chicken.
- Chop 1 large onion, 3 chopped celery stalks, and 5 chopped carrots. Add 3 cloves minced garlic, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons dried basil, 2 teaspoons dried thyme, and 1 teaspoon ground black pepper. Add all ingredients to the soup pot. Cover and simmer on medium-high low until the soup boils.
- Once the soup is boiling, turn down the temperature to medium for 1 hour. Stir the soup and make sure the chicken is still covered by the soup. Add more water if needed. Put the lid back on the pot, and turn the cooking temperature down to low, and simmer for another hour.
- After cooking in the soup, the chicken will be fall off the bone soft and tender. Carefully remove the chicken from the soup pot to a serving dish. Do this carefully holding two spatulas, so the chicken doesn't fall apart. Cut the chicken meat into pieces and add the chicken pieces back to the soup. Garnish with fresh parsley if you like.
- Serve hot with rice or noodles. My grandmother served it over rice, this is totally optional.
Nutrition
Notes
- This recipe uses a whole raw chicken. The chicken cooks directly in the soup, making the broth full of rich chicken flavors!
- If you do not have a whole chicken, you can use chicken parts. The soup will taste the best if you use bone-in chicken parts. The bone broth is what adds to the flavor.
- You can use fresh or dried herbs.
- I like to add a small rutabaga or turnip sometimes for a flavor boost. It is totally optional, but if you try this, peel the rutabaga first.
- This chicken soup is even better the next day.
- This soup will keep fresh for up to 4 days in an airtight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.
Private Notes
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!
I truly hope you enjoy this recipe. I have been testing and creating gluten-free recipes for over 15 years. Creating gluten-free recipes that do not taste gluten-free is my goal for every recipe. Sometimes I only have to test a new recipe a couple of times, and others it takes multiple times. I do this so you get reliable, delicious results every time!
So good and comforting and easy! Added lemon and evoo to finish.
I am so glad you loved the soup. I am going to try some lemon next time. Thanks for the idea.
so easy to prepare with little on hand ingredients! really helped our flu! thank you so much for sharing , I will absolutely be making this again!!!
I am glad you found a new favorite chicken soup recipe to make. Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review.
This soup is wonderful, the best recipe I have ever used for chicken soup! Everyone really liked it.
I am so glad you loved this soup recipe, Leslie. Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review.
Its very close to my mothers Recipe the best a large pack chicken gizzards they add flavor plus their and tender after 2 1/2 cooking in the soup POLISH STYLE
Hi Al, thank you so much for coming back to let me know you loved this soup. I like the idea of adding the gizzards, I bet that adds great flavor.
Delicious. I never do it without parsley root though! Since I live alone, I do it once a week in a huge double pot. I buy a whole chicken and keep the breasts and tights for other recipes. All the rest goes in the bottom of the pot including skin and neck. The veggies go on the top. When ready, I filter the broth and freeze the whole separately in parts. Sometimes I blend the cooked veggies that can keep frozen with some of the broth and it makes a delicious “veloute”. I eat (or serve it) with garlicky croutons or with yogurt. The filtered broth will be fine for onion soup also! Bon Appetit!
I love your idea to use parsley root. I will have to see if I can pick one up at our farmer’s market this weekend. I am so glad you loved this soup recipe, thank you!
5 stars! This recipe easy to make. So much flavor, I didn’t even use chick broth or stock, but I did use very leafy celery stalks and got a lot of flavor from that. I made a side of WILD rice and add that to each bowl, so as not to overcook the rice. Excellent recipe. Will make this again, and two other people asked me for the recipe! Will share! So much flavor!
Thank you so much, Sally. I am really glad you loved this soup recipe.
Love this soup! Great for fall and winter. I just have one question, the recipe says to cover and simmer on medium-high low until the soup boils. How long should that take? I usually bring to boil on high heat. Does it make a difference?
I am so glad you loved this soup. Thank you so much. As for your question, I let it broil on medium high…boiling on high is good, but you will want to turn it down after it starts to boil (maybe 10 min of high boil?)
Thank you Sandi. I have an electric stove, so it’s kind of tricky. I brought it to a boil at an 8 (rather than 10, which is the highest) I have it simmering on low now. Thank you for the advice.
That makes sense. We just switched to an induction stove, and it can be a little finiky as well. I hope you enjoy the soup.
This soup is so easy to make and so delicious and healthy!! I make a double batch and give some to my kids, they also love it.
I am so glad you loved my grandma’s soup. Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review.
Very delicious soup! Will be making it more often!
I am so glad you loved the soup, Trish. Thank you!
Hi! I’ve made this soup several times now and have finessed it to perfection (for us)! It makes so much so I shared with neighbors & my in-laws. It’s always well received.
I add fennel seed ( 1.5 tsp) and extra vegetables to balance the amount of broth.
Thanks for sharing this great recipe! Truly food that makes you feel good.
Hi Laura, that is so interesting about the fennel seed. It sounds intriguing and I can’t wait to try that. I am so glad you love this soup and had fun changing it up!