Chicken Noodle Soup is a comforting classic for all ages. With this simple and quick recipe, you’ll never compromise flavor by buying canned noodle soup again!
In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion starts to turn translucent, about 8 minutes.
Add the chicken breasts and bay leaves. Pour in the stock. Bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes.
Remove the chicken pieces and place on a tray to cool for a few minutes. Chop into bite-sized pieces. Return the chicken to the pot and stir in the black pepper. Taste and add 3/4 teaspoon salt or more to taste.
Increase the heat to medium and stir in the noodles. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the noodles are tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. Discard the bay leaves. Adjust seasoning if needed. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
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Notes
Don’t overcook the noodles. The noodles will continue to soften as they sit in the hot soup, so cook them in the broth until they are tender but have a little firmness left (al dente) before removing the soup from the heat.
Remove the bay leaf before serving. Once the soup has simmered and the noodles are cooked, the bay leaves have served their purpose and released their flavor, so remove and discard them before serving.
Add other flavorings. Stir in fresh herbs you have on hand, like chopped fresh dill, rosemary, or thyme. Add the juice and rinds from one lemon in the last few minutes of cooking. Top each serving with a generous sprinkling of grated parmesan cheese and ground black pepper.
Hold off on cooking the noodles when making this recipe ahead of time. If you plan to make and store this recipe as meal prep for the week, I recommend not adding the noodles. Instead, when ready to serve, reheat the soup to a simmer, add the noodles, and cook them according to the recipe.
Use cooked or leftover chicken. In this recipe, substitute 2 cups of cooked chicken, shredded from a rotisserie chicken or leftover roasted chicken, in place of the raw chicken breasts. After the stock and vegetables have simmered for about 20 minutes, add the shredded chicken and then increase the heat to medium and simmer before adding the noodles.