This Homemade Chicken Zucchini Soup tastes like childhood but is made a little healthier with no processed ingredients. And by adding zucchini noodles, you get extra helpings of veggies as well.
My mom used to make homemade chicken noodle soup often when I was growing up. She always made it from scratch starting with homemade chicken stock. And on extra special occasions, she’d even make homemade noodles and roll them out by hand for the soup. (And yes… I grew up just a wee bit spoiled with good old-fashioned home cooking!)
The only thing I’ve changed from my mom’s original method is the noodles, I’ve replaced the old version with zucchini noodles, or zoodles if you will. I like to make my noodles with a bigger blade sometimes so the noodles come out thick like the ones my mom made.
But I’ve also been spiralizing them about the size of spaghetti because I think the texture is just right with the rest of the soup.
Now let’s talk about the ingredients
- Chicken Stock/Broth – homemade chicken stock always makes the best soup, there’s no 2 ways about it. However,… 1 really great solution is a quality bone broth from the freezer section. I’ve tried some of the boxed chicken stocks/broth and they’re ok, but they don’t make a great soup.
- Mirepoix – which is just the fancy cooking term for onions, carrots, and celery. This mixture of vegetables is perfect as the base of any soup, but most definitely for chicken soup.
- Chicken – you can add any leftover bits you have from a roast chicken, (which can also be turned into stock). Or you can sauté some cubed chicken thigh or chicken breast meat to add to your soup as well. Leftover rotisserie chicken also works great in this soup.
- Zucchini Noodles – I like to use the Paderno 3-blade spiralizer for zucchini noodles. But if you don’t have a spiralizer you can just chop up the zucchini to add to the soup.
- Sea salt and pepper – it’s important to add salt and black pepper pepper to taste in this soup. If you use homemade chicken stock you’ll need more soup. If you buy chicken broth, look for low sodium so you can control the amount of salt in your soup.
Now let’s get started making this Homemade Chicken Zucchini Noodle Soup
For homemade soups, you want to chop your veggies relatively small because they’ll only be simmering for 20-30 minutes. For the onion, stalks of celery, and carrots, I diced them into 1/4″ dice and or slices.
My Mom’s Tip: Don’t be afraid of celery leaves, chop them right up and put them into your soup or stock as well because they add a lot of flavor.
Once the soup has simmered and the veggies are tender, you can add the zucchini noodles as is, or you can thicken it a bit first.
I like to thicken it to give it some body, otherwise, it will be really thin without any of the usual starches like noodles or rice to thicken it.
I’ve found it’s best to add the zucchini noodles and then immediately remove the pan from the heat. The zucchini noodles will cook perfectly with the residual heat of the soup.
Sometimes I make chicken soup with leftover chicken chunks, and sometimes if I don’t have anything leftover from my roast, I just make the soup without any meat at all.
Either way, if you make your own chicken stock the soup will have a deep chicken flavor that’s really the ultimate comfort food for all the cold days we’re about to have!
Ways to serve this
- Enjoy with your favorite crackers or my Almond Flour Rosemary Crackers. This soup is also good with crusty bread or biscuits.
- Add some leftover cooked rice to bulk up this soup if you have any on hand.
Storing leftovers
- To store – place any leftover soup into an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- Reheating – add your leftover soup to a saucepan and cook over medium heat until heated through.
- To freeze – the zucchini noodles don’t freeze well, but you can freeze the soup without them. Then thaw the soup in the fridge, bring the soup to a boil, and add the zucchini noodles.
Tips & Tricks
- Don’t worry if you don’t have a spiralizer to make zucchini noodles. Cut the zucchini into quarters lengthwise, then thinly slice them into triangles and add them to the soup near the end of the cooking time.
- This soup is perfect to use up leftover rotisserie chicken, roast chicken, or even leftover pork roast.
Final Note: This whole recipe can be made with a leftover roast turkey, but you’ll end up with about 3x as much because turkey’s are so much bigger!
More Soup Recipe Inspiration
- Chicken Broccoli Soup
- Healthy Zuppa Toscana
- Creamy Taco Soup
- Thai Curry Noodle Soup
- Italian Sausage Butternut Squash Soup
I really hope you enjoy this Chicken Zucchini Noodle Soup recipe! If you do get a chance to make this recipe, I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Homemade Chicken Zucchini Noodle Soup
INGREDIENTS
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow or white onion - diced 1/4″, 12 ounces
- 2 cups celery - sliced 1/4", 6 ounces, 2-3 stalks celery
- 4 carrots - peeled and sliced 1/4″, 6 ounces
- 4 cups chicken stock - unsalted homemade, or low sodium
- 1/2 tsp sea salt - or to taste, this will vary based on your chicken stock
- 2 cups chopped cooked chicken - leftover from a roast chicken, 1 pound
- 4 tbsp tapioca starch - can be omitted
- 2 medium zucchini - 1 pound
- black pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place a large pot over medium-high heat, when the pan is preheated add the olive oil, onion, celery, and carrots. Sauté the veggies for 3-4 minutes until they're just starting to soften.
- Add the chicken stock and simmer over low heat until the veggies are completely tender about 20 minutes.
- While the soup simmers, spiralize the zucchini using the bigger blade on the Paderno machine to make really thick noodles.
- When the veggies are tender, season the soup to taste with sea salt, and add the optional cooked chicken.
- Mix the tapioca starch together with just enough water to completely dissolve it, about 6 Tablespoons.
- Slowly drizzle the tapioca mixture into the simmering soup stirring continuously until all the tapioca is added and the soup has thickened.
- Add the zucchini noodles to the pot and remove it from the heat, the zucchini noodles will cook perfectly with the residual heat of the soup.
- Serve immediately.
I like soup in cold weather but I have lots of zucchini now, have you made it and froze it for later on? I have a large freezer and often make large batches of soup and then freeze it for later. I don’t really like frozen zucchini, blanched and frozen. Comes out so mushy and watery. Any suggestions?
I haven’t found any way that zucchini freezes well, it’s always watery and mushy for me too. You could always make the soup without zucchini and freeze it for later. You could add zucchini noodles when you’re ready to serve it, or add rice or pasta shapes instead of zucchini. I hope this helps!
I make a similar soup but I roast a head of garlic in advance to add to it and I exchange the chicken stock for chicken bone broth. I love the deep rich flavor of the Pacific Foods brand. So delicious!
I love the sound of the roasted garlic, so much yummy flavor!
What a sneaky and beautiful way to add veggies to a such a classic definitely going to veganize this for myself.
You could definitely veganize this easily, and I sure hope you enjoy it!
I love that you added zoodles to the mix! then you feel so light after eating it haha
It’s definitely a great combo of light but still filling and comforting!
Comfort food at its finest!! Perfect for all of this chilly weather!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Does this soup freeze well?
You can freeze this soup without the zucchini noodles and add them in later. Unfortunately zucchini doesn’t freeze very well, it breaks down and becomes watery, so it’s best to add it in fresh!
Looks like a must try recipe! yummy!
Thanks so much, I hope you enjoy it!
Do you have the nutritional information on this receipe?
I don’t have the nutritional info for this recipe, but you can use an online calculator and I’ll include a link below. I hope you enjoy the recipe, and be sure to let me know if you have anymore questions! 🙂
https://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calculator.asp
what can I use in place of tapioca starch?
My first recommendation in place of tapioca would be an organic cornstarch, and if you can’t have corn, arrowroot will work but the texture can often be on the slimy side, so it’s my least favorite alternative thickener. I hope this helps, and be sure to let me know how it goes, or if you have anymore questions! 🙂
Good job! Tastes great and well written!
Thank you Mary, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂