Recently I scrolled past a TikTok sharing a man’s POV of arriving home from work to see his wife had dinner ready and waiting in the crock pot. He promptly dropped to the floor and tried crawling back out the door.
I about fell out of my chair (many of the commenters did not, which I understand!) As a recipe creator though, I got a kick out of it because crock pot recipes CAN be kind of gloopy, boring, and bland with no texture or color.
Luckily Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is not one of those recipes!
This nourishing, brothy, slow cooked soup recipe tastes like something you’d get at a local deli or cafe. It’s filled with colorful, healthy veggies, bold herbs and seasonings, tender chicken, and plump wild rice. This dish is as easy as it is 3-bowl worthy!
Watch How to Make It!
Simple Cozy Comfort Food
Not only is this chicken wild rice soup one of my favorite cool-weather recipes, but it’s also one of my favorite recipes to take to someone in need of a comforting meal. Whether they’re sick, just had a new baby, or any other reason in between—it’s true what they say: chicken soup feeds the soul!
That said, I’ll usually ask the recipient if they want the soup already slow cooked and delivered warm, OR as a meal kit so they can toss it into their own crock pot, OR as a freezer pack so they can make the soup when it suits them best. This recipe is super versatile and a crowd favorite. The flavor and eating experience is just so cozy!
Ingredients Needed
I love that I always have the ingredients for Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup on hand. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken breasts: trust me when I tell you that chicken breasts only need to slow cook for 4 hours on low to become juicy and tender. Any longer and you’ll end up with tough, dry, chicken.
- Vegetables: onion or shallot, carrots, and celery provide a boost of nutrition.
- Garlic: can’t have chicken soup without it!
- Dried herbs and seasonings: salt, pepper, dried thyme, dried ground sage, dried rosemary, and bay leaves give this soup lots of cozy flavor.
- Butter: this soup is low in fat, so a couple pats of butter add flavor and a little richness.
- Chicken stock or broth: you can use chicken stock or chicken broth interchangeably in this recipe. Homemade Instant Pot Chicken Stock would be great!!
- Wild rice-brown rice blend: this recipe uses a wild rice brown rice blend vs straight brown rice or straight wild rice. I’ll share the brand I recommend using below.
Can You Freeze Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup?
Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is one of my favorite recipes to freeze before cooking. Add all the ingredients except the broth into a Ziplock freezer bag then freeze flat. 24 hours before slow cooking, thaw the bag in the refrigerator then pour into the crock pot. Add broth and push “on”—easy!
FYI: the USDA advises you don’t cook frozen chicken in slow cookers, which is why I thaw the freezer pack before adding to the crock pot.
Another tip: I’ve had readers freeze the meal kit with chicken bullion, so all they have to do is add water when they pour the ingredients into the slow cooker, which I think is so brilliant!
How to Make This Recipe
Step 1: Add the ingredients to the crock pot. Told you this was easy! ;) Add all the ingredients into a 6 quart crock pot then stir, cover, and cook on LOW for 4 hours.
Step 2: Shred the chicken. Remove the cooked chicken from the crock pot with tongs, then shred and stir back into the soup.
Like I mentioned, I think a common misconception is that chicken breasts need to be slow cooked for many hours but that is totally not the case. It should shred with the tap of a fork after just 4 hours in the slow cooker!
My Favorite Rice to Use
The brown rice-wild rice blend I recommend for the perfect bowl of Crock Pot Chicken & Wild Rice Soup is Lundberg Wild Blend rice. It slow cooks in the same amount of time as the chicken so everything is perfectly cooked and done at the same time.
That said, if you use a different brand of rice it could take longer to cook. If that’s the case, store the shredded chicken in the refrigerator until the rice is ready then stir it in just before serving.
How to Store Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
This soup re-heats fabulously. Let it cool until the soup is nearly room temperature then scoop into airtight containers and store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a pot on the stovetop. You might need to add an extra splash of chicken stock or broth when reheating.
I find that cooked > frozen > thawed > reheated rice doesn’t hold up well, so I don’t recommend freezing this soup recipe once it’s been cooked.
Crock Pot Chicken & Wild Rice Soup truly is one of our family’s favorite meals. My kids and husband find it filling and comforting, and I love that it’s so, so easy to put together and (slow) cook. I usually serve with a side salad, or garlic butter bread and we’re off to the races. I hope you and yours love this easy, crock pot soup recipe as much as we do – enjoy!
More Cozy Chicken Soup Recipes
- CrockPot White Chicken Chili
- Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
- Easy Chicken and Rice Soup
- One Pot Chicken and Rice
- Gluten Free Homestyle Chicken and Noodles
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Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Description
Crock Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is a quick and healthy crock pot recipe that's perfect for busy nights. Add all the ingredients in the crock pot then push on!
Ingredients
- 1lb chicken breasts
- 1 small onion or large shallot, minced
- 2 carrots, thinly sliced (~1 cup)
- 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon dried ground sage
- small pinch dried rosemary, crushed between your fingers
- 1 large or 2 small bay leaves
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cup wild rice-brown rice blend (I recommend Lundberg Farms)
Directions
- Add all ingredients into a 6-quart crock pot then cook on LOW for 4 hours or until chicken breasts are cooked through. Rice should be done around the same time. Shred chicken then stir back into soup and serve (soup will thicken slightly as it cools.)
Notes
- Depending on the type of rice you use, it may not be cooked through at 4 hours. If that's the case, shred chicken then keep in the refrigerator until rice is tender, then stir into soup and let warm for 5 minutes before serving.
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
Video
Mine turned out super bland and watery ? I would recommend doubling the rice but I was super disappointed with how flavorless this came out
This is my go to chicken and wild rice soup recipe. I usually make it at least twice a month during the winter So easy and good!
Thank you so much for your recipe review and star rating, Pam!!
With so many chicken and wild rice soup recipes out there to choose from, this really means a lot. Thanks Pam!
So good! Love how easy it is with the crockpot too, def a good to for us!
We loved this!
Excited to try this recipe! If I double or triple the ingredients, how do I adjust the cooking time? Thanks!
Absolutely the best soup I have ever made. I have made this 4 times and it comes out perfect every time. I omit the garlic just because we don’t like it. The recipe. Is so easy. So perfect.
Thank you so much for your awesome review, Lin! I really appreciate it!
I’ve made this before and it was so good. I’m making it again tonight, but in my Instant Pot. Fingers crossed!
Perfect recipe! Followed it exactly but threw in a rind of Parmesan. So delish! If you do Parm rind I’d back off the salt. Other than that delicious, love this recipe!
This recipe is up there on the list of the most exquisite soups I’ve made. I added mushrooms and a wild rice/lentil blend, very delicious.
Hello! Have you tried this with olive oil instead of butter/earth balance? I usually make a recipe similar to the Byerly’s recipe, but it’s plump full of dairy and gluten. :) having a dinner party soon with people with food restrictions and wanted to serve this soup, but since my family eats dairy, I’d rather not buy earth balance just for a little in soup. But I’m worried olive oil would be a strong flavor or just lack the creaminess of butter. Thoughts? :)
Hi Holly! You can just leave it out – it should be just fine! :)
I have some precooked shredded chicken I would like to use in this. Do you think the cook time would be roughly the same? Anything you would do different?
This was very good! First recipe I have tried off your site. I tweaked it slightly because of my other dietary restrictions…omitted the garlic and celery and added a little more chicken. I used a homemade broth. Definitely took longer than four hours, more like five to five and a half. But really loved how quick it was to throw together and that the chicken didn’t need to be cooked first! Will definitely be trying other recipes from you, and making this one again! Thanks.
Bland recipe, next one I am going to try is with adding chicken bones to cook and chicken stock instead of chicken broth I think would have given this a better flavor. I am new cook so just trying this one out.
Can I use frozen chicken breasts?
Hi Mary! It’s advised that frozen meat is not cooked in a crock pot. That said, I’ve only ever used thawed chicken for this dish.
Can this recipe be doubled in the crockpot?
Hello from Omaha! The city where we go from mid 80° early in the week to 50 or 60° weather by the end of week. When I woke up this morning and it was 50°, I knew this Sunday would consist of crockpots and soup! This recipe was absolutely delightful! The perfect dump and go for a lazy day or a busy afternoon. 4 hours later I could smell the savory seasonings, combined with rice and chicken through out the whole house. This recipe is definitely a keeper and my new fall/winter to go!
So you know the calories for a serving of this soup. Thanks in advance
The taste is delicious!! The soup is very easy to make but after 4 hours on low all the vegetables were still crunchy.
Oh shoot, I’m sorry to hear that, LB. I’ve had that happen to me before when I sliced them too quickly. I hope you were able to salvage the soup!
Just made this today. So delicious! Very easy and a family fav!
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