Dec 28, 2019

5 from 19 votes

This slow cooker chicken soup is a flavorful twist on the classic Chicken Parmesan made with pasta, chicken, and cheese in a delicious tomato broth. You're going to want seconds!

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This Parmesan Chicken soup is a flavorful twist on the classic pasta dish and made in the slow cooker for an easy meal you can enjoy any day of the week.

You’re going to want seconds!

Soup is one of my favorite meals to make, and this is a one-bowl wonder thanks to the slow cooker! All you need is a few pantry staples and that pound of chicken from the freezer, and you’ll have a delicious meal waiting for you to get home.

image: closeup of white bowl filled with red chicken and pasta soup

If you love this soup recipe, then you’re sure to love the slow cooker version of Chicken Parmesan. It’s chicken cutlets slow-cooked with cheese, tomato sauce, and breadcrumbs without all the breading and frying.

Is Chicken Parmesan Soup Healthy?

It’s real food made at home and yes, a much more wholesome choice than takeout or the drive-thru.

This soup is an incredible comfort food dinner you can make in the slow cooker with pasta, canned diced tomatoes, chicken broth, chicken breasts, and cheese. While it’s not low-carb, paleo, keto (and it doesn’t have to be any of those to be healthy), it’s home-cooked with real, fresh ingredients, and to me, that’s what counts.

image: grating small block of parmesan over a bowl of chicken parmesan soup.

Ingredients

Grab your slow cooker, and let’s get to the recipe! First, you’ll want to check the fridge for:

Onion
Chicken – boneless, skinless breast or thighs
Parmesan cheese
Shredded Mozzarella cheese

Now check the pantry for:

Garlic – the powder kind will do
Tomato paste
Diced tomatoes
Chicken broth
Italian seasoning
Red pepper flakes
Penne pasta – or any shelled kind

How To Make Parmesan Chicken Soup

Now that you have your ingredients, you’re just four simple steps away from this epic soup.

Combine Everything in the Slow Cooker
Excluding the pasta and cheeses, those go in last.
Cover and Cook
Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook the soup on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.
Time to Add the Pasta and Cheese
Once the chicken is cooked through, stir in the pasta and most of the cheese. Cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes.
Soups on!
Time to ladle the soup into a bowl, top with remaining Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese! Grab a spoon and enjoy!

image: bowl of chicken and pasta soup, with blocks of parmesan cheese in the background.

Related: More Soup Dinner Ideas

Frozen Chicken or Pre-cooked?

I love this question because you can use both!! If you’re short on time, a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken or leftover chopped grilled chicken can cut this recipe into a 30-minute stove-top meal.

If you plan to use frozen chicken, make sure to defrost it before adding to the slow cooker. In case you are reading this, 3 hours before dinner, here are three easy methods to defrost chicken safely, *hint- the 2nd and 3rd option are your best choice.

Now let’s talk about how we can make this on the stove-top:

Saute
Heat some olive oil to a large soup pot or dutch oven. Add the onions and saute until golden brown, stir in the seasonings and tomato paste, and saute for an additional minute.
Add the pasta…
along with the broth and diced tomatoes, stir to combine and bring to a boil before reducing the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
Stir in the chicken and cheese
Add the cooked, chopped chicken and part of the cheese to the soup. Stir and allow it to simmer for 10 minutes or until the soup thickens and the chicken is heated through.
Dish up!
Grab a bowl, fill it with soup, and top with cheese. Congratulations, you’re ready to eat!

image: spoon of pasta and tomato coming up from large white bowl of chicken parmesan soup.

Best Herbs and Spices

This is an Italian inspired soup, so stick with your favorite Italian seasoning blend with basil, thyme, and oregano. Also, fresh chopped basil for topping would be divine!

Slow Cooker Soup Tips

We have a lot of slow cooker soups around here so I’d like to go ahead and share the best tips for making perfect soup in the slow cooker, every time:

1. Make sure you start right
Some ingredients hold up better during long periods of cooking without getting soggy. Here’s a general list of items you can add at the beginning of the recipe:

Vegetables – Onions, potatoes, carrots, celery, and tomatoes- both fresh and canned
Pantry – broth, spices, seasonings
Meat – chicken breasts, thighs, and drumsticks, pork, beef, and turkey.

2. Finish it off
30 minutes before serving, and THEN you can toss in these items:

Vegetables – peas, corn, canned beans, zucchini, and spinach.
Pantry – pasta, rice, and quinoa
Dairy – cheese, milk, cream, half & half, and coconut milk
Protein – seafood such as shrimp or fish

3. Chop ingredients in uniform size
Everything will cook evenly, and no one will get a spoonful of raw chicken and overcooked carrot.

4. There’s an order
You might have never thought about the order to place ingredients in a slow cooker, but there is a method! Longer cooking items such as meat and vegetables do best when they are placed first, they’ll be closer to the heat and cook evenly.

5. Cook time
While it’s tempting to turn up the heat and cook that pot roast in 2 hours- don’t. Items like roasts, chili, stews, and cuts of pork and beef are best when slow-cooked. The meat will retain moisture and turn out tender, while the stews and chili thicken.

Everything else like soups, ground beef, or shredded chicken, like this recipe, can be cooked on high, no problem.