Homestyle Chicken Noodle Soup
This thick and creamy homestyle chicken noodle soup is packed with hearty noodles and veggies. It is the definition of delicious comfort food!
Chicken noodle soup is one of the easiest soups to make at home, and this creamy version (with those homemade-style noodles!) is a tried-and-true favorite!
How to “Homestyle” Chicken Noodle Soup
“Homestyle” simply means this chicken noodle soup is thicker, heartier, and a bit more substantial than regular brothy variations of the classic soup.
We achieve this homestyle effect in three ways:
- adding milk to the soup (a non-dairy milk should work just fine)
- thickening the soup with a simple roux
- using homestyle egg noodles in place of regular dried egg noodles
Speaking of the roux, I took notes from this crazy popular creamy chicken soup and employed the same technique for thickening.
The result is a thick-but-not-too-thick, silky-smooth chicken noodle soup that is perfect in every way.
The Best Noodles for Chicken Noodle Soup
The noodles are important here. (Let’s be honest, noodles are always important!)
To help amplify the homestyle taste and consistency, the best kind of noodles to use for this soup are frozen egg noodles. Two popular brands are Grandma’s and Reames. I can easily find them in the freezer section of my local grocery store next to bread dough/rolls (I’ve also seen them at Albertsons, Walmart, and many other stores).
{If you can’t find frozen egg noodles, use dried old-fashioned or “country” style egg noodles; they are thicker and heartier than regular dried egg noodles.}
I don’t thaw the frozen noodles before using. They are clumped together in the package, but once they cook for a few minutes in the hot broth, they separate nicely.
Bonus Tip: here’s a recipe for homemade egg noodles if you want to make your own noodles for this soup!
This homestyle chicken noodle soup is incredible! Homey and comforting, it is one of our all-time favorite soups.
It sounds weird, but we usually serve this soup (actually all forms of chicken noodle soup) with saltine crackers and slices of sharp cheddar cheese. Does anyone else do this? Are we total weirdos? Even if we are, it’s become a solid chicken noodle soup tradition, and I don’t see us breaking up with it any time soon.
I hope you love this one! It’s so perfect for a simple weeknight dinner…and tasty enough for serving to company, taking to a potluck, or bringing in to a family or friend when a meal is needed. 💗
P.S. If you are fans of this chicken noodle stew recipe, you probably notice some similarities with this homestyle chicken noodle soup. What’s different? This soup, while still nice and thick and creamy, has more broth, a different thickening method, and a few less add-ins…so, like the name implies, it has more of a soup feel to it than a stew.
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Homestyle Chicken Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 10 cups chicken broth
- 16 ounces frozen egg noodles (see note)
- 1 ½ cups diced carrots
- 1 cup diced celery
- ½ cup diced onions
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspon dried parsley
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup milk
- 3 to 4 cup cooked, chopped chicken
Instructions
- For the soup, in a large pot, add the broth and bring to a simmer. Stir in the frozen egg noodles and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the diced carrots, celery, onions, bay leaf, parsley, and salt. Cover the pot, fully or partially, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until the noodles and veggies are tender, stirring now and then to make sure the noodles aren't sticking.
- For the roux, while the soup simmers, in a small saucepan, add the olive oil and butter and cook on medium heat until the butter is melted. Add the flour and whisk to combine until a smooth paste forms. Remove from the heat.
- Add the milk to the soup and heat through. While stirring, scrape the roux into the soup and cook, stirring or whisking constantly, over medium heat until the soup has thickened slightly, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Stir in the chicken, season to taste with salt and pepper (this is important for flavor!) and heat through.
- Remove the bay leaf. Serve immediately or keep warm until ready to serve. The soup will thicken more as it cools.
Delicious! This was the first time I have used frozen noodles. Thank you for encouraging me to try them.
This is COMFORT FOOD! I made it 2 nights in a row!! 🙂
Thanks, Mel!
@recipe frozen
What are your thoughts about adapting this for the slow cooker?
I think it’s a great idea!! But I haven’t tried it that way so I don’t have a whole lot to recommend. Let me know if you try it!
My Mom always served soup or chili with saltines and slices of cheese. I haven’t thought of that in a long time.
Absolutely amazing!! I made it exactly as written! My husband told me to throw all of my other chicken noodle soup recipes away because the other ones would be so disappointing now that he knows this one exists. It’s so flavorful! Definitely my new go-to recipe!
Hug from Grandma in a bowl. This is my new go-to chicken noodle soup recipe. The milk addition made me nervous, but I always trust Mel. Outstanding soup! Thank you, MEL!
“hug from grandma in a bowl” is literally the best description of this soup ever
Wow, wow, wow. I cannot rave enough about this recipe. The family could not have been more complimentary. I did make my own broth and maybe added a few more noodles since we love noodles so much. Best chicken noodle soup ever (don’t tell my dad).
INCREDIBLE. I’m loving these frozen home style noodles! I’ve never heard of them before and we’re all blown away. We didn’t have any crackers or bread to go with it but we did have goldfish… and it’s amazing! Haha!
Haha, I LOVE that twist on cheese + crackers! And I agree, those frozen noodles are so hearty and delicious.
This soup was so good!! I made it in the Insta Pot as my stove was on the blink and I had read in the comments that someone had done so with success. The frozen noodles were delicious! Perfect for the cooler weather! Thank you!
That’s fantastic it worked out so well in the Instant Pot, Ann!
Perfectly delicious. I would expect nothing less from you, but great job once again! Your site is my absolute go to!!!
Thank you so much, Jen!
This is THE BEST chicken noodle soup recipe! My whole family agreed. Super flavorful and just a little thicker than traditional chicken noodle soup. I didn’t have cooked chicken so I threw in some chopped raw chicken with the veggies and it worked great!
Great feedback, Madison. Thank you!
This soup is creamy and super flavorful! Another home run by Mel!
This soup is incredible!! So easy and the noodles are really delicious. I doubled this recipe so I could give some away and it hardly took any more time than a single recipe. I also made the Soft and Fluffy rolls and the Applesauce Spice Cake and this meal was a hit. I have usually made the Chicken Noodle Stew and this is similar and equally delicious. One tip I have: if you only have frozen chicken, put it in to cook when you are heating your broth (but before you put in the noodles). Cook the chicken through; remove it, then proceed with the recipe.
Don’t underestimate a chicken noodle soup! So hearty and creamy and delicious.
Loved this recipe! My husband said “this is a keeper”! Thickens really well, tastes great! I did add 1 tsp thyme to it. Slightly thicker the next day as it cooled in the fridge but warmed up nicely. Great recipe Mel! Hits the spot!
Thanks for the review, Carlee!
Only thing I did differently was sauté the veggies while the noodles were cooking because my husband only likes super soft veggies in soup and I was not sure if just adding them to the broth and cooking that way would make them soft enough. Other than that, I followed the recipe exactly as written and it was delicious and comforting! Will definitely make agin.
Thanks for the review, Melissa!
Absolutely delicious! Thank you!
Thanks, Debbie!
I just made this for tonight’s dinner and it’s delicious!
All I had on hand was the dried “country” style egg noodles and mine turned out significantly thicker than your picture. Followed the rest of the recipe to a tee. Do the dried noodles absorb more liquid than the frozen? Should I increase broth next time?
Hi Natalie, it probably depends on brand, I think – but yes, you can add broth partway (or at the end) of cooking if needed.
I made this soup last night and it is wonderful … The best ever sooo yummy. definitely a new addition to our family meals… Sooooo Good!
I’m so happy you liked it, Bonnie! Thanks for letting me know!
Can leftovers be frozen?
I haven’t tried freezing this – might work ok, although it will probably be quite a bit thicker after thawing (and the noodles may be softer).
Can’t wait to try this! Do you think homemade egg noodles would work?
Yes! I think they’d work great! I commented to Sharon below, but I do think if using homemade noodles, I’d add them after the veggies have cooked in the broth.
If using homemade noodles would you cook the veggies first then add in the noodles are make it as written?
Good question, Sharon…yes, I would cook the vegetables until almost all the way tender and then add the homemade noodles since they’ll cook much faster than frozen or dried noodles.
Do you think it would work with mandarin oranges instead of the chicken and Coca Cola instead of the broth? I know, right? I thought it would be good, too, but it wasn’t.
Um….better luck next time.
Delicious! I made it in the instant pot using chopped raw chicken and dry noodles. I set it to cook 8 min, then had to release the pressure very slowly since it was so full. Then I whisked in the roux. Veggies and chicken were cooked perfectly.
Thanks so much for including your variation for the Instant Pot!!
This looks delicious!! Making tomorrow!! With crusty bread
Hope you love it, Elisabeth!
Question: could this be made with chicken bone broth in place of the standard broth?
Yes, I think you could definitely do that!