This homemade Healthy Chicken Soup is hearty, zesty and delicious and can be made in one pot in less than 30 minutes for a speedy weeknight meal! Made without noodles, this lemon chicken soup is still super filling, thanks to the shredded chicken, veggies and couscous. Perfect for cold and flu season! {Dairy-free}
It’s soup season and I’m officially IN LOVE with this super easy healthy chicken soup! Similar to my healthy chicken noodle soup recipe and chicken potato soup, it’s warm and cozy, yummy and hearty, and so flavourful!
This lemon chicken soup recipe is one that we’ve been making on repeat since it’s so simple to prepare and can be made all in one pot on the stove. Packed with shredded chicken, veggies, pearl couscous and plenty of zesty flavour, it’s ready to serve up in less than 30 minutes!
As an added bonus, our little guys devour this stuff. They literally can’t shovel it into their mouths fast enough and love drinking the flavourful broth. Gotta love those kid-friendly recipes!
Whether you make it for colds, to soothe a sore throat, or serve it as a quick weeknight meal, this homemade chicken soup is tough to beat!
Table of Contents
Why we love this no noodle chicken soup
- Perfect for cold and flu season: This is one giant bowl of comfort! Full of fresh nutrient-packed veggies, high in protein and antioxidants, this is the ultimate soup for when you have a cold or flu. The lemon and garlic infused broth is so soothing for sore throats too!
- One pot: This whole recipe is all made in one pot on the stovetop, so the prep and clean up is a breeze!
- Make ahead: This chicken soup is also perfect for meal prepping as you can make up an extra large batch in advance and eat it throughout the week or freeze for later!
Ingredient notes
The required ingredients are all pretty basic and can all be tossed into one pot for a tasty meal with minimal clean up!
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Vegetables: Onion, carrots, celery and garlic add a wonderful flavour to this soup, In addition to providing lots extra of vitamins and nutrients.
- Chicken breasts: Chicken breasts are boiled in broth and aromatics before being shredded. This process adds a great flavour to the finished soup. Use skinless boneless chicken breasts for best results.
- Chicken broth: Use a low sodium chicken broth for this recipe. Vegetable stock can also be used.
- Lemon: This recipe uses both lemon zest and juice for a fresh and zesty flavour. Use fresh rather than bottled lemon juice for the best taste and more vitamin C.
- Red pepper flakes: I love to add a bit of a kick to this homemade chicken soup. It’s optional, but highly recommended!
- Israeli (or Pearl) couscous: Couscous makes this soup so hearty and filling. You can also sub in quinoa or barley as well.
- Green onion: Sliced green onion adds a wonderful flavour and freshness, and I love the pop of colour. You can also use finely diced chives or fresh chopped parsley.
- Salt and pepper: Added to taste.
How to make chicken soup from scratch
- In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Cook onion, carrots and garlic for 3-4 minutes or until fragrant.
- Add broth, chicken breasts, lemon zest, lemon juice and red pepper flakes. Increase the heat to high, cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir in couscous or cooked quinoa and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off heat.
- Remove chicken from pot and shred using two forks. Return to the pot. Stir in the green onion. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve in bowls topped with a sprinkle of feta cheese and additional green onion or parsley, if desired.
Recipe Notes for the best chicken soup:
- You can use Israeli couscous for this soup, or barley or quinoa also work well.
- This soup tends to thicken up the longer that it sits since the grains absorb the liquid. You may wish to add a bit more broth before serving if you prefer a thinner soup, or if making it far in advance, wait to add the pearl couscous until ready to serve.
- If serving this soup to little ones, you may wish to halve or quarter the carrot slices to make it easier for them to eat. Alternatively, sometimes I’ll chop up baby carrots for smaller pieces that are easier for the kids to chew.
- If you have some shredded chicken that you want to use up or you’d prefer to use a rotisserie chicken to cut down on prep time, skip the step where you boil the chicken breasts and simply add the shredded chicken to the soup in the last few minutes of cooking.
Storage and reheating guidelines
Refrigerator: Let the soup cool completely and store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Freezer: Pack the soup in air-tight freezer-friendly containers or in large ziplock bags and freeze for up to 3 months.
How to reheat: If the soup has been in the freezer, place in the fridge overnight to defrost.
To reheat the soup, dump into a large sauce pan and bring to a light simmer until heated through. Alternatively, you can place in the microwave for a minute or so to reheat.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, it’s simple to make in the slow cooker! Just add everything to the slow cooker, except for the couscous and green onion, and cook on low for 6 hours. Stir in the couscous at the end of cooking time and let it cook for 10 minutes. Shred the chicken, add the green onion and stir everything together. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
This chicken soup is super flavourful with the lemon, garlic and red pepper flakes, but if you like, you can add in some additional seasonings like dried or fresh herbs, or even turmeric. You can also add more lemon juice if you prefer it super zesty.
Although the evidence isn’t incredibly strong, there are a number of studies that demonstrate that chicken soup may help to fight the common cold. One study found that sipping on hot chicken soup helped clear nasal congestion, but it was only effective only for a few minutes and it wasn’t any more effective than sipping on hot water. Other research suggests that chicken soup may contain anti-inflammatory substances that could help alleviate a cold, while some other theories claim that chicken soup helps with hydration and soothing a sore throat. Although there may not be a cure for the common cold, chicken soup is a comforting food that can provide emotional and psychological benefits to both adults and kids.
This is my favourite way of making homemade chicken soup from scratch. The lemon and garlic add an amazing fresh flavor and the veggies add a great earthy taste. It’s simply seasoned, but so delicious, it’s perfect in its simplicity! Red pepper flakes incorporate a nice spicy kick.
Not all chicken soups are healthy, since many tend to be high in sodium and lower in protein and fibre. This homemade chicken soup contains plenty of lean protein from the chicken breasts, in addition to fibre, vitamins and minerals from the vegetables. The sodium is kept in check by using a low sodium broth and fresh seasonings like garlic and lemon.
Yes. If you wish to omit the pearl couscous to make it gluten-free, sub in a cup of brown rice or quinoa instead. You may need to increase the cooking time slightly to allow the rice or quinoa to fully cook.
Yes! If you have some pre-shredded chicken kicking around that you prepared in the instant pot, slow cooker, on stove top or from a rotisserie chicken, feel free to use that instead of adding the chicken breasts to the broth. The benefit of using pre-shredded chicken is you can cut down the cooking time.
Serving suggestions
What I love about this soup is that it tastes amazing on its own, but it’s even BETTER with a few extra toppings!
Serve it topped with:
- Crumbled feta (to give it a Greek flair!)
- Additional sliced green onion
- Chopped parsley
- An extra squeeze of lemon juice if you’d like even more zesty flavour
What to serve with chicken soup
Serve up this healthy chicken soup with homemade crispy pita chips, kale chips, Greek cucumber noodle salad, crackers or crusty bread.
Chicken soup ideas & variations
- Different grains: Instead of Israeli couscous, try quinoa, barley, orzo, or rice!
- Make it low carb: Skip the couscous and sub in zucchini noodles or cauliflower rice.
- Extra veggies: Add in other vegetables like mushrooms or bell peppers.
- Make it with chicken thighs: I prefer to use breast as it shreds more easily, but thighs work great too, they just require and extra 5 to 10 minutes of cooking time.
- Make it vegetarian: Sub in cubed firm tofu for the chicken.
More healthy chicken soup recipes
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Healthy Chicken Soup {No Noodles}
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 cup thinly sliced carrots about two large carrots
- 3 celery stalks sliced
- 8 garlic cloves minced
- 1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts (or about 3 cups shredded chicken)
- 10 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- Zest of one lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
- Juice of half a lemon (about 1 tablespoon) or more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup Israeli or Pearl couscous or quinoa
- ¼ cup diced green onion
- Salt and pepper to taste
Optional Garnishes:
- Crumbled feta cheese
- Additional sliced green onion
- Chopped parsley
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Cook onion, carrots and garlic for 3-4 minutes or until fragrant.
- Add broth, chicken breasts, lemon zest, lemon juice and red pepper flakes. Increase the heat to high, cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir in couscous or cooked quinoa and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off heat.
- Remove chicken from pot and shred using two forks. Return to the pot. Stir in the green onion. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve in bowls topped with a sprinkle of feta cheese and additional green onion or parsley, if desired.
Notes
- You can use Israeli couscous for this soup, or barley or quinoa also work well.
- This soup tends to thicken up the longer that it sits since the grains absorb the liquid. You may wish to add a bit more broth before serving if you prefer a thinner soup, or if making it far in advance, wait to add the pearl couscous until ready to serve.
- If serving this soup to little ones, you may wish to halve or quarter the carrot slices to make it easier for them to eat. Alternatively, sometimes I’ll chop up baby carrots for smaller pieces that are easier for the kids to chew.
- If you have some shredded chicken that you want to use up or you’d prefer to use a rotisserie chicken to cut down on prep time, skip the step where you boil the chicken breasts and simply add the shredded chicken to the soup in the last few minutes of cooking.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted October 2019 and was updated March 2022 to include more helpful tips and photos.
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Thanks so much Mahidua! Glad you enjoyed the post!