This Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Soup with Pasta and Spinach is flavorful with a smooth and velvety texture. Packed with vegetables, it's the perfect dish for a cold day or when you're feeling under the weather.
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Making soup in my slow cooker is one of my favorite things to do, especially on a day like today when I woke up to an early spring snowstorm.
This creamy chicken and pasta soup is so quick and easy to prepare. Very little prep is involved, which is perfect for a busy day.
For another easy chicken recipe, make Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings or this Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Recipe.
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💗 Why this recipe works
- Quick prep time of only 15 minutes.
- You will love the tender chicken in this fantastic recipe.
- This hearty soup is full of healthy veggies.
- It has so much flavor. Everyone will think you spent hours in the kitchen!
- This is the ultimate comfort food on a chilly day.
- You will love the creamy broth.
- It can be made and refrigerated in advance, so dinner is ready to go when needed!
🥘 Ingredient notes and substitutions
This recipe can easily be made with ingredients you likely already have on hand. If not, pick them up at your local grocery store.
- Chicken breasts, sliced in half. I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts. You can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs, rotisserie chicken, leftover turkey, leftover chicken from smoked chicken breasts, air fryer chicken, or instant pot chicken.
- Chicken broth. I used homemade chicken stock, but you can use any kind of stock, including smoked chicken bone broth.
- Carrots, diced.
- Onion, diced. I used yellow onions, but any kind will work.
- Garlic cloves, chopped.
- Italian seasoning.
- Garlic powder.
- Parsley.
- Seasoning salt.
- Black pepper.
- Shell pasta. You can also use any pasta of your choice. The best kind of pasta is small pasta that cooks quickly.
- Half and half cream.
- Cornstarch
- Spinach, fresh or frozen. I used fresh baby spinach.
- Parmesan cheese. You can also add in some mild cheddar cheese, or add in extra parmesan cheese if you like it cheezy.
See the printable recipe card below for quantities and a full list of ingredients.
🔪 How To Make Creamy Chicken Soup with Pasta and Spinach in Crock Pot
Carefully cut chicken breasts in half so that they are not as thick and place them in the slow cooker.
Add the diced onion on top of the chicken.
Add diced carrot on top of the onion.
Add the remaining ingredients of chopped garlic, chicken stock, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, parsley, seasoning salt, and pepper.
Put the lid on and set it on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
Remove chicken from the slow cooker and shred it using two forks, or shred it right in the slow cooker. The chicken will be so tender it will easily break apart.
Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Add in uncooked pasta shells and fresh spinach.
Mix together cream and cornstarch. Pour into slow cooker. Mix the soup well. Put the lid back on.
Turn the slow cooker to high, and cook for an additional 20-30 minutes.
Stir in parmesan cheese, garnish with fresh parsley, and serve with Grandma's Air Buns, Irish Soda Bread Without Buttermilk, or Homemade Biscuits With No Milk.
🥣 Stovetop Instructions
This creamy chicken pasta soup can also be made on the stove in a large Dutch oven. To make this soup on the stove:
- Dice chicken breasts into small pieces and brown them in olive oil over medium-high heat.
- Add onion, garlic, and carrots and saute, stirring frequently.
- When the chicken is no longer pink, add the chicken broth and the seasonings. Simmer until the vegetables are tender.
- Meanwhile, cook pasta in a separate pot until al dente.
- Drain the pasta and add to the soup in the pot. Add spinach.
- Whisk together the cream and cornstarch. Add to the soup to thicken.
- Add the parmesan cheese and serve!
Storage
- Let the soup cool to room temperature, then immediately put it in an airtight container.
- This soup will last in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
- You can place soup in a container with a tight-fitting lid in the freezer for up to 3 months. Leave some headspace as the soup will expand slightly when it freezes.
📖 Variations
- Vegetarian: Skip the chicken and add extra vegetables such as zucchini, peas, celery, chickpeas, or black beans.
- Dairy-free: Skip the parmesan cheese and cream. It will still be delicious without it.
- Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free pasta.
- Low-carb: Use zucchini noodles or sweet potato noodles. Add near the end of cooking time.
- Low sodium: Use less seasoning salt and low-sodium chicken broth, or make your own broth.
💭 Expert Tips
- Add more chicken broth to thin the broth for a thinner chicken pasta soup.
- Some pasta is very starchy, and when it is added to the soup uncooked, it may have a starchy taste. To avoid this, cook the pasta on the stove as you normally would, drain the water, and add the cooked pasta to the slow cooker just before serving.
- You can use heavy cream for a richer-tasting soup, but to reduce calories, I use half-and-half (10%) or coffee cream (18%) instead of whipping cream (35%). If you add regular milk to the hot soup, it might curdle.
❓ Recipe FAQs
Take out the amount you want to eat, place it in a pot, and reheat. If the soup is frozen, place it in the fridge to defrost. Alternatively, you can place the soup that is still partially frozen in a pot and reheat it very slowly on the stove. You don't have to wait for the whole thing to defrost before you reheat it.
For this recipe, uncooked pasta noodles are added to the crock pot. There is enough liquid in the pot to cook the noodles.
If you want your broth thicker, add more of the cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon of water) until the desired consistency is reached.
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Recipe
Easy Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Soup with Pasta and Spinach
Equipment
- Slow cooker
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts sliced in half
- 7 cups chicken broth
- 4 medium carrots
- 1 onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- 2 teaspoon Italiano seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon parsley
- ¾ teaspoon seasoning salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 500 grams Large shell pasta or pasta of your choice
- 1 cup spinach fresh or frozen
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 1½ cups light cream 10% or 18%
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Carefully cut chicken breasts in half so they are not as thick and place them in the slow cooker.
- Next, add in diced onion, diced carrot, chopped garlic, chicken broth, Italiano seasoning, garlic powder, parsley, seasoning salt, and pepper. Put the lid on and set it on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
- Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred using 2 forks, or shred it right in the slow cooker. The chicken will be so tender it will easily break apart.
- Add in uncooked pasta shells and spinach. Mix cream and cornstarch and pour into slow cooker. Mix it well.
- Put the lid back on. Turn the slow cooker to high, and cook for another 20-30 minutes.
- Stir in parmesan cheese just before serving! Enjoy!
Save This Recipe 💌
Recipe Notes:
- Add more chicken broth to thin the broth for a thinner chicken pasta soup.
- Some pasta is very starchy, and when it is added to the soup uncooked, it may have a starchy taste. To avoid this, cook the pasta on the stove as you normally would, drain the water, and add the cooked pasta to the slow cooker just before serving.
- You can use heavy cream for a richer-tasting soup, but to reduce calories, I use half-and-half (10%) or coffee cream (18%) instead of whipping cream (35%). If you add regular milk to the hot soup, it might curdle.
- This soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Just leave some headspace for the soup to expand slightly when it freezes.
NUTRITION INFORMATION
The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
👩🏻🍳 About Jeri
With over 40 years of cooking experience, Jeri Walker is a self-taught cook who is passionate about creating simple and delicious recipes using everyday ingredients. Jeri's commitment to excellence means only the best recipes make it onto the blog, so when you make a recipe from Winding Creek Ranch, it's guaranteed to be a hit.
Kristina says
My family enjoyed this soup and asked for it again already. I love slow cooker recipes like this, where I can truly leave it for the entire time.
Jeri says
I'm so glad you liked it! I love slow cooker recipes too!
Serena says
I'm such a fan of slow cooker soup recipes. So great for busy weeknight meals.
Andréa Janssen says
We loved this recipe. It's so easy to prepare and the slow cooker does all the work. It was really delicious!