Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice Soup is an easy slow cooker chicken soup recipe. All of the raw ingredients go in the slow cooker and a delicious soup awaits for dinner.
Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice Soup
The ease of preparing this Chicken and Rice Soup is only outweighed by how good it tastes when it’s finished. The seasonings slowly cook into the chicken, vegetables, and broth making every bite warm and filling. This is a go-to dinner during busy fall and winter days. It’s truly a fix it and forget it meal that everyone in the family loves. I serve it with some crusty rolls, breadsticks, or my kids favorite, cornbread.
Health Benefits of Chicken Soup
Chicken Soup of any kind is so comforting, why is that? Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup and Chicken and Rice Soup are so good for the body and soul, especially when you are feeling a little under the weather. Studies have shown that Chicken Soup has anti-inflammatory properties that soothe irritating cold symptoms like coughs, sore throats, and runny noses. The other ingredients in the soup — carrots, celery, onions — also have anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Dr. Oz posted an interesting article that gives more details about this called “You Wanted to Know: Chicken Soup.”
After learning this, I feel even better knowing the benefits of this Chicken and Rice Soup! So many good things come from the chicken broth itself, and who doesn’t need comfort, strength, love, and courage? I hope all of this comes to you and more when you enjoy this delicious soup!
Seasonings for Chicken and Rice Soup
Isn’t it romantic to use parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme all in one recipe? These seasonings complement each other, as well as the salt and pepper in the soup. In case you haven’t guessed, I’m a big Simon and Garfunkel fan. My parents listened to their music when I was growing up and I still listen to it today. I love the song Scarborough Fair/Canticle. It was released on their album, “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme. Scarborough is a town in England and in Medieval times there was a Fair there that lasted for 45 days! Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme represented virtues that are important to the lyrics of the song. Parsley was comfort, sage was strength, rosemary was love, and thyme was courage. You can read more about it on songfacts.com. If you love this blend of seasonings as much as I do, you’ve got to try them in our Cranberry Sausage Stuffing. It is so good!
Is this Chicken and Rice Soup Gluten Free?
Yes! This is Chicken and Rice Soup can easily be made gluten free! Use a gluten free chicken broth, like Swanson’s Chicken Broth, and you are good to go!
Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe Tips
- Use fresh seasonings, as mentioned above. Feel free to add more or less depending on your taste. I tend to use a little more because I love the taste of the seasonings in the soup — especially the sage and rosemary. If I have a seasoning that is losing it’s flavor, I grind it a little between my fingers before adding it to the soup. This will bring out more of the taste and smell.
- If you want the rice to cook at the same rate as the raw chicken, be sure to use parboiled rice (also called converted rice). It cooks beautifully in the slow cooker. If you prefer brown or wild rice, prepare 1 cup uncooked rice according to the package directions and stir into the soup just before serving.
- If you are watching fat content, you can totally skip the butter. The butter gives a little more richness to the broth, but it is not necessary. The soup will taste just as good without it.
- This soup thickens when it cools. I love leftovers of this soup because the flavors really come out after it sits for a day or two, but it will be a thicker soup than when you eat it straight from the Slow Cooker. If you prefer a thinner soup, just add some water to it when re-heating to give it the consistency you desire.
- Serve this soup with a crusty bread or dinner roll. It is especially good with our Breadtwists!
More Slow Cooker Soups to Try
- Slow Cooker Vegetable Beef Soup: This is one of the easiest soups you will ever make. A flavor-filled soup the entire family will love!
- Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup: There are so many different vegetables in this Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup. It is very healthy and hearty.
- Slow Cooker Cheese Tortellini Soup: This Cheese Tortellini Soup is a flavorful, easy slow cooker meal. Tortellini, sausage, and spinach in a creamy tomato soup and slow cooked to perfection.
- Slow Cooker Pasta E Fagioli Soup: Our version of the Olive Garden Pasta E Fagioli Soup tastes just like the original. It is an Italian seasoned soup easily made in the slow cooker.
- Slow Cooker Zuppa Toscana Soup: Many agree that this Zuppa Toscana Soup Olive Garden Copycat is actually better than the original! It has a creamy both base and is loaded with sausage and potatoes.
If you love chicken dishes, you have got to check out our Top 10 Best Chicken Recipes roundup. So many great ideas!
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts, trimmed of fat and cut in half
- 1 cup parboiled rice* (also called converted rice)
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 teaspoons salt
- pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons parsley
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon sage
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons butter, optional
- 9 cups chicken broth
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in order in a slow cooker.
- Cook on low for 4 hours.
- A few minutes before serving, remove the chicken from slow cooker and shred or cut into cubes.
- Return chicken to the slow cooker, and let it cook for 5-10 more minutes. Serve in individual bowls.
Equipment
- Crock Pot Slow Cooker
Notes
*If you prefer brown rice or wild rice, leave the parboiled rice out of the slow cooker when adding the other ingredients. While the soup is cooking in the slow cooker, prepare 1 cup uncooked brown or wild rice according to the package directions (once cooked, this will yield approximately 3 cups of rice). Stir the cooked rice into the soup just before serving.
Recipe Video
Bernadette says
Can u freeze the soup with the rice in it?
Favorite Family Recipes says
We haven’t tried freezing it before. My only concern is that the rice will get mushy. If you try it, let us know how it turns out!
Mary Jo Reynolds says
I freeze chicken/rice soup all the time. Never mushy
Cara says
Very disapointed. This was my first time making chicken soup and embarrassed to serve it to my husband. When you see the pic, the broth looks yellow. I followed the exact directions and mine is clear.
Favorite Family Recipes says
We are so sorry this didn’t work out for you. What kind of rice did you use?
Christine says
I followed the recipe, i used long grain rice added in the beginning….. rice never absorbed any liquid…..broth is clear, the chicken was dry but it had flavor….. what can i do, i have had chicken and rice soup before and i love it and would love to be able to make it…..
sylvia schartner says
just made this today. based on the reviews I added my cooked rice at the end. it is a family hit. i think i will try the cauliflower rice next time. and i will use low sodium chicken broth next time too.
Christine Travis says
I made this on Sunday, follow the recipe, used long grain rice, the rice never cooked, the broth had flavor, but the rice never cooked. I cooked this on low for 4 hours, the chicken breast was somewhat dry….. what can i do different. I added the rice in the beginning….. with everything else…. the broth was more clear and never thicken…..
Favorite Family Recipes says
I don’t know if it is the difference in slow cookers or the type of rice used. I would recommend making the rice separately and adding it to the slow cooker before serving. I’ve never had a problem with the chicken becoming dry when cooking it in the slow cooker. If your slow cooker cooks on the hotter side, reduce cooking time to 3 hours.
Christine says
ty will try again tomorrow
Kay says
Still waiting on the soup, the vegetables are still hard and the rice is not cooked. I wonder if the issue with the mushy rice is due to using white rice instead of brown rice? I added the rice part way through cooking to keep it from turning to mush as some had suggested but now it’s not done. Cranking it up on the stovetop now to see if that’ll make a difference. I think next time I’ll saute the vegetables first and cook the rice separately. Smells great though.
Julia Healey says
If I have to only make half the servings do i cut all the ingredient amounts in half and cooking time in half? Will this freeze well?
Favorite Family Recipes says
You can cut the recipe in half but the cooking time should be close to the same, maybe only slightly less. We haven’t tried freezing this recipe before but you should be able to without any issues. Hope this helps!
BK says
Made this recipe over the weekend and just had tonight for dinner – very good! Based in some of the comments of it being too salty I only put in 1 – 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt and thought that was enough. I used the parboiled rice and put it in from start and didn’t find it to be mushy at all. After 4 hours the chicken was done but the veggies were still a little hard so I just let it cook a little longer. Will definitely make again!
MK says
Perhaps I’m techie challenged, but how do I go about printing only this recipe; not the intro or comments?
Favorite Family Recipes says
On the recipe card itself there is a grey “print” button. That should print it without printing the whole blog post. Email us if you can’t find it and I will try to help you through it better if I can! – Erica
Sandra says
I’ve been making this recipe for at least 2 years now and love it. I put uncooked basmati rice in from the beginning because I like mushy rice in my soup but it doesn’t even get that mushy. The next days for leftovers yes it does but I like it that way. I also sauté the onion and garlic on the stovetop because I find it doesn’t cook enough in the slow cooker without doing that first. I add in the 3 chicken breasts whole and don’t trim the fat. I cook it anywhere from 4-5 hours on low depending on my day. It’s a hit all the time. I’ve even added zucchini to it once and it was good.
Janette says
Trying out this recipe today:) didn’t have time for the crockpot so everything is being done stovetop. Boiling the rice separately while chopping the veggies to get it started! Wish me luck! 🤞🙃
Sydney says
If using the rice that the recipe calls for when do you add it to the crockpot? The directions say place everything in crockpot except rice then never specifies when to add the rice? If using the parboiled rice do you cook it separately before or cook in the crockpot?
Favorite Family Recipes says
If you use the parboiled rice, you can add it at the beginning with all of the other ingredients. If you are using brown or white rice, Cook it separately and add it just before serving. I’ll try to make it more clear on the recipe. Thank you for asking!
Sydney says
Thank you!!
Colleen says
Does this freeze well?
Favorite Family Recipes says
We have never frozen this before so we can’t say for sure. If you try it, let us know how it turns out for you!
Fred Boyd says
This is the first time I have ever made a homemade soup,the wife and I really loved it so much that I have made it twice in two weeks, it so delicious thanks-Frederick
Favorite Family Recipes says
Thank you so much for your kind review! I’m so glad that you liked it!!
Beth says
This recipe doesn’t make any sense because in the “traditional” method it says to add everything except the rice. There is no instruction to cook rice separately, it’s just assumed or you have to read the comments. People that aren’t specific in their recipes and instructions cause other people to waste their time and money trying to make said recipe. I was excited to try this until I saw how lacking the instructions are.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Beth, thank you for pointing out the confusion with this recipe. I have made some revisions to the instructions, and hopefully it is more clear now. I appreciate your willingness to share your frustration so that we could correct the problem. I’m sorry for the inconvenience this caused you.
haylie says
I loved how easy this recipe was! I did some of my own modification per my preference, but otherwise followed the recipe provided. I just wish that there was nutrition facts listed. Thanks for the great idea!
Favorite Family Recipes says
Hi Haylie– So glad you liked this recipe! We are working on getting nutrition facts on our recipes but with over 1,000 recipes it might take a little while. Hopefully all of our recipes are easy to plug into recipe nutrition calculators. You should be able to get the nutrition facts right away using a tool like Livestrong or any other recipe calculator. Hope this helps!
RLSCM says
Our family really loved the flavours in this recipe. Planned to add rice separately at the end of cooking time but forgot to set the clock for the timer on the rice cooker. For a quick solution, I made some penne and added that instead. I also didn’t have chicken on hand so I dumped in some frozen ground turkey. Cooked on low for almost 9 hours, stirring half way through (to break up the ground turkey). I will definitely make this again. I might try using boneless, skinless chicken thighs next time.
RLSCM says
We really loved the flavours in this recipe. Planned to add rice separately at the end of cooking time but forgot to set the clock for the timer on the rice cooker. For a quick solution, I made some penne and added that instead. I also didn’t have chicken on hand so I dumped in some frozen ground turkey. Cooked on low for almost 9 hours, stirring half way through (to break up the ground turkey). I will definitely make this again. I might try using boneless, skinless chicken thighs next time.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Thank you so much for sharing how you made this recipe a success! Sounds like delicious substitutions! Good to know that pasta will work well in it also. Thanks for the 5-stars!
Abi Lene says
The song by Simon and Garfield is Scarborough Fair/Canticle. It isn’t Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme. That is a phrase from the song. Just saying.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Right, the name of the song is Scarborough Fair/Canticle, but the album title is Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme!
Heather Pfalzer says
I’ve made this recipe before and it was a huge hit! Last time I used rubbed sage, but it ran out. My husband accidentally bought ground sage. Should I still do the 1/2 tsp or do I use less? I tried to google it, but every cite had different suggestions. Since it’s your recipe what do you suggest? Thanks for sharing your story and this delicious soup.
Favorite Family Recipes says
You can use the same amount (1/2 tsp) and it should be fine! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thanks for the 5-star rating!!
Kimmy Garcia says
I was craving for soup and I have come across this on Pinterest. It looked easy to make and viola! I have a soup now! Tastes great!
Lana says
Can you use chicken drumsticks instead of chicken breast?
Favorite Family Recipes says
I guess you could if you wanted to remove the drumsticks once they are cooked, and then shred the chicken off of the bone and put the chicken only back in the soup. Be careful not to leave any bone in the soup. Thanks for asking!
Lana says
Thank you. Would it be still the same cooking time though?
Casey says
This recipe was extremely salty and the thyme was overwhelmingly strong! We ended up draining all the liquid and made a cream base liquid to help balance the herb taste to try to salvage it.
Favorite Family Recipes says
Sorry this didn’t work out for you!
Anita says
Does this work well with jasmine rice, cooked separately?
Erica Walker says
Yes, I love Jasmine rice. It will work great when added right before serving. Hope this helps!
Gina says
After reading the comments I did NOT use rice. I used egg noodles instead. I put them in with about 20 minutes left to cook and my family loved it. This is now a favorite soup in my house that has very picky eaters.
Erica Walker says
Oh I love the idea of using noodles! I bet that was delicious! Definitely going to try that now, thanks for sharing!
Audrea Gannaway says
Made this with all fresh ingredients used 1/2 chicken breast and 1/2 boneless skinless thighs. Made my rice separately (wild rice) in instapot! This recipe is a keeper for sure and the house smells amazing❣️
Paula says
The first time I made this I used white rice, the 2nd time I used parboiled rice (which I found at Wal-mart) WHAT A DIFFERENCE! This is a great recipe!
Technolong.Com says
Need a simple, vibrant midweek meal the family will love? Put together these easy chicken fajitas and people can serve up their own DIY masterpieces
Alyssa says
I’ve been using this recipe for over a year and it’s still a family favorite! I follow your directions except that I skip the butter. I also leave out the rice and make instant white rice a few minutes before it’s ready. Then I just add it to the soup and let it sit for about 10 minutes to soak up some of the flavor. This soup is so good!!!