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Low calorie, delicious and comforting, this Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Soup is the perfect comfort food to make and enjoy when the temperatures drop. It’s savory, with a rich and creamy texture, and takes just 15 minutes of hands-on kitchen time to make. Best of all, it’s naturally gluten-free and dairy-free too.
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I’ve tried quite a few healthy chicken soup recipes over the last few years, especially during the colder months. I love making my Turmeric Chicken Rice Soup and Chicken Wild Rice Soup on days when I’m looking for something healthy, cozy and filling.
And if you’re like me, and truly love a bowl of chicken pot pie soup, you’ve got to try this healthier version of the classic. I’ve skipped the crust, which makes the soup low in calories and carbs, and perfect to enjoy guilt-free when you’re trying to achieve your weight loss goals.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthy: The soup packs in a decent amount of protein and fiber and is low in carbs and calories, which makes it a great healthy alternative to the classic recipe.
- Comforting and delicious: It has all the comforting flavors and textures of the classic version, and tastes incredibly delicious too.
- Easy to make: The soup comes together in a jiffy. If you have some cooked, shredded chicken ready already, it’s one of the quickest, easiest dinner recipes you could make.
Ingredients
- Chicken: Chicken breast is a great choice for lean protein in this healthier soup recipe. Chicken thighs will work equally well but require a little longer to cook and will change the nutrition a bit.
- Veggies: I used a mix of carrots, celery and Yukon Gold potatoes to bulk up the soup. You’ll also need some white onion for the savory base, and some cauliflower florets to thicken up the soup.
- Chicken broth: Ideally low sodium to keep the saltiness in check. You can also use vegetable broth as well.
- Almond milk: To lend the soup some creaminess. Coconut milk or dairy milk work equally well or you can swap the milk for extra broth.
- Seasonings: To season, I used some thyme, garlic powder, salt and pepper to boost the flavor.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations & Dietary Modifications
- Meat swap: Swap the chicken in the recipe for some turkey if you want to.
- Vegetarian: To make a vegetarian version of the recipe, you can skip adding the chicken and use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth, but the dish would not taste as great, and will be deficient in protein too.
- Milk swap: If you don’t have almond milk, feel free to use any other milk of your choice. If you want to keep it plant based, coconut milk is a good alternative.
- More veggies: You can certainly add peas or corn to this recipe or swap the potatoes for them. I did not add peas or corn to the recipe to keep the carbohydrates at a moderate level in the recipe.
How to Make Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Soup
Step 1: Cook chicken: Add the chicken breasts to your Instant Pot or slow cooker with a cup of stock and cook until soft and tender. If you’re using pre-cooked, shredded chicken, skip this step.
Step 2: Boil cauliflower: Cook the cauliflower florets in a pot of boiling water for a few minutes until they soften, then drain the excess water and set them aside.
Step 3: Saute veggies: Saute the onions, celery, and carrots with olive oil for 5-6 minutes or until they soften.
Step 4: Add potatoes and broth: Add the potatoes, chicken broth, and the seasonings to the pot. Cover and let this cook for 20 minutes.
Step 5: Blend cauliflower: Blend the softened cauliflower florets with the milk until you get a smooth mixture.
Step 6: Shred chicken: While the veggies are being cooked, shred the chicken using two forks.
Step 7: Add the chicken and cauliflower: Add the shredded chicken and cauliflower mixture to the pot and give it a good mix.
Step 8: Simmer and serve: Reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
Storage Directions
- Storing: If you have any leftovers, you can refrigerate them for up to 5 days in an airtight container. If you want to store them for longer, you’ll need to freeze them, and they can stay good for up to 60 days. To freeze the soup, use freezer-safe containers as they’ll help prevent freezer burn.
- Reheating: To reheat the soup, microwave it on high for about 2 minutes, or heat it in a pot over medium heat for a few minutes until it has warmed up nicely. If frozen, allow it to thaw overnight first and then reheat it the same way.
Serving Suggestions
- If you're craving biscuits with your creamy chicken pot pie soup, I highly recommend these healthy zucchini biscuits or my almond flour biscuits! This pumpkin cornbread makes a hearty side too!
- You could also pair the soup with a simple salad like Italian cucumber salad or a spring mix with some low calorie Italian salad dressing.
Expert Tips
- Chop right: Make sure you chop the vegetables and potatoes into even-sized pieces. This will ensure that they’re all cooked to perfection at the same time. Don’t keep the pieces too large, as they will take a longer time to cook through.
- Make it quick: You can also use some frozen veggies to make things more convenient. You don’t even need to thaw them - just use them directly from frozen!
Recipe FAQs
To make this soup in your Instant Pot, you’ll need to add all the ingredients except the milk and the cauliflower to the pot and pressure cook them for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, you can make the cauliflower and milk mixture like I did in the original recipe here. Then, when the pressure is released, you’ll need to remove the chicken, shred it, and add it back in along with the pureed cauliflower mixture, give it a mix and serve.
Yes, you can. You’ll need to follow pretty much the same steps and cook the chicken along with the veggies in the slow cooker for about 8 hours on high, and then shred it after it is done. The cauliflower needs to be cooked separately and blended with the milk regardless of which way you’re cooking this soup.
More Delicious Soup Recipes
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Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Soup
Ingredients
- 1 lb Chicken Breast
- 12 oz Cauliflower Florets
- 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 cup Carrots diced
- 1 cup Celery diced
- ½ cup White Onion diced
- 2 cups Yukon Gold Potatoes diced with skin on
- 4 cups Chicken Broth low sodium
- 1 teaspoon Thyme
- ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ¼ cup Unsweetened Almond Milk or milk of choice
Instructions
Stovetop
- Cook the chicken in an Instant Pot (omit the spices in the linked recipe) or in a slow cooker, cooking the chicken on high for 4 hours with 1 cup of chicken broth. Alternatively, you can cook the chicken another way that you prefer or by purchase pre-cooked chicken.
- Add the cauliflower to a large pot and add water to cover the cauliflower. Bring to a boil. Boil 5-7 minutes or until cauliflower is soft. The smaller your florets, the faster this will be. Drain the cauliflower and set aside.
- Place the olive oil in the large pot with the onions, celery and carrots. Bring to a medium heat and cook 5-6 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.
- While the veggies cook, shred the chicken breasts that you cooked and set aside.
- Add the potatoes, chicken broth, thyme, garlic powder, salt and pepper to the pot. Stir to combine, cover and bring to a boil. Boil 20 minutes or until the potatoes are soft.
- While the pot boils, add the cauliflower to a blender with the milk. Blend until smooth. Add the blended cauliflower to the pot with the shredded chicken. Stir then reduce to a low simmer and simmer 5 minutes. Serve immediatey!
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 5 days or in the freezer up to 60 days.
Instant Pot
- Add the cauliflower to a large pot and add water to cover the cauliflower. Bring to a boil. Boil 5-7 minutes or until cauliflower is soft. The smaller your florets, the faster this will be. Drain the cauliflower and set aside.
- Place the remaining ingredients except the milk in the Instant Pot including the chicken breasts. Cover then set the valve to sealing and set to steam for 30 minutes. Note, it will take the pot time to pressurize.
- As the pot cooks, add the cauliflower to a blender with the milk. Blend until smooth.
- After the 30 minutes of pressure cooking, carefully move the valve to release. Release the steam then remove the cover. Stir in the blended cauliflower then shred the chicken with two forks. Serve immediately!
Slow Cooker
- Add the cauliflower to a large pot and add water to cover the cauliflower. Bring to a boil. Boil 5-7 minutes or until cauliflower is soft. The smaller your florets, the faster this will be. Drain the cauliflower and set aside.
- Place the remaining ingredients except the milk in a slow cooker including the chicken breasts. Cover and cook 8 hours on high.
- A few minutes before the slow cooker is done cooking, add the cauliflower to a blender with the milk. Blend until smooth.
- Stir in the blended cauliflower then shred the chicken with two forks. Serve immediately!
Notes
- Serving size is 1/4 of the recipe or approximately 2 cups. Serving sizes may vary.
- If you don’t have the time to peel and chop fresh veggies, frozen veggies can work well too.
- Make sure you chop the potatoes into even pieces so that they all cook through at the same time.
- Add some extra veggies and greens into the soup to bump up the nutritional content.
Nutrition
I’m reading the last part and it says blend the cauliflower with the milk, was I not supposed to put the almond milk in the slow cooker? :/
Thank you for alerting me to this! It's not a big deal to add the milk to the slow cooker, but in terms of blending the cauliflower it is much easier to do it with the milk. I updated the instructions to be clear.
Best chicken soup I've ever had. You can't even tell there is cauliflower in it. It does thicken the soup so well!
This recipe was fantastic. Will definitely be making it again!
Can I leave out the milk in the chicken pot pie soup?
Yes, you could swap the milk for broth.