Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup

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When school starts again and the weather starts to turn, I find myself using my slow cooker more often. Actually, a slow cooker is ideal for cooking all year round. In the winter, it creates irresistible comfort foods—hat tip to slow cooker white chicken chili. In the summer, it cooks dinner without heating up your house—looking at you, crockpot Buffalo chicken sandwiches. Winner, winner, chicken slow cooker dinner.

Speaking of chicken slow cooker dinners, this crockpot chicken wild rice soup is exactly the kind of recipe I find myself turning to again and again in the fall. It couldn’t be easier to make—the slow cooker does most of the work!—and by the time dinnertime rolls around, you have a creamy delicious soup. The rice is tender and the chicken is ready to be shredded.

Creamy Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Earthy wild rice. I love the unique flavor and chewy texture of wild rice, and it’s absolutely fantastic in this creamy slow cooker soup. Because wild rice can be quite expensive, I’ve opted for a wild and brown rice blend, which is more budget-friendly.

Easy to make. This isn’t quite a dump-and-go slow cooker recipe, but it’s pretty darn close. You’ll add most of the ingredients at the beginning and then at the end, you’ll just need to shred the chicken and thicken the soup. Creamy chicken soup is perfect for football Saturdays, Sunday dinners, or busy weeknights when you want to come home to a hot meal already made.

Hearty and filling. Crockpot chicken wild rice soup is satisfying enough to be a complete meal on its own without adding anything else to round things out. (But if you do want to stretch the soup a little bit further, I share some pairing ideas below!)

Ingredient Notes

• Uncooked wild and brown rice blend: Don’t substitute quick cooking, parboiled, or instant rice (such as Uncle Ben’s); this recipe was developed for the regular kind. Long grain white rice or brown rice can be swapped in for the wild rice blend, if you prefer.
• Boneless skinless chicken thighs: You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts if you prefer but I highly recommend sticking with chicken thighs. They’re more flavorful and less likely to get tough.
• Mirepoix (Onion, Carrots, Celery): Mirepoix is the French word for the combination of onion, celery, and carrots. They form the backbone of flavor for this crockpot chicken wild rice soup, and many other recipes.
• Seasonings: Bay leaves, dried parsley, salt, dried thyme, rubbed sage, garlic powder, and black pepper—all pantry staples you likely have on hand.
• No-salt-added chicken stock: Homemade chicken stock is fantastic if you have it but a high-quality store-bought stock works too. If you use regular chicken broth, which is often seasoned with salt, skip the added salt in the recipe.
• Water: If you have extra stock, you can use that instead of the water.
• All-purpose flour: This is a little trick I often use. I make a white sauce using flour, milk, and butter to make a creamy soup without resorting to heavy cream. (If you like that idea, try my cheeseburger soup, too.)
• Milk: Whole milk will give you the richest soup but you can use any milk you have on hand. I often use 2%.
• Butter: You can use salted or unsalted (sweet butter). If you use salted butter, I recommend cutting back on the added salt and simply seasoning to taste at the end of the cooking time.
• Fresh parsley: A handful of fresh chopped herbs is a perfect garnish for soup. It adds a burst of bright color and flavor.

How to Make Crockpot Chicken wild Rice Soup

Make the mirepoix. Chop the onions, carrots, and celery into fairly small pieces (about ¼ inch) to make the mirepoix. If they are chunky, the vegetables may remain too crisp after cooking.

Combine the ingredients. Add the rice, chicken, mirepoix, seasonings, chicken stock, and water to the slow cooker and stir to combine. (The only items you aren’t adding to the crockpot is the flour, butter, and milk.)

Cook. Cover the crockpot. Cook the soup on high for 3 to 4 hours, or on low for 6 to 8 hours. Toward the end of the cooking time, check the vegetables and rice to see if they’re tender. Because we’re using chicken thighs and not breasts, you don’t have to worry about babysitting them to make sure they don’t overcook.

Shred the chicken. Discard the bay leaves (if you can find them!), then carefully remove the chicken thighs and place them on a plate. Use two forks to shred the chicken. If you prefer chunks of chicken in your soup, you can coarsely chop them instead. Put the chicken back into the crockpot and give the soup a stir.

Make the white sauce. I found that this soup has the best creamy texture if you make a simple white sauce to stir into the broth after the soup has cooked. We tested other methods, such as adding heavy cream, but the cream tends to curdle at high heat and the soup didn’t have the best texture. To make a white sauce, melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan set over medium heat. Stir in the flour, cooking for a minute or two while continuing to stir. Once the mixture darkens a bit, pour in a splash of milk, stir it in, and then slowly stream in the rest while whisking constantly. Continue to cook, stirring, until the mixture is steaming hot and thickened.

Finish. Stir the white sauce into the crockpot chicken wild rice soup. Season to taste and serve. If you’re not quite ready to serve the soup, keep it on the warm setting.

Tips for Making This Recipe

• Make cleanup easier. You can coat the inside of your crockpot with nonstick cooking spray to prevent anything from getting stuck on the insert. This is an optional step but I usually do it. I like easy cleanups!
• Prep your ingredients ahead of time. If your mornings are busy, consider prepping your mirepoix and measuring the herbs and spices in advance. Store them all together in an airtight container in the fridge so everything is ready to go when it’s time to start your crockpot chicken wild rice soup. 
• Watch closely if you’re using chicken breasts. If you do swap chicken breasts for thighs, check them 30 minutes earlier than the low end of the time range; they’ll be done when they reach 165ºF on an instant read thermometer. If the chicken is done before the vegetables and rice are fully cooked, just take it out anyways, shred it, and add it back in when the soup is ready.
• Adjust the thickness. For a brothier soup, add a bit more water or chicken stock.
• Add more vegetables. Feel free to sneak in additional vegetables, such as mushrooms, corn, peas, green beans, etc. If they are a quick-cooking, canned, or frozen vegetable, add them at the end when you put the chicken back in. Greens (chopped spinach or kale) can be added at the end, too, since they just need to wilt.

Serving Ideas

• Bread. A crusty baguette, Dutch oven bread, or Parker House rolls are perfect for soaking up this creamy chicken soup. My kids love cheesy bread, which is simply homemade pizza dough with cheese, butter, and a bit of garlic.
• Muffins. I often serve muffins with homemade soup. Apple cider muffins or carrot raisin muffins would go well; cornbread muffins with herbs are always a good match, too.
• Side salad. A light green salad will help you work some extra veggies into your dinner. This classic arugula salad or house salad would be great!

Storage & Reheating

Refrigerate. Transfer leftover crockpot chicken wild rice soup to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Freeze. Leftover creamy wild rice soup doesn’t freeze well. When reheated, the soup may separate and the rice doesn’t have the best texture.

To reheat: Warm up crockpot chicken wild rice soup in a saucepan set over medium-low heat, stirring frequently. You can add a splash of water or broth to loosen it up if needed, as the soup will thicken during storage.  Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave.

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Recipe

Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup

4.38 from 93 votes

By Rachel Gurk

Prep Time: 20 minutes mins

Cook Time: 3 hours hrs

Total Time: 3 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Servings: 8

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This slow cooker creamy chicken and wild rice soup will be the star of your winter cuisine! It's perfect for chilly days.

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Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ ¾ cup uncooked wild and brown rice blend (see note)
• ▢ 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
• ▢ 1 cup diced onion (1 medium onion)
• ▢ 2 cups diced celery (4 to 5 stalks)
• ▢ 2 cups diced carrots (6 to 7 medium carrots)
• ▢ 2 bay leaves
• ▢ 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
• ▢ ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ▢ ½ teaspoon rubbed sage
• ▢ ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, more to taste
• ▢ 4 cups no-salt-added chicken stock (see note)
• ▢ 2 cups water (see note)
• ▢ ¼ cup butter
• ▢ ½ cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 cups milk
• ▢ minced fresh parsley for garnish, optional

Instructions 

• If desired, spray inside of slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray for easier clean-up.
• To the slow cooker, add rice, chicken thighs, diced onion, diced celery, diced carrots, bay leaves, parsley, salt, thyme, sage, garlic powder, black pepper, chicken stock, and water (everything EXCEPT butter, flour, milk, fresh parsley).
  ¾ cup uncooked wild and brown rice blend, 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, 1 cup diced onion, 2 cups diced celery, 2 cups diced carrots, 2 bay leaves, 2 teaspoons dried parsley, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste, ½ teaspoon dried thyme, ½ teaspoon rubbed sage, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, more to taste, 4 cups no-salt-added chicken stock, 2 cups water
• Cover, and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours, or on low for 6 to 8 hours.
• Remove bay leaves and discard. Remove chicken thighs, shred and return to slow cooker.
• In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour and stir until blended. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Slowly stir in milk, whisking to eliminate clumps. Cook, stirring until mixture comes to a simmer and thickens. It will be quite thick.
  ¼ cup butter, ½ cup all-purpose flour, 2 cups milk
• Gradually stir white sauce into the soup until blended.
• Taste and season with more salt or pepper if needed. If you used unsalted stock, you will likely need to add salt.
• Keep soup on warm setting until ready to serve. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.
  minced fresh parsley for garnish, optional

Notes

• Rice notes: Do NOT use quick-cooking, parboiled, or instant rice. If you prefer, uncooked long grain white rice or brown rice can be substituted.
• Broth notes: If you use a broth that is not low/no sodium, you may need to add less salt. If desired, you can use all broth (instead of the 2 cups of water). The recipe is written this way so you only have to purchase one carton of broth and don’t have an odd amount leftover. If you prefer to omit the water and use all broth, that will definitely work well.
• Storage: Leftover soup can be refrigerated for up to 4 days. It does not freeze well. 

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1.5cups, Calories: 315kcal, Carbohydrates: 27g, Protein: 25g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 103mg, Sodium: 518mg, Potassium: 678mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 5765IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 123mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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