20-Minute Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe

Chicken noodle soup has been a comfort food staple for decades. Campbell's first introduced its version of condensed chicken noodle soup in 1934, and it became a mainstay in homes ever since. It's the ideal food for a chilly, winter night, but it's also the perfect food for when you're nursing a cold and need a pick-me-up.

Chicken noodle soup has been found to have anti-inflammatory effects, helping to alleviate some cold symptoms. Plus, there's plenty of nutrients coming from the vegetables incorporated, along with the bonus of hydration from the broth. But health benefits aside, chicken noodle soup is just plain delicious.

Now, you can whip up a homemade version of this classic soup in just 20 minutes. Utilizing wholesome ingredients, putting together a delicious, warm soup from scratch couldn't be any easier. Make it for when someone has a cold, or simply whip up a batch for dinner. Either way, you'll love the flavor of this 20-minute chicken noodle soup  jam-packed with chicken, noodles, and plenty of veggies.

To make this 20-minute chicken noodle soup, you'll want to make sure you have all of your ingredients on hand and ready to go. Begin by gathering egg noodles, cooked chicken, chicken broth, carrots, a yellow onion, celery, cloves of garlic, bay leaves, fresh thyme, black pepper, and oregano.

If you don't have egg noodles on hand, it's possible to make this soup with another type of noodle. Swap out your egg noodles for a similarly shaped option such as rotini. Or, you could really mimic the nostalgic Campbell's version by utilizing spaghetti noodles instead.

For the spices, feel free to adjust as desired, whether you like a bit more salt and pepper added to your broth or you love the earthy flavor of thyme and want to increase the amount you use. With this simple soup recipe, it's easy to customize and adapt it to utilize what you have on hand at home.

The beauty of this chicken noodle soup recipe is that there are plenty of options, and the same goes for the chicken you add into it. If you have leftover chicken to use up, whether it's shredded chicken, diced chicken, or even full chicken breasts, this is a great option. Throw it in the soup so it can be utilized and won't go to waste.

If you don't have leftover cooked chicken on hand, grabbing a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store is a great option. Use the cooked chicken and pull it apart into small pieces to add into your soup. Utilizing leftover cooked chicken or store-bought rotisserie chicken is the quickest and easiest way to add chicken to this 20-minute chicken noodle soup recipe.

If you'd prefer to cook fresh chicken for this recipe, utilize three chicken breasts. Cut the breasts into smaller pieces and cook thoroughly before dicing up and adding them into your soup.

Start by prepping all of the vegetables for your 20-minute chicken noodle soup. We chose to incorporate a simple, classic medley of carrots, celery, onion, and garlic. Feel free to omit any vegetables you're not a huge fan of, or you can choose to include other options such as diced bell peppers or even broccoli.

Start by peeling the skin off of your cloves of garlic. Use the side of a large knife to crush the cloves of garlic on a cutting board, and then mince the cloves into fine pieces by continuously running the blade of your knife over top. Cut your onion in half and remove the skin. With the onion flat-side down, cut it into long strips. Then, turn the onion 90 degrees and make cross-wise slices to cut it into small pieces.

Thinly slice your carrots and your celery. If any of your carrot slices are too large, cut them in half or into quarters.

Once your vegetables are prepped and ready, it's time to start cooking your 20-minute chicken noodle soup. Spray a high-walled pot or Dutch oven with cooking spray to be sure your ingredients don't stick to the bottom of your pan. Turn the stove on to medium heat and allow your pot to come up to temperature.

Add the minced garlic into your pot and allow it to cook until lightly golden brown. This will capture the great flavor of the garlic that will later come through in your finished soup. Once the garlic is ready, add in the sliced carrots, celery, and diced onion.

Sauté the vegetable mixture for three to five minutes. Be sure to stir the mixture as you sauté. You don't need to fully cook the carrots and celery here since they will finish cooking in the soup's broth.

The next step is adding the chicken broth into the vegetable mixture. You can't have a delicious homemade soup without a nice, flavorful broth, right?

We opted to utilize a regular chicken broth for this 20-minute chicken noodle soup recipe. Chicken broth offers great flavor while adding balanced sodium to the finished soup. If you prefer a soup with less sodium, you can choose to utilize a low-sodium or sodium-free chicken broth option instead. Then, add in salt on your own so you can adjust it to taste.

Pour the chicken broth over the sautéed vegetables in your pot. Then, add in the black pepper, oregano, fresh thyme, and bay leaves. Stir your mixture well to allow all of the spices to be incorporated. Turn the stove to medium-high heat, and allow the broth to come to a boil.

Last but not least, it's time to add the noodles and chicken to your 20-minute chicken noodle soup. With your broth at a boil, add in your four cups of egg noodles. If you like a soup that's full of noodles, feel free to add in more as desired. Add in your chicken as well. 

Once the egg noodles and chicken have been stirred into the soup mixture, put the lid on your Dutch oven or pot. Reduce the heat on your stove to medium, and allow the soup mixture to cook for ten minutes. Because of the hot liquid in the pot, the noodles will soak up the moisture and cook in the broth. Once the noodles are tender, you'll know your soup is done. 

Remove your soup from the heat, and remove the bay leaves. Allow your homemade chicken noodle soup to cool slightly before serving. Top with chopped green onions or minced fresh parsley, if desired.