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Everyone raves about this soup! So, I think it’s safe to say this truly deserves the title of “the best chicken chowder soup”.
True story: I made this chicken chowder recipe for a crew that worked on our lawn. The crew’s boss said it was the best soup he’s ever had and told me to text his wife the recipe. I kid, you not, he was serious too!
Why is This a Family-Favorite Chicken Chowder?
You might be wondering, Where is this recipe from, or How is it different from the chicken chowder recipes online?
Well, this isn’t your typical chicken corn chowder recipe from online. It came from a Mennonite lady in my community, who is a VERY good cook. Mind you, she’s Southern too.
After the birth of our 6th son, she came to our house with a huge kettle of this goodness. Honestly, anything she makes is amazingly delicious, and she’s the Pastor’s wife. I emphasize that because she hosts A LOT, so you can imagine the amount of food she’s cooked in her lifetime.
Anyway, long story short, we all LOVED the soup and, like always, she shared the recipe with me.
Y’all, it really is the best chicken chowder ever! I don’t think I’ve ever loved a chicken soup recipe as much as I do this one. It is the most velvety, creamy, and flavorful soup I have had in a while. Talk about comfort food for real!
More on This Chicken Chowder Recipe
Once you look into the soup ingredients, you will realize it calls for Paula Deen’s House Seasoning. Judy (the lady I had mentioned above) makes this seasoning in bulk and stores it in an old spice container.
I also started making this seasoning and use it for anything chicken. It is a super flavorful seasoning blend (from simple pantry staples).
If you don’t want to make the seasoning, you can just season the soup with a generous amount of salt, pepper, garlic, and onion powder (which is basically the spice mix).
I think Paula Deen’s seasoning makes this soup go from ordinary to extra extraordinary!
Another thing I’d like to mention is that I made this creamy chowder with seasoned chicken breasts (using Paula’s seasoning) for the lawn crew. I have that written out in the chef tip box, below, and really think this makes the soup more flavorful than using leftover chicken.
So, if you want a tastier soup, generously season both sides of chicken breasts with the homemade seasoning (Paula’s) and poach them. Let’s jump into all the recipe notes to make the best chicken chowder soup!
Mise en PlaceEverything you need! :
Equipment:
- Large pot
- Vegetable peeler
- Chef’s knife
- Instant Pot or a saucepan if cooking the chicken from scratch.
Ingredients:
- Mirepoix is a mixture of carrots and onions sauteed in butter.
- Chicken broth- can be store-bought or made from scratch in the notes below.
- Potatoes- I use whatever I have on hand; however, russet potatoes are best for this.
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts- that are cooked at home are the best. Typically, I poach them, but you can use leftover rotisserie chicken or even canned chicken.
- Seasonings- like salt, ground black pepper, dried parsley, and Paula Deen’s House Seasoning are what are used to flavor this chowder. Paula has the instructions in the link I provided.
- Slurry is a mixture of flour and milk to make this soup super creamy.
- Cream Cheese- is the secret ingredient that makes this soup amazing!
How To Make Chicken Chowder
- Poach the boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a saucepan or Instant Pot. See Alyona’s chef tip below.
- Sauté the diced onion in butter until translucent. Add the chicken broth, chopped carrots, and potatoes. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15 minutes until tender.
- Add the cooked chicken, dried parsley, and seasonings (salt, pepper, and Paula Deen’s house seasoning). Heat through.
- Meanwhile, make a slurry by gradually mixing milk into the flour in a small bowl. Add this to the soup and heat for 2 minutes. Add the cream cheese in chunks and melt. Serve warm.
Pro-Chef Tip: Cut the cream cheese into cubes so it melts more evenly.
Alyona’s Chef Tip on Chicken Breasts: Season boneless, skinless breasts generously on both sides, with Paula Deen’s house seasoning. Add 1/2 cup of water to the Instant Pot, then add the seasoned chicken breasts and pressure-cook on high for 15 minutes. To poach in a small saucepan, bring the chicken breasts to a boil in 1 1/4 cups of water. Then simmer covered for 20 minutes. Rest on a cutting board before slicing.
Helpful Tips
- Cook the chicken yourself by either roasting a whole chicken or poaching chicken breasts to shred the meat. It’s cheap and super flavorful.
- Use a Chef’s knife to chop the chicken meat; it will make chopping so much easier (tip from a chef).
- Dice the potatoes into bite-sized pieces to cook more evenly.
- If you’re short on time, use store-bought rotisserie chicken or two cans of canned chicken meat (drained).
- Other seasonings that can be used are Greek seasoning or Complete seasoning.
- Set aside 5 minutes of your time to make Paula Deen’s House Seasoning. Thank me later.
- Serve chicken chowder with a crusty loaf or baguettes.
More From-Scratch Soup Recipes That are Comforting for Cold Weather:
Soup recipes are cozy and so comforting on a cold chilly day! Here are some soups that we’ve made in our kitchen to warm up!
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Favorite Chicken Chowder Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Peeler
Ingredients
- 1 large onion , (diced)
- 2 Tbsp salted butter, (European-style butter)
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 6 medium carrots
- 4 medium russet potatoes
- 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped (see notes)
- 1/4 cup dried parsley
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 4 tsp Paula Deen's House seasoning, (recipe is through the link) see notes below
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 16 oz cream cheese, (2-8oz packs)
Instructions
- In a large pot, saute 1 large onion (diced) in 2 Tbsp of butter for 5 minutes or until translucent.
- Meanwhile, peel 6 medium-sized carrots and 4 russet potatoes. Slice the carrots into 1/8-inch thick rings and cube the potatoes.
- Add the chopped carrots and potatoes to the sautéed onions, along with 6 cups of chicken broth. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes until tender.
- When the potatoes are tender, add 3 cups of cooked chicken meat (chopped), 1/4 cup dried parsley, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp black pepper, and 4 tsp of Paula Deen's House seasoning. Heat through while you make the slurry.
- To a medium bowl, add 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour. Whisk in 2 cups of milk slowly to make a slurry. I like to do this in small increments to prevent lumps. Add the slurry to the pot of soup and heat for another 2 minutes.
- Stir in 16 oz of cubed cream cheese until melted. Serve with a crusty baguette.
Notes
- If you can’t make Paula Deen’s seasoning, use one additional tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp more of black pepper, and 1 tsp each of garlic and onion powder. I highly recommend making the 4-ingredient spice mix to keep in your pantry as a poultry seasoning!
- I use homemade shredded rotisserie chicken, or I poach two chicken breasts in my Instant Pot with Paula Deen’s seasoning. See notes in my blog post on how to cook chicken from scratch.
- Cut the cream cheese into cubes so it melts more evenly into the soup.
- To make homemade chicken broth quickly, place the bones of a roasted chicken and two chicken feet (for extra collagen) into the Instant Pot. Add a carrot stick, onion, celery stalk, a couple of bay leaves, a splash of apple cider vinegar, peppercorns, and 1 tbsp of sea salt. Pressure cook on high for 4 hours. Strain and refrigerate in glass jars for up to 3 weeks. Broth that is high in collagen should look like jelly when refrigerated.
Nutrition (per serving)
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