This Keto Chicken Soup recipe is packed with vegetables and shredded chicken. A great low carb soup that’s nourishing, delicious and so filling!
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You guys know how much I love a good soup! I have plenty of chicken soup recipes on this site – and this low carb version is my new favorite.
It is loaded with vegetables, herbs and tender chicken, packed with wonderful flavor AND low in carbs! So if you are asking yourselves “is chicken soup Keto?”… well this one is!
Make a big batch of this Keto soup to eat through the week, or freeze it so you have a healthy meal always on hand. Delicious with my Keto Bread!
WHAT GOES IN KETO CHICKEN SOUP
This recipe is a great way to use up any vegetables in the fridge – I have kept it strictly low carb but you can change it up if you prefer!
- Chicken: I used chicken tenders poached straight in the soup and then shredded. Alternatively you can use leftover roast chicken or turkey (hello Thanksgiving leftovers!).
- The vegetables: onions, leeks, celery, zucchini, rutabaga, cabbage
- Flavour: minced garlic, tomato paste, lemon juice, salt, pepper and bay leaves
- Chicken broth: This soup tastes infinitely better if you use homemade chicken broth which is easy to make (recipe below). If you don’t have homemade broth to hand then use good quality low sodium chicken broth without additives.
- Garnish: grated Parmesan, parsley, lemon zest
What no carrots?
Many soups use finely diced onions, carrots and celery as their foundation (see my chicken vegetable soup).
There’s some debate as to whether carrots are Keto friendly as they are relatively high in sugar. I opted to leave them out this time but they can be eaten in moderation. Feel free to add them in with the onions and celery in step one if you like.
HOW TO MAKE KETO CHICKEN SOUP – STEP BY STEP
Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!
Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over a medium heat. Sauté the onion, leek and celery for about 5 minutes, stirring, until they begin to soften.
Add the minced garlic, salt / pepper and tomato paste and sauté for another couple of minutes.
Stir in the zucchini, rutabaga and bay leaves (or any other vegetables you are using apart from any greens).
Add the chicken broth and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the chicken tenders. Cook with the lid on for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Use tongs to pick out the chicken then shred using two forks. If you are using leftover roast chicken add it now.
Remove the bay leaves from the soup. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup JUST A LITTLE so it thickens. You don’t want to blend it so it’s completely smooth unless that’s how you prefer it. Add the chicken and cabbage and continue to cook for five more minutes.
Add lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to balance the acidity. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in half the chopped parsley. Serve garnished with parsley, lemon zest, pinch chilli flakes and a little grated Parmesan!
SECRET TO THE BEST KETO SOUP…
The secret is in the broth! The best tasting soup start with a flavorful broth and luckily it is very easy to make at home.
Homemade bone broth is packed with nutrients and collagen and you can control how much salt to add! I usually do a Sunday Roast and save the chicken carcass and any leftover meat to make chicken soup with.
Put the chicken bones in a slow cooker and add two celery sticks, two carrots, a yellow onion, three tablespoons apple cider vinegar, thyme and bay leaves. Cover with water and cook on the LOW setting overnight or for 12 hours.
Strain the broth and discard the bones, vegetables and aromatics (you can hold on to the carrots and chop them to use in the soup). Store the broth in the fridge or use straight away.
LOW CARB CHICKEN SOUP VARIATIONS
- Change up the vegetables: cauliflower, broccoli, peppers, celeriac, spinach and kale can all be used in this recipe.
- Use leftover turkey: if you have Christmas or Thanksgiving leftovers this is a fabulous way to use them up!
- Make it creamy… Stir in some heavy cream at the end or drizzle it over the soup when you serve.
- Keto chicken noodle soup Add some shirataki noodles (zero noodles) in with the cabbage. These no carb noodles add bulk to the soup but they are flavourless and a little bit on the rubbery side.
- Serving little kids? If you are serving this soup to babies/ toddlers leave out the salt and blend it until it is smooth.
- Slimming World Variation Use cooking spray such as Fry Light to sauté the vegetables. This soup is syn-free, optional Parmesan can be part of your healthy extras or left out.
RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
More delicious comfort food recipes
Keto Chicken Soup – Hearty and Delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil or butter
- 1 large yellow onion , finely diced
- 3 celery sticks , finely diced
- ½ leek , diced
- 1 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 zucchini (courgette) , diced
- ½ cup (75g) rutabaga (swede) cut into small cubes
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 cups (1 ½ litres) chicken broth see notes for homemade!
- 1 lb (450g) chicken tenders (mini chicken breasts)
- 1 cup (90g) savoy cabbage finely diced
- 1 tbsp lemon juice or to taste
- 2 tbsp parsley , chopped, plus extra to serve
- salt and pepper to season
To serve
- 4 tbsp Parmesan grated
- lemon zest
- pinch chilli flakes (optional)
- olive oil to drizzle (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over a medium heat. Sauté the onion, leek and celery for about 5 minutes, stirring, until they begin to soften.
- Add the minced garlic, salt / pepper and tomato paste and sauté for another couple of minutes.
- Stir in the zucchini, rutabaga and bay leaves..
- Add the chicken broth and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and add the chicken tenders. Cook with the lid on for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Use tongs to pick out the chicken then shred using two forks.
- Remove the bay leaves from the soup. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup JUST A LITTLE so it thickens.
- Add the chicken and shredded cabbage and continue to cook for five more minutes.
- Add lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to balance the acidity. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in some chopped parsley reserving some to garnish.
- Serve garnished with parsley, lemon zest, pinch chilli flakes and a little grated Parmesan!
Video
Notes
- Change up the vegetables: cauliflower, broccoli, peppers, spinach and kale can be used in this recipe.
- Use leftover turkey – if you have Christmas or Thanksgiving leftovers this is a fabulous way to use them up!
- Make it creamy… Stir in some heavy cream at the end or drizzle it over the soup when you serve.
- Keto chicken noodle soup? Add some shirataki noodles (zero noodles) in with the cabbage. These no carb noodles add bulk to the soup but they are flavourless and a little bit on the rubbery side.
- Serving little kids? If you are serving this soup to babies/ toddlers leave out the salt and blend it until it is smooth.
Nutritional Info
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