Martha Stewart Classic Chicken Vegetable Soup Recipe

If you are the kind of person who reaches for soup the second the weather turns cold, this is the one you want in your rotation. Martha Stewart’s Classic Chicken Vegetable Soup simmers carrots, celery, and Yukon Gold potatoes in a rich homemade chicken broth for 14 to 16 minutes, stirs in shredded chicken, and gives you a warm, honest bowl of soup with nothing fancy and nothing missing.

I make this Martha Stewart chicken soup recipe every fall when the first cold night hits and I do not feel like cooking anything complicated. This chicken vegetable soup is one of Martha Stewart’s best chicken recipes for the kind of day when you just want something warm and simple. The trick is having the broth and shredded chicken ready ahead of time, because once you have that, the whole soup comes together in about 25 minutes. One of those Martha Stewart chicken dishes that feels like a hug from your kitchen.

Try More Soup Recipes:

• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Chicken Soup With Rice
• Minestrone Soup

Why You Will Love This Chicken Vegetable Soup:

• 25 minutes once the base is ready: If you have broth and shredded chicken in the fridge or freezer, this soup goes from pot to bowl in 25 minutes. That is faster than ordering delivery. I keep a batch of broth in the freezer specifically for nights when I need this.
• Three vegetables, nothing complicated: Carrots, celery, and Yukon Gold potatoes. That is it. No ingredient hunting, no specialty items. You probably have most of this in your kitchen right now. I cut everything the size Martha says because it actually matters for even cooking.
• It tastes like it simmered for hours: The homemade broth does all the work. If you use a good chicken broth, even store-bought, the soup tastes deep and rich without any tricks. I have made this with leftover rotisserie chicken and homemade broth and it was just as good.

Chicken Vegetable Soup Ingredients

• 10 cups chicken broth (from Martha Stewart’s Chicken Soup Base or homemade)
• 4 cups shredded chicken (from the soup base or rotisserie chicken)
• 4 medium carrots, cut into 1/4-inch rounds
• 3 medium celery stalks, cut into 1/4-inch slices
• 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• Coarse salt and ground pepper

How To Make Martha Stewart Classic Chicken Vegetable Soup

1. Prepare the broth and chicken: Make Martha Stewart’s Chicken Soup Base following her recipe, or use 10 cups of your own homemade or store-bought chicken broth and 4 cups of shredded chicken from a rotisserie chicken. This can be done up to 3 days ahead.
2. Cook the vegetables: In a large pot, bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Add the carrots, celery, and potatoes. Reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 14 to 16 minutes.
3. Add the chicken and season: Stir in the shredded chicken and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the chicken is warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve.

Recipe Tips

• Cut the vegetables to the right size: Martha says 1/4-inch rounds for carrots, 1/4-inch slices for celery, and 1/2-inch pieces for potatoes. This is not just fussiness. If you cut them bigger, the potatoes will not cook through in 14 to 16 minutes and you will end up with crunchy carrots. I measure the first few cuts then eyeball the rest.
• Make the broth ahead: The whole point of Martha’s method is that you prep the broth and chicken in advance. I make a big batch on Sunday and refrigerate it. When I want soup during the week, I just boil the broth, throw in the vegetables, and dinner is ready in 20 minutes.
• Season at the end, not the beginning: The broth already has salt from when you made it. If you season again before the vegetables cook, the soup can end up too salty as the liquid reduces. I taste after adding the chicken and adjust from there.
• Add a squeeze of lemon if it tastes flat: Martha’s FAQ section says lemon juice or vinegar can fix a bland soup. I squeeze half a lemon in right before serving and it brightens everything up. You do not taste lemon, you just taste a soup that wakes up.

What Goes Well With This Chicken Vegetable Soup

Soup and bread. That is the move. A loaf of sourdough bread torn into chunks for dipping is all you need. I warm the bread in the oven while the soup simmers so it is hot and crusty when the bowls come out.

If you want something more, a batch of buttermilk biscuits makes this feel like a full Sunday supper. But most weeknights it is just the soup and the bread.

How To Store Leftovers

Let the soup cool completely, then store in airtight containers for up to 3 days. The potatoes absorb broth overnight so the leftovers will be thicker. Add a splash of broth or water when reheating to thin it back out. Freezes well for up to 6 months.

I freeze this in individual portions so I can pull out one container for a quick lunch. It reheats in a saucepan over medium heat in about 5 minutes. I always make a double batch because it freezes so well and future me is always grateful.

FAQs

• Do I need Martha’s Chicken Soup Base recipe? You do not. Martha’s base recipe makes the broth and shredded chicken from scratch using a whole chicken, and it is great if you have the time. But you can also use 10 cups of store-bought broth and shred a rotisserie chicken. I have done it both ways and the soup is good either way. Homemade broth is better, but store-bought still works.
• Can I add different vegetables? Martha suggests swapping parsnips for carrots, sweet potatoes for regular potatoes, or adding frozen peas, beans, or baby spinach near the end. I have added peas in the last 2 minutes and they work perfectly. Just do not add too many extras or the soup gets crowded.
• Can I add pasta or noodles? You can, but cook the pasta separately and add it to individual bowls. If you cook noodles directly in the soup, they absorb all the broth and you end up with chicken and vegetable stew. I learned this the hard way.
• What herbs work in this soup? Martha suggests thyme, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, parsley, or dill. I like fresh thyme added during the simmer and chopped parsley stirred in at the end. Do not add too many herbs at once or they compete with each other. Pick one or two.

More Soup Recipes:

• Chicken Soup
• Vegetable Soup
• Tomato Soup

Nutrition Facts

(1 serving, serves 6)

• Calories: 280
• Total Fat: 6g
• Saturated Fat: 2g
• Cholesterol: 85mg
• Sodium: 620mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 22g
• Protein: 32g