Chicken kale soup recipe
This Chicken Kale Soup uses cooked and shredded chicken or turkey, bacon crumbles, and fresh kale greens. It's a healthy and delicious soup, plus easy to make!
Servings: 8 people
Ingredients
- 2-3 cups shredded cooked chicken or turkey
- 2 cup diced carrots 8.75 oz (2 medium)
- 2 cup diced celery 8.25 oz (1 small bundle)
- 1.25 cups diced yellow onion 5 oz (half of one medium)
- 6 medium garlic cloves sliced (0.85 oz)
- 8 oz. cremini mushrooms or baby bella, sliced
- 5 slices turkey bacon or hickory-smoked pork bacon, sliced
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme finely chopped
- A large handful curly kale or green chard, lacinato kale
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cups 24 oz chicken stock
- 1 tsp coarse salt plus more to taste
- a few rounds Ground black pepper
- A small handful chopped parsley garnish
- 3-4 tbsp (gluten-free) all-purpose flour or cassava flour — use 4 tbsp for thicker soup
- 1½ cups canned full-fat coconut milk or heavy cream (shaken well before using)
Instructions
- Prep: Shred the cooked chicken or turkey and set aside. Dice carrots, celery, and onion. Slice garlic, mushrooms, and bacon. Chop thyme. Remove kale leaves from stems and roughly chop. Rinse and drain well.
- Cook bacon: Heat a 4–5 qt. Dutch oven or heavy soup pot over medium-high heat. When hot, add oil and bacon. Cook until crispy. Remove the bacon and leave the rendered fat in the pot.
- Sauté aromatics: Reheat the pot over medium heat. Add garlic and onion with a pinch of salt; sauté until the onion starts to sweat. Add carrots and celery plus another pinch of salt; cook for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and thyme, and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Simmer soup: Pour in chicken stock to just cover the vegetables (about 3 cups). Bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce to low. Cook until the carrots and celery are tender but not mushy, 8–10 minutes.
- Prepare milk mixture: In a bowl, whisk together the gluten-free or cassava flour and coconut milk until smooth.
- Finish: Add the kale. Raise heat to medium and stir to combine. Simmer for a few minutes until kale softens but remains bright, 2 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk mixture and keep stirring until the soup thickens, 1–2 minutes.
- Serve: Finally, stir-in the cooked chicken or turkey. Give everything a stir then turn off the heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped parsley and crispy bacon.
Notes
- Add kale near the end so it stays vibrant and slightly crisp. For softer greens, simmer longer (about 5 minutes or so).
- Once add-in the coconut milk, don’t over boil the broth or the milk will curdle. Simmer the broth for 1-2 minutes only until the soup thickens.
- You can also use half-and-half instead of coconut milk. Since it’s thinner, add a bit more flour to help thicken the soup.
- Want more broth? Add 1 extra cup of stock and adjust salt and pepper to taste.
- Make-Ahead: Cook and shred the chicken 3 days in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use.
- Storage: Refrigerate the soup for 3 days after cooking. Because it contains coconut milk, it’s best enjoyed fresh. You can freeze it for up to 1 month — let it cool completely before freezing.
- Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave until warmed through. If the soup thickens after chilling, stir in a splash of broth or water to bring back the creamy consistency.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 280kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 698mg | Potassium: 674mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 5519IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 2mg
