This Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Soup is a healthy weeknight meal that’s simple to make. This budget-friendly comfort food is a cheap healthy meal the family will love. Nothing beats Crock Pot Chicken Soup on a cold evening!
Come home to Crock Pot Chicken Soup!
I live in Minnesota where the winters can get long, dreary, and cold. One of the best ways I have found to cope with (and maybe even enjoy) those months is to get outside and do things like cross-country skiing and winter hiking. And to eat soup. Lots and lots of soup. I love soup because it’s so versatile. Soup is hearty, inexpensive, healthy, and comforting. You can prepare it on the stove top, in an Instant Pot, and in the slow cooker. There is nothing better than a winter day spent outside doing something like cross-country skiing and then coming home to a warming soup that has been cooking away in the slow cooker. This Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Soup is the perfect ‘set it and forget it’ meal. It’s great for a Sunday dinner with friends and family. Slow cooker soups fill your home with an amazing aroma as they cook!
Nothing beats budget-friendly comfort food!
All of the ingredients in this Tuscan Chicken Soup are rustic and hearty. This makes it a cost-effective way to feed a family in a way that’s healthy and satisfying. The two ingredients that give this soup a lot of flavor are the aromatics – garlic and onions. Start by mincing six cloves of garlic and half an onion. I used a yellow onion, but you can use any kind you like!
Dice four to five red potatoes into small chunks. I like to use red potatoes in recipes like this because they have great flavor and they hold up during the cooking process. Red potatoes don’t tend to get mushy or starchy. The next step is to remove the ribs from a bunch of kale and chop it into smaller pieces. You can use any type of kale you like. I have a row of kale that’s still holding on in the garden so I thought I’d use it!
It’s time to break out the slow cooker!
Turn your slow cooker on and allow it to heat a bit before adding the ingredients. Once it’s heated, add one tablespoon of olive oil. Place two pounds or so of boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Chicken thighs are a great ingredient for recipes like this because they have more fat and flavor. They provide the soup with a bit of richness and don’t dry out as the soup cooks. Plus, they’re cheaper than chicken breasts (bonus)!
Sprinkle two teaspoons of Italian seasoning on top of the chicken along with 3/4 teaspoon or so of salt and pepper. Add the minced garlic and onions to the chicken along with the chopped potatoes and five cups of low-sodium chicken broth. It’s always best to use low-sodium broth with recipes like this so that it’s easier to control the salt level.
Ready to cook this slow cooker tuscan chicken soup?
Place the lid on the slow cooker and set it for six hours on low. The chicken and potatoes will cook for four hours or so and the rest of the ingredients will be added at that time. When the soup has one to two hours of cooking time left, remove the chicken from the slow cooker (it should be fully cooked at this point). Shred the chicken and then return it to the slow cooker. Add two cups of crushed tomatoes and one tablespoon of sugar. The sugar helps to balance the acidity in the tomatoes and provides a nice balanced flavor. Throw a couple handfuls of the chopped kale in at this time as well. Stir all of the ingredients together and place the lid back on.
Continue to let the Tuscan Chicken Soup cook for another hour or two in the slow cooker. The reason for adding the kale later on in the cooking process is to prevent it from getting too wilted. Adding it with an hour or two of cooking time left ensures that it retains a little of that hearty bite. After five to six hours of slow cooking, this Crock Pot Chicken Soup is ready to enjoy!
Budget-friendly comfort food is the best comfort food!
I love this Tuscan Chicken Soup because it’s a hearty meal that feels special, but in reality requires little effort and basic ingredients. There are no fancy techniques, but it’s totally ‘feel good food’. Feel free to top the soup with some grated Parmesan cheese and serve with some crusty bread! Parmesan always makes a healthy meal feel a little more ‘indulgent’. Soup recipes like this might make you look forward to winter!
Ingredients
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1/2 onion (1/2 cup)
- 4-5 red potatoes (4-5 cups)
- 1 bunch kale (2-3 cups)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 3/4 tsp salt (adjust to taste)
- 3/4 tsp pepper (adjust to taste)
- 5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp sugar
- Parmesan cheese for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Mince 6 cloves of garlic and half of 1 onion (you can use any type of onion you like).
- Cut 4-5 red potatoes into small chunks.
- Cut the ribs from a bunch of kale (you can use any type of kale you like). Chop the kale into small pieces.
- Heat a slow cooker and add 1 tbsp of olive oil.
- Place 2 lbs of boneless skinless chicken thighs in the heated slow cooker.
- Sprinkle 2 tsp of Italian seasoning, 3/4 tsp (or so) of salt, and 3/4 tsp (or so) of pepper on the chicken.
- Add the minced garlic, onions, and chopped potatoes on top of the chicken and spices.
- Pour 5 cups of low-sodium chicken broth into the slow cooker.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook for 4 hours or so on low.
- Remove the chicken at this point and shred it into pieces. Return the chicken to the slow cooker along with 2 cups of crushed tomatoes, 1 tbsp sugar, and a few handfuls of chopped kale. Stir all of these ingredients together.
- Return the lid and cook for another hour or two. The chicken should be fully cooked, the potatoes soft, and the kale slightly wilted when the soup is finished.
- Serve with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese (optional).
Notes
Home Chef Tip: Use chicken thighs for slow cooker soups. They have more fat than chicken breasts which makes for a more flavorful soup broth and they don't dry out in the cooking process. Plus, they're cheaper!
We hope you enjoy this Slow Cooker Tuscan Chicken Soup recipe from SoFabFood Home Chef, Christine from The Rustic Foodie, as much as we do. If you love this budget-friendly comfort food, you can find more like it by visiting our Slow Cooker Section. For daily recipe inspiration, subscribe to our newsletter, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Pinterest. Enjoy!
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