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This is the soup I make when January has been going on for about six weeks and nobody in this house can feel their toes. Chicken and wild rice soup is one of those recipes that’s everywhere right now — every food blog, every slow cooker roundup — and most of them taste like someone read a recipe but never actually stood over a pot. Ours tastes like it came from a grandmother’s kitchen, because it basically did.
Wild rice has a nuttiness and a chew that regular white rice can’t touch. When it cooks low and slow with chicken and vegetables in the slow cooker, the whole pot turns thick and golden and the house smells like someone who loves you has been cooking all day.
There was a week last January when the furnace decided to be dramatic. Jake was on rotation, the temperature dropped to twelve degrees, and I could see my breath in the kitchen at 6 AM. I filled the slow cooker with chicken thighs, wild rice, and vegetables, and by the time the kids got home from school, the house smelled like something Nana Ruth would approve of. Mason had two bowls. Clara ate hers with cornbread balanced on the edge of the bowl. Wyatt didn’t say anything, which is how I know he liked it.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Layer your slow cooker with chicken, rice, and aromatics. Place bone-in chicken thighs at the bottom — they stay tender and flavorful through the long cook. Add wild rice (rinsed), diced onion, carrots, celery, and minced garlic. Pour in chicken broth with thyme, a bay leaf, salt and pepper. Set it on low for six to eight hours.
Shred the chicken and finish the soup. Pull out the chicken thighs, shred the meat off the bones with two forks, and stir it back into the pot. Remove the bay leaf. The wild rice will be tender with a nice chewy bite, and the broth will be golden and fragrant.
Stir in cream right before serving. Just a splash — maybe a quarter cup of heavy cream — turns this from good soup into the soup. Stir it in gently and let it warm through for a few minutes. Serve with crusty bread or cornbread. This makes enough for leftovers, and it’s even better the next day.
If you love a good slow cooker soup, my Slow Cooker Pot Roast Stew is another set-it-and-forget-it favorite. For a lighter option, try my Tomato Basil Soup, and my Lasagna Soup is perfect for the nights when you want something a little more filling.
Slow Cooker Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup wild rice blend uncooked
- 1 cup carrots diced
- 1 cup celery diced
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 cup heavy cream
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
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Place chicken, wild rice, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, chicken broth, and thyme in a slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper.
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Cover and cook on LOW for 6-7 hours or HIGH for 3-4 hours, until chicken is cooked through and rice is tender.
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Remove chicken, shred with two forks, and return to the slow cooker.
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Stir in heavy cream. Cook on HIGH for 15 more minutes until heated through.
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Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve hot with crusty bread.
Common Questions
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Slow Cooker Pot Roast Stew
- Nana Ruth’s Brothy White Beans
- Maggie’s Birria Ramen
- Maggie’s Creamy Potato Leek Soup
What I Use for This Recipe
A couple things from my kitchen that make this one easier.
Big enough for Sunday soup, light enough to lift. Every kitchen needs a pot this honest.
Set it before school drop-off, come home to dinner. The most-used appliance in my kitchen after the stove.
For every stew, pot roast, and soup that needs low-and-slow love. The pot I reach for on Sundays.
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