Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup brings together a creamy base, hearty veggies, tender chicken, and seasoned wild rice. Let the slow cooker or pressure cooker do all the work!
Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup
This soup is one of my all-time favorites, especially during the colder months. I make it often, and I’m so excited to share it with you!
It’s an easy recipe, thanks to the slow cooker or pressure cooker, with a unique ingredient—sweet potatoes!
Roasted sweet potatoes are a favorite in my home, so one winter, I decided to toss some into this soup. Since then, I haven’t made it any other way!
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need for Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup:
- Chicken thighs: Tender and flavorful, with fat that adds richness to the soup.
- Wild rice blend: A mix of grains gives a great texture without becoming mushy.
- Yellow onion: Finely diced so it softens well and blends into the soup.
- Carrots and celery: Small, uniform pieces cook evenly.
- Garlic: Freshly minced or jarred—use whatever you have.
- Sweet potatoes: Adds subtle sweetness and hearty texture.
- Chicken stock or broth: Higher quality stock gives a better flavor base.
- Butter and flour: Essential for a creamy, thick soup.
- Milk: Whole milk brings richness and keeps the soup thick.
- Bay leaves and seasonings: These add layers of flavor.
- Chicken bouillon: Deepens the broth’s flavor.
How To Make Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup
- Add Ingredients: Put chicken, rice, veggies, stock, and seasonings in the CrockPot.
- Cook: Cover and cook on low for 5-8 hours or high for 3.5-5 hours.
- Make Cream: Melt butter, whisk in flour, then milk until thick.
- Finish: Shred chicken, add cream, remove bay leaves, and season.
- Serve: Garnish with herbs and enjoy with buttered bread.
What To Serve With Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup
- Crusty bread, honey whole wheat bread, or soup crackers/saltines
- Big garden salad (like this Olive Garden copycat) for a fresh, light side
- Grilled cheese for dipping—perfectly comforting with this soup
- Fresh fruit or try a seasonal fruit salad
Storage
Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup Leftovers?
- Freeze: Store in an airtight bag and thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Fridge: Keeps well for 3-4 days.
- Reheat: Warm slowly over low heat to avoid separation. Add a splash of milk to thin.
More Crockpot Soup Recipes:
- Crack Chicken Chili with bacon
- Crockpot Chili award-winning chili recipe!
- Southwestern Corn Chowder with black beans
- Crockpot Chicken Stew with carrots and potatoes
- Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup with sweet potatoes
Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup is packed with hearty veggies, tender chicken, and a flavorful wild rice blend. Just toss everything into the slow cooker and let it do the work!
Equipment
- CrockPot 6-quart, or use an Instant Pot
- Small pot
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs see note 1
- 1 cup uncooked wild rice blend see note 2
- 1/2 cup finely diced yellow onion 1 onion, see note 3
- 3/4 cup finely diced carrot 2 carrots
- 3/4 cup finely diced celery 2 ribs
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 cup diced sweet potato 1 potato
- 6 cups chicken stock or broth
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- Fresh herbs like parsley or thyme, optional
- Hearty buttered bread optional, for serving
Seasonings
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon parsley flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Add the chicken, rice, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, sweet potato, chicken stock, and all seasonings to the CrockPot or Instant Pot. Season with 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper. Stir well.
- For CrockPot: Cover and cook on low for 5-8 hours or on high for 3.5-5 hours, until the rice is tender and chicken shreds easily. For Instant Pot: Seal and cook on manual mode for 10 minutes. Let pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, then manually release any remaining pressure.
- When soup is nearly done, melt butter in a small pot over medium heat. Slowly whisk in flour and cook, whisking constantly, for 1 minute. Gradually add in milk while whisking constantly. Let simmer over medium-low heat until thickened. Whisk often.
- Remove the chicken, shred, and return it to the soup. Stir in the cream mixture, discard bay leaves, and adjust seasonings. If the soup is too thick, add up to 1 cup of milk.
- Garnish with fresh parsley or thyme and serve with hearty buttered bread.
Video
Recipe Notes
Note 1: This soup gets a lot of its flavor from the fat in the chicken thighs, which I don’t trim before cooking. When shredding the chicken after cooking, I pull off any rendered fat. You can substitute chicken breasts, but the soup will be less flavorful. If using breasts, cut them into 3 pieces before adding.
Note 2: Be cautious with your wild rice choice. Black or forbidden rice can tint the entire dish black. I use the Lundberg wild rice blend, which becomes soft and tender. It can get a bit mushy if overcooked, which I don’t mind as it adds a thick, hearty texture. If you prefer firmer rice, check it at the earliest cook time.
Note 3: Smaller, evenly diced veggies make a better soup. I dice the onion, celery, and carrot very small, and the sweet potato into 1/2-inch chunks.
Stovetop Directions: Follow this recipe instead!
Storage: This soup stores well in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat slowly over low heat to prevent the soup from separating. Freeze in an airtight bag and thaw overnight in the fridge.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 633kcal | Carbohydrates: 74g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 111mg | Sodium: 495mg | Potassium: 1019mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 11302IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 158mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi! I love your blog, I’m obsessed with soups and crockpot meals, so your stuff is the BEST! This is probably a funny question, but I don’t like wild rice, but this soup sounds amazing. Think it’ll taste good with quinoa or brown rice instead?
Thank you so much, that is such a great compliment 🙂 I actually think this soup would be delicious with brown rice! I would cook it separately though since it would probably get mushy in the crockpot (and so also reduce the broth in the soup since a lot of it is meant for the wild rice) I hope you enjoy it Jamie 🙂
My husband also doesn’t like wild rice so I’m planning to make this with brown rice instead! How much liquid would you leave out if you are cooking the rice separately? I also wondered if I could just add the rice into the crockpot part of the way through the cook time instead of cooking separately!
thank you for this recipe, I have loved wild rice and cream of chicken soup ever since Marie Callendars had the frozen soups decades ago but theirs had raw almonds and sherry in it so it was different; I was looking for a new recipe for wild rice (I was born in a state where wild rice is common) and chicken soup and yours sounds just right, as soon as it gets cooler. Our weather is still in the 90s in mid November but it should cool soon. I happen to already have about 4 of the Lundburg mixes and Trader Joes wild rice so I won’t even need to shop. We love sweet potatoes and I was struck by the question one of the posters had about using yams; yams here in California are over 10 dollars a pound as they are exported from tropical lands so we all eat sweet potatoes which are far prettier anyway with the orange flesh.
You are welcome! 🙂 I hope you love this soup as soon as the weather cools down! Wow, are they really?! Here in Utah, yams are actually cheaper than sweet potatoes! Funny huh!
Just made this and it was delicious! Both my picky eaters, 2 1/2 and 4, ate it up ?. My husband didn’t initially like the idea of sweet potatoes but loved the soup too.
Thank you so much for your comment Kalee! 🙂 So thrilled it was a hit with everyone!
I’m from the town of Lundberg farms! I can totally vouch for their rice 🙂 I’m definitely making this soon, looks delicious!
Oh my gosh; how cool! I’m obsessed with their rice! Hope you love the soup 🙂
This soup is absolutely delicious! I love the fact that you have incorporated sweet potatoes and wild rice in it! Thank you so much for sharing !
Thank you! So happy to hear you enjoyed this soup Alicia! 🙂
HI!
Is it possible to make it without slow cooker, because I don’t have one, unfortunately. Thank you! Recipe looks delicious!
Yes you can absolutely make it over the stovetop! 🙂 Enjoy Dimana!
Would this soup freeze well?
Unfortunately not. If you frozen it before adding the cream base I think it would do okay. (Then add the cream base to the thawed soup)
This is gorgeous, I love the photos and can’t wait to try the recipe!
Thank you so much Amy! I hope you love it 🙂
Is it possible to make this with skim milk & have the same delicious results?
I wish it would be the same, but it’s definitely more creamy and comforting with whole milk!
That is the prettiest bowl of soup I’ve ever seen! I love all the flavors in this, and I’m a total soup person. I *always* crave soup. I am putting this on my list of recipes to try soon!
Awe, thank you so much Sarah!! 🙂
This sounds terrific, I plan to make this right away. Question – are you using a “sweet potatoe” or a “yam”. Many folks call Yams sweet potatoes, but they are actually different from each other. I would guess that both would be tasty in this recipe… but I’m looking for your opinion on that.
Thanks so much for the great blog!
Yes either will work Sheena 🙂 But I do use a sweet potato in this soup. I hope you love it! And thank you for your compliment!
YUM! I used real sweet potatoe’s – turned out so great! Thank you again!