Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup is loaded with quinoa, shredded chicken, lots of veggies, and Italian-inspired herbs. It’s hearty and perfect for a cozy meal.
Pair this soup with some crusty bread or homemade Dinner Rolls and an easy Cucumber Salad.
Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup
This delicious and hearty soup is so easy to assemble! With less than 30 minutes of prep time, everything can be in the slow cooker, ready to cook. Just a few hours later, a delicious and fragrant soup will be ready to eat!
Top individual bowls with plenty of freshly grated Parmesan cheese and make sure you’ve got some crusty bread to serve alongside the soup!
How To Make Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup
- Sauté Veggies: Sauté diced onion, carrot, and celery to add flavor and avoid crunchy veggies.
- Seasonings: Add Italian spices and tomato paste to the mirepoix for better flavor.
- Cook: Put the mix in a slow cooker. Add chicken, bay leaves, quinoa, diced tomatoes, and chicken stock. Stir, cover, and cook on high for 3-5 hours.
- Finish: Shred the chicken, stir it back in, and season to taste. Add spinach or kale if you like. Serve and enjoy!
Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup Notes
- The longer this soup cooks, the more liquid the quinoa absorbs. For a heartier soup, that’s great, but if you want it to remain more broth-y, stop cooking as soon as the quinoa has “popped.”
- Each slow cooker is a little different, so the cooking time varies. Look for chicken that shreds easily, quinoa fully cooked through, and tender veggies.
- Use a large-enough cooker: I recommend a 6-quart Crock-pot. Crock-pot is actually the brand name of a specific line of slow cookers, but most people use it as a generic term for any slow cooker.
Quick Tip
Rinse quinoa before cooking to remove its bitter coating. Check the package—if it’s not rinsed, rinse under cold water until the water runs clear.
More Soup Recipes
- Healthy Minestrone Soup with quinoa
- Quinoa Chili with sweet potatoes
- Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup a fun twist on chicken noodle soup
- The BEST Vegetable Soup with pesto
- Creamy Vegetable Soup reader favorite recipe
Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup
Crockpot Chicken Quinoa Soup is loaded with quinoa, shredded chicken, lots of veggies, and Italian-inspired herbs. It’s hearty and perfect for a cozy meal.
Equipment
- 6 quart slow cooker
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup EACH: diced yellow onion, diced celery, diced carrots
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning blend
- 2 teaspoons EACH: dried oregano, dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- Salt and pepper to taste preference
- 2 small (~12 ounces or 3/4ths a pound) small boneless skinless chicken breasts, each breast cut into 3-5 pieces
- 2 cans (14.5 ounces EACH) undrained fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa (See Note 1)
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 2 bay leaves
- Optional: 2 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach
- For serving: fresh basil, freshly grated Parmesan cheese, crusty bread
Instructions
- MIREPOIX: In a cast-iron pot or skillet, heat the 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add in the 1 cup diced onion, 1 cup diced carrots, and 1 cup diced celery. Cook and stir for 7-9 minutes. Add in the 2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1/4 cup tomato paste, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 2 teaspoons dried oregano, 2 teaspoons dried basil, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes if using. Season with salt and pepper. Stir until fragrant and combined, another 1-3 minutes. Transfer all of this mixture to a 6-quart slow cooker.
- SLOW COOKER: Remove any fat from the chicken breasts, and cut into chunks -- about 3-5 per breast. (This ensures it will cook in the same amount of time.) Place in the slow cooker along with the 2 cans of undrained fire-roasted diced tomatoes, 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa (See Note 1), 2 bay leaves, and 6 cups chicken stock. Stir together.
- COOK: Cover and cook on high for 3-5 hours or until quinoa has "popped" and chicken shreds easily. I don't recommend cooking on low (See Note 2). Once chicken shreds easily, remove from the slow cooker into a separate bowl or plate and shred with two forks. Return to the soup and stir. Remove bay leaves and discard. If desired, add in 2 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach and stir gently to wilt. Taste soup and season with any additional salt or pepper as needed.
- SERVE: Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with fresh basil and lots of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Enjoy with a side of crusty bread.
- STORAGE: When stored, note that the quinoa will continue to absorb liquid. This soup does not freeze and thaw well.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: Rinsing quinoa: Quinoa has a naturally occurring coating called saponin, which is bitter. It needs to be rinsed before adding to the soup. Many quinoas are pre-rinsed, so check the package to see if the quinoa has been rinsed. If not, add quinoa to a fine-mesh sieve and rinse it under cold water until the water beneath the sieve runs clear.
Note 2: Soup thickness: When cooked on low, the quinoa finishes a lot quicker than the chicken and veggies. The longer this soup sits or cooks, the more broth that gets absorbed into the quinoa. This makes it heartier and also less broth-y. If you want a more broth-y soup, watch carefully and turn the heat off the slow cooker when it is your desired consistency. Alternatively, add more broth as desired.
Nutrition
Serving: 8servings | Calories: 176kcal | Carbohydrates: 20.6g | Protein: 7.1g | Fat: 7.7g | Cholesterol: 7.9mg | Sodium: 260.6mg | Fiber: 3.6g | Sugar: 5.3g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Chelsea. Love the soup but am wondering about the nutritional information like calories, fiber and priteins
Hey Jana! So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 I stopped posting nutritional info because of negative feedback for being off by any amount, so while I can’t guarantee this is 100% accurate, here is one label for this soup: (If the soup was evenly divided into 7 parts — change the amount based on how many equal parts the soup is divided into)
Nutrition Facts
SERVINGS
7
Amount Per Serving
Calories 250 Calories from Fat 60
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 7g 11%
Saturated Fat 1.5g 8%
Trans Fat
Cholesterol 65mg 22%
Sodium 350mg 15%
Potassium 820mg 23%
Total Carbohydrate 20g 7%
Dietary Fiber 4g 16%
Sugars 2g
Protein 29g
Vitamin A 60%
Vitamin C 10%
Calcium 10%
Iron 10%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
thanks you!!!
Thank you for posting nutritional info. I know it’s a pain to calculate but is so helpful when on an eating plan. Thanks again:)
You are welcome! 🙂
What do you think is conserider a serving size? 1 1/2 cups? 2 cups?
1 serving size would be the entire soup divided into 6 or 8 equal parts 🙂 I’m not sure the exact cup amount, but if you are figuring it out for nutrition facts, the best way would be to equally divide the total soup amount.
Me again, haha! I was also wondering, can I add more veggies? I was thinking yellow and red peppers and corn? Corn I know to add at the end to just heat through, but im wondering about the peppers? could I throw them in at the beginning with everything else?
Hey Katherine! I actually haven’t tried chicken thighs in this recipe and to be honest I’ve never cooked chicken thighs in the crockpot so I really can’t say. As far as veggies, absolutely you can add some more! The corn you could add in right away (drained) or at the end. And then peppers should be delicious too. You may want to sauté them in a little olive oil before adding them to the crockpot or they might still have a “crunch” after everything else is cooked. If you don’t mind that then just throw them in raw too 🙂 Hope that helps!
I am wanting to make this at lunch! Looks great. My boyfriend doesn’t like quinoa on its own, but when I sneak it into soups like this he doesn’t notice and I love it. But, also wondering if I can use chicken thighs instead?
are there nutritional facts available? sounds good
I am wondering if I could use chicken thighs instead?
Could this be cooked all day on low? Or do you think the veggies would get overcooked?
The veggies would probably be okay it’s just the quinoa that tends to absorb more and more liquid the longer it is in the crockpot. If you are okay with a heartier soup (less broth) then you should be okay to cook it on low for 6-8 hours. The quinoa really expands and absorbs more liquid the longer it cooks.
Thank you for the inspiration. I Have this going right now. Where’s the spinach?
Thank you Leslie!! I hope you love this! No spinach in this soup, just the vegetables outlined 🙂
I’m in love with soups this week. I’ve made 3 in the past week. They’re so comforting and whole family enjoys them. Definitely got to give this one a whirl!
Have a great weekend!
We could also eat those things every single day! Totally simple, but SOSO satisfying! Just like this soup. I am SO pumped for soup season…but more specifically THIS soup season! Pinned!
I could eat soup every day and never get tired of it, either! This crock pot version sounds just perfect, Chelsea! I love the quinoa in here. Sounds so warm and comforting!