White Bean and Chicken Soup Recipe
This post contains affiliate links (paid links). Advertisements displayed on this website do not reflect endorsements or recommendations made by Mitten Girl LLC. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Skip to Recipe
A bowl of cozy comfort food is just the thing to warm up a cold day. This White Bean and Chicken Soup is healthy, hearty, full of veggies and a delicious way to use up leftover roast chicken.
A hot bowl of chicken soup is just good food. But it’s also a hearty meal when made with lots of veggies and protein-packed white beans. I love making this hearty soup during weekend meal prep. It lets me have a homemade meal in the fridge for those busy weeknights when there’s just no time to cook. Or I pack it into individual portions and make myself a delicious set of lunches for the week.
We’re skipping the instant pot and pressure cooker in favor of making a delicious pot of soup on the stove top. While I always seem to have leftover roasted chicken, I don’t often have homemade chicken stock on hand. But for this recipe it doesn’t matter. Store-bought chicken broth is tasty and letting it simmer for a bit with herbs and veggies imparts a great homemade flavor. It’s the perfect way to get a great meal on the table with a little less work.
Ingredients
- Olive oil – Choose your favorite cooking oil for this recipe. I like olive oil, but avocado oil or grape see oil would be good here too.
- Yellow onion – White onions would work here as well. Skip the red onions and sweet onions. Their flavor is too mild for this dish.
- Garlic – Choose firm garlic cloves with no visible blemishes on them.
- Carrots – Skip the baby carrots and use large, whole carrots for this recipe. They’re sweeter and give a much better flavor to the soup.
- Fresh parsley – Swap 1 tablespoon dried parsley for the fresh parsley, if that’s what you have on hand.
- White wine – Wine add a little acidity to this soup that compliments the chicken. The alcohol has lots of time to cook out, so you don’t need to worry about that. Choose a dry white wine like a pinot grigio. Skip the sweet wines when cooking.
- Chicken broth – Choose low sodium broth so you can control how much salt is in your soup. You can you vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth if you’d like.
- Diced, canned tomatoes – You can swap these out for two cups of fresh tomatoes if you prefer.
- Kale – I like kale over other greens in this soup because it holds up well and doesn’t get mushy. Choose whatever kind of kale you prefer. I usually use curly leaf kale.
- Salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder – The power seasonings of all chicken recipes! These pantry staples pack a ton of flavor while letting the other ingredients shine through.
- Lemon juice – A little lemon juice brightens up this soup. Use fresh squeezed or from a bottle. Whatever you have on hand.
- Cooked chicken – This soup is a great use for leftover cooked chicken or a rotisserie chicken from the store.
- Great northern beans – White beans are my favorite in soups because of their creamy texture. Just be sure to add them in at the end or they’ll get tough.
How to Make Chicken and White Bean Soup with Kale
Heat olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, and garlic and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Add parsley, wine, broth, tomatoes, kale, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and lemon juice. Bring to a bubble, then reduce to simmer over medium-low heat. Cover and simmer on low for 15-20 mins.
Add chicken and white beans. Stir and cook another 5 mins until chicken and beans are heated through. Serve and enjoy!
Chicken and White Bean Soup with Kale
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 large carrots, diced
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- ¼ cup white wine
- 6 cups chicken broth , or vegetable broth
- 15 oz canned diced tomatoes, drained
- 2 cups kale, washed and chopped
- 1 Tbsp salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 cup cooked chicken, diced
- 15 oz great northern beans, drained and rinsed
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.2 Tbsp olive oil
- Add onions, carrots, and garlic. Cook for 4-5 minutes.1 medium onion, 2 cloves garlic, 3 large carrots
- Add parsley, wine, broth, tomatoes, kale, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and lemon juice.2 Tbsp fresh parsley, 1/4 cup white wine, 6 cups chicken broth , 15 oz canned diced tomatoes, 2 cups kale, 1 Tbsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp lemon juice
- Bring to a bubble, reduce to simmer.
- Cover and simmer on low for 15-20 mins.
- Add chicken and white beans. Stir and cook another 5 mins until chicken and beans are heated through.1 cup cooked chicken, 15 oz great northern beans
- Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Be sure to clean the kale by stripping the kale leaves off their stems before chopping. Kale stems are tough and not very tasty.
- Add the beans at the end! White beans will get tough if you add them in too soon, so be sure to not mix them in until the end of the cooking.
- Don’t have any leftover chicken meat on hand? Roast a chicken breast in the oven at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Let it cool to room temperature before shredding or chopping up the chicken.
- Leftover turkey is delicious in this homemade soup instead of the leftover rotisserie chicken.
Cooking Chicken in the Slow Cooker
Did you know you can roast a whole chicken in the slow cooker? It’s a great way to have a roast chicken dinner on a busy day. Then use that leftover meat to make this soup! Head to my slow cooker roast chicken recipe page for directions and tips.
Still Have Lots of Leftover Chicken?
Try one of these tasty chicken salad recipes!
