Chicken Potato Soup with Bacon

Craving a delicious and hearty soup to warm you up on a chilly evening? This mouth-watering Chicken Potato Soup with Bacon recipe is exactly what you need! This hearty, meal-worthy is packed with tender chunks of chicken, creamy potatoes, crispy bacon, and savory seasonings for a satisfying and flavorful meal.

This is one of those soups that contains all of my favorite main ingredients — bacon, chicken, potatoes — cooked just so in a broth that becomes rich and creamy, and seasoned with herbs and spices and tangy mustard.

It’s so easy to make, especially if you use leftover or rotisserie chicken, as I call for in the recipe. The longest part of the cook is actually frying up the bacon, but of course the wait is worth it.

This is also the kind of soup that you can make in the morning, stash in the fridge, and let all of the amazing flavors meld and develop. Reheat for dinner and enjoy the hearty, complex flavors.

As I type this, winter is rapidly winding down — the daylight savings time change is this weekend, although now it’s supposed to snow — so this delicious concoction will probably be closing out winter soup season for the year.

And what a lovely way to wave a wistful adieu to thick and hearty soups as we transition to lighter fare.

Ingredients

The ingredients for Chicken Potato Soup are wonderfully simple: lots of veggies, some herbs and spices, and a nice dollop of dijon mustard that adds the most scrumptious hint of tang and zest.

I used a rotisserie chicken to cut some time off the cook (and the recipe calls for pre-cooked chicken, but see the FAQs below if you want to start with raw).

And then of course there’s the bacon. Bacon is used in two ways in this soup: as an ingredient and its rendered fat for sauteeing the aromatics.

With some flour for thickening and dairy for creamy smoothness, this soup has “feel good” written all over it.

How to Make Chicken Potato Soup with Bacon

Step 1: Fry the Bacon

In your soup pot, cook the bacon until it’s nice and crispy. This should take 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of your slices. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. If there are more than 2 tablespoons of bacon grease left in the pot, carefully drain it off.

Step 2: Saute the Vegetables

Add the onions, celery, carrots, and potatoes to the pot and sauté until softened (the potatoes might not be cooked through at this point; that’s okay). The liquid released from the veggies will deglaze any crusty brown fond left from the bacon. Be sure to stir frequently.

Spoon in the flour, mustard, and dried herbs over the veggies, and stir everything together to season the veggies.

Step 3: Simmer the broth

Stir in the broth 1 cup at a time, stirring well. This will help the flour thicken the broth.
Add the Worcestershire sauce and bouillon (if using). Bring the soup up to an active simmer and bubble gently for 10 minutes.

Step 4: Finish the soup

Reduce heat and stir in the half-and-half, and then the cooked chicken, crumbled bacon, spinach, green onions, red pepper flakes and a pinch of black pepper.

Step 5: Let rest and serve!

Let the soup rest for 5 or 10 minutes. The spinach will wilt, and the soup will continue to thicken. Serve with extra crumbled bacon and green onions!

Frequently Asked Questions about Chicken Potato Soup with Bacon

Can I start with raw chicken instead of cooked?

Yes, absolutely! Slice the thighs or breasts into medium pieces so they’ll cook faster, and then cook the chicken in the pot before beginning the rest of the soup. Remove to a plate. Continue with the recipe and add the chicken back where specified.

Can I use frozen or pre-cut potatoes?

Yes, absolutely! if the potatoes are already cooked (say, thawed from frozen), add them with the soup liquids instead of the aromatics (onions, etc.) since they don’t need the extra cook time.

Can I make this recipe gluten-free?

Yes, you can use gluten-free flour or a cornstarch slurry instead of regular flour to thicken the soup. Substitute Worcestershire sauce with tamari. Also, make sure that your chicken broth and bacon are gluten-free.

Can I add more vegetables to the soup?

Yes, you can definitely add more vegetables to the soup such as diced tomatoes, peas or corn. If you’re adding more aromatics, saute them with the onions. Otherwise, you can add them after you’ve poured in the broth.

Can I make this recipe in a slow cooker?

Yes, you can make this recipe in a slow cooker. Just add the ingredients, except the chicken (unless you’re starting with raw chicken), half and half, and spinach, to the slow cooker, and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-6 hours. Fifteen minutes before serving, reduce heat to low and stir in the remaining ingredients to warm through.

Can I freeze this soup?

Yes, you can freeze this soup for up to 3 months. Just let it cool down first and then transfer it to a freezer-safe container.

I love the textures in this soup, especially when topped with extra bacon and lots of green onions.

It’s everything all at once: creamy, chunky, crunchy. Pure comfort food soup!

More Potato Soups

• Tuscan Potato Soup
• Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup
• Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Chicken Potato Soup with Bacon

This thick and hearty Chicken Potato Soup with Bacon is the perfect comfort food for chilly evenings. Packed with tender chunks of chicken, creamy potatoes, and crispy bacon, this soup is a satisfying and flavorful meal. It’s easy to make and perfect for leftovers, too. Serve with crusty bread for a delicious and filling dinner.

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Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Course: Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken potato soup

Servings: 4

Author: Karen Gibson

Ingredients

• 4 slices thick cut smoked bacon, cut into shorter pieces
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 1 medium carrot, diced small or grated
• 1 pound Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2” pieces
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon Italian herb blend
• 1 teaspoon dried chives
• 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon (such as Better Than Bouillon), optional
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3 cups cooked chicken, cubed or shredded (leftover or rotisserie is great)
• 1 cup half and half
• 2 green onions, sliced on the diagonal
• 1 cup chopped spinach leaves
• 1 pinch red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Suggested garnishes:

• Crumbled bacon
• Sliced green onions
• Snipped fresh chives
• Shredded cheese
• A dollop of sour cream

Instructions

• Heat wide bottom Dutch oven or soup pot over medium
• Cook bacon til crispy, flipping often and moving around the pan so it doesn’t burn to the bottom of the pot (about 15 minutes).
• Transfer to paper towel-lined plate to drain and rest.
• There should be 1 to 2 tablespoons of bacon grease in the pot. Carefully drain off excess, if necessary.
• Add the onions, celery, carrots and potatoes to the pot. Sauté, stirring frequently, until the aromatics are softened (the potatoes might not be cooked through at this point; that’s okay). As the veggies exude their liquids, it will deglaze any crusty brown fond left from the bacon. Be sure to stir frequently. (About 8-10 minutes)
• Spoon in the flour, mustard, and dried herbs over the veggies, and stir everything together. If very stiff and pasty, add a splash of the chicken broth to loosen. Let this mixture cook for a minute or two to remove the rawness of the flour.
• Raise the heat to medium high and begin stirring in the broth 1 cup at a time. This will help the flour thicken the broth.
• Add the Worcestershire sauce and bouillon (if using). Bring the soup up to an active simmer and let bubble gently for 10 minutes.
• When the bacon has cooled, crumble into small bits and set some aside for garnish at serving.
• Reduce heat to low.
• Stir in the half-and-half, followed by the cooked chicken, crumbled bacon, spinach, green onions (reserve some if using for garnish), red pepper flakes and a pinch of black pepper.
• Let the soup rest for 5 or 10 minutes. The spinach will wilt, and the soup will continue to thicken.
• Taste, and adjust with salt and black pepper as needed.

Nutritional information, if shown, is provided as a courtesy only, and is not to be taken as medical information or advice. The nutritional values of your preparation of this recipe are impacted by several factors, including, but not limited to, the ingredient brands you use, any substitutions or measurement changes you make, and measuring accuracy.