This Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice is ready to serve in just over an hour!
Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice
Last weekend Nick asked me to buy some veggies he could eat for snacks, so when I was at Sam’s Club, I bought giant bags of Broccoli, Celery, and Carrots.
I knew the kids liked them too, and they eat A LOT, so I wasn’t worried about them going bad before they could eat them all.
Then I remembered the kids can’t eat them raw due to their braces.
I just made Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup and Chicken and Rice Soup the week before, so I needed a new recipe that I could use all of these in.
They used to enjoy the Panera Broccoli & Cheese Soup, but there isn’t a Panera that’s reasonably close to us, and they don’t like it in the Panera containers that Sam’s Club sells because it isn’t “fresh” enough for them.
So, I decided to make some at home, adding in a few other items to create an Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice.
I browsed the internet looking over a variety of recipes for Broccoli Cheese Soup.
None really met the parameters I had in mind, so I decided to just throw some stuff together and see what happened.
I considered putting it in bread bowls, but they were $5 each at the market this week, and $20 for bread alone for ONE MEAL was not in my budget, it got served in bowls 🙂
Normally when I try a new recipe, I’ll make it several times making adjustments here and there, and I won’t write it down until it’s perfect (for us).
I’ll be honest, I really did not expect this one to go well, because I had ingredients I was just throwing in, and it was a very easy broccoli cheese soup recipe.
At the end, I added chicken and rice, so maybe we’ll call it… Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice.
It was easy. I used only one pot. Broccoli. Cheddar Cheese. Chicken. Rice. Bam – it has a name 🙂
McCormick Limited Edition Cheddar Broccoli Soup, 1.05 OZ (Pack of 1)
*Shown as an example so you know what the package looks like when shopping in-store. I purchased mine at a Wholesale Club in a bulk size, so the pricing was MUCH more affordable 🙂
I don’t have the ingredient or in process pictures, because I really wasn’t prepared to share the recipe just yet.
Once the family tested it, they proclaimed it AMAZING and insisted I share it immediately.
I shared it with a quick phone snapshot and had several messages asking for the recipe, so here it is.
No fancy picture set up, they let me use the last scoop of soup in a bowl to snap two pictures, then they ate it.
Not one drop was leftover for lunch the next day.
I may make it in the slow cooker next time too because I think it would work well on low for 6-8 hours.
Food Network Enameled Cast Iron 5.5qt Dutch Oven – This is the EXACT model I have.
Here’s is how I prepared this Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice Recipe:
I melted half a stick of butter in my Dutch Oven.
I already had my carrots, celery, broccoli, and onions peeled & diced and stuck in the freezer in a gallon freezer bag (I bought in bulk last week at Sam’s Club, prepped them when I got home bagged together & labeled for how I was using them).
I threw the frozen veggies in with the melted butter and let them unthaw, and cook until softened.
I added the garlic powder, salt & pepper, and Italian seasoning as they cooked.
Once they were ready, I poured in the cheese, chopped chicken, chicken broth, McCormick Slow Cookers Cheddar Broccoli Soup Seasoning, and brought the liquid to a boil.
I reduced heat and let it simmer, stirring every half hour.
When we were about 30 minutes away from eating, I added the rice (I used Uncle Ben’s Butter & Garlic Rice, the bags cook in the microwave for 90 seconds, but when using in a soup I do not microwave it, I just add it to the soup).
I let that simmer on medium-low for about 30 minutes then served with garlic bread sticks.
My original plan was bread bowls, but at my local market they were $5.99 each – I would’ve needed 4 and didn’t want to pay $24 for bread alone, so we passed on that.
Next time, I might bake my own, but they liked it really well with the breadsticks!
Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice
Ingredients
- 1/2 stick butter
- 1 medium onion diced
- 5 medium-sized carrots sliced
- 3 cups broccoli chopped
- 1 celery stalk sliced
- 1 32 oz box chicken broth
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 pkg McCormick slow cooker seasoning - broccoli & cheese soup
- 2 tbsp garlic powder
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 3 cups chicken chopped
- 2 bags uncle ben's butter & garlic rice
- 4 cups shredded cheese
Instructions
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 530Total Fat: 37gSaturated Fat: 20gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 137mgSodium: 1300mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 4gSugar: 4gProtein: 31g
These are a few items I use in my own kitchen when preparing this Easy One Pot Broccoli & Cheese Soup with Chicken & Rice Recipe:
PiggiesC Silicone Soup Funnel Kitchen Gadget Tools Water Deflector ToolRachael Ray Cucina Tools Lazy Ladle, Cranberry RedKOVOT Set of 4 Speckled Ceramic Soup Bowls With Spoons – 22-Ounces EachOXO Good Grips Y PeelerHOMWE Kitchen Cutting Board (3-Piece Set) | Juice Grooves w/ Easy-Grip Handles | BPA-Free, Non-Porous, Dishwasher Safe | Multiple Sizes (Set of Three, Gray)8-Inch Multipurpose Stainless Steel Chef Knife with ABS Handle by Utopia Kitchen
Jennifer H.
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
We have not tried this with chicken. It could be really good.
Elizabeth Tarlow
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
Love this Soup recipe! Thanks for sharing :) I'll have to look for that McCormick slow cooker seasoning – broccoli & cheese soup...hadn't heard of it before!
kathy pease
Tuesday 20th of February 2018
This looks so good and I will have to try out the recipe :)
Amber
Monday 19th of February 2018
This looks like an ideal winter comfort food
Cynthia C
Monday 19th of February 2018
I enjoy making soups in the winter months. This one looks delicious.