Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Meatball Soup
Super easy and flavorful slow cooker creamy chicken meatball soup. A perfect meal to warm up with all winter long!
We’re all in need of super cozy and comforting meals right now. It’s the thick of soup season! And this super easy creamy chicken meatball soup will 100% hit the spot. Creamy, flavorful, warm and a little bit spicy! Hitting every required item for a perfect bowl of soup. It’s one of those meals that just warms the soul!
I’ve been a huge fan of spicy chicken meatballs for years! This dates back to the early days of Baked by Rachel. Most meatballs don’t cut it for me but these – they’re perfect! Full of flavor and spice … and a perfect texture! If you’re not a big fan of spice, you can absolutely adjust or omit the spice entirely. This soup recipe will be equally delicious without it! But don’t skimp on the rest of the spices!
If you’ve been following my recipes for long enough, you’re probably aware of how much I adore using my slow cooker in the winter. It makes life so much easier, even when it’s a recipe that requires a bit more prep work. Let the slow cooker do it’s magic, blending flavors and cooking the veggies, all while you prep the meatballs. Of course, if you prep them ahead, it’s that much less to do the day of!
Prepped ahead or made fresh the day of, either way you’ll enjoy the smells of this soup wafting through your home. It’s a classic winter experience. A necessary and cozy addition to those long cold winter days!
Be sure to include this creamy chicken meatball soup to your dinner plans! You’ll be glad you did!
How to Make Creamy Chicken Meatball Soup
This creamy chicken meatball soup is very easy to make but does take extra time to prep the meatballs. These can be made ahead or while the rest of the soup begins to cook. A kitchen helper is always a plus to move the prep work along!
- Prepare your vegetables. Chop onion, celery and carrots. Drain the corn and mince the garlic. Add to your slow cooker. Top off with spices, bay leaves and chicken broth. Cover and begin cooking on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. The range in the time accounts for the addition of the meatballs and cream, in addition to if your slow cooker runs hot.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Prepare your meatballs. Mix together all ingredients until well combined. We’re making tiny meatballs here! They are small enough to fit on a spoon. Optionally, you can use a small cookie scoop to portion out your meat to be rolled. A small cookie scoops worth of meatball mixture will be enough for around two meatballs.
- Using your desired method, shape into up to 70 mini meatballs. This is the exact amount I made but yours can be less, if desired, to make slightly larger meatballs.
- Once rolled and shaped, transfer your meatballs to the prepared baking sheet. They can be relatively close on the baking sheet.
- Bake mini meatballs for 10-15 minutes.
- Towards the end of the soup cooking cycle (3 or 7 hour mark), remove and discard bay leaves. Combine cornstarch and cream. Whisking until smooth. Stir cream mixture into the soup. Carefully add meatballs and continue cooking for an additional hour.
- Optionally top off with chives
Check below this post for even more delicious recipes to make this season!
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Recipe tips and troubleshooting
Nutritional servings are generally based on 1 cup portions. However, average portion sizes tend to be larger. Depending on your portion size and preference, this recipe will roughly serve 8, give or take.
For nutritional calculations, be sure to use the actual ingredients, brands and amounts you used to make this recipe, in addition to what your desired portion size is.
This soup is best fresh or stored in the refrigerator but you can absolutely freeze this after it’s been fully cooked. With any dairy based soup, you may run into some texture issues or ingredients separating a bit after freezing. It will still be safe to eat though.
This can easily be refrigerated for 4-5 days. If frozen, it will keep up to several months.
Absolutely! The meatballs can be cooked ahead and refrigerated for several days to save time the day of. They can also be prepped even further ahead and frozen, but should be thawed prior to adding to the slow cooker.
Yes! While this recipe calls for chicken, you can absolutely swap it out with your preferred ground meat.
Yes! If avoiding dairy completely for health reasons, substitute with dairy alternative milks or coconut milk. Non-dairy vegan cheese and cream cheese can also be used if it is known to melt well.
If you don’t want to use dairy or dairy alternatives, you can 100% make this a broth based soup. Increase your broth by at least 1 cup, to account for the missing cream. You can add additional broth as desired.
I use a 6 quart slow cooker for all of my main dishes. A 5 quart would work as well. I wouldn’t go any smaller just to be on the safe side.
You’re aiming for mini meatballs, small enough to fit on a spoon. If you have a food scale, the mixture can be portioned out into 8g each, or 70 mini meatballs. You can also use a small cookie scoop to portion the meat. A small cookie scoop will make roughly two meatballs, maybe slightly less. You can absolutely make them bigger though! Adjust your bake time if making larger meatballs.
Yes! While I personally love the spicy kick it gives the meatballs… and the soup, the amount can be reduced or eliminated entirely if you’re not a fan.
Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Meatball Soup
Ingredients
Soup:
- 1 C yellow onion
- 1 C celery
- 1 C carrots
- 15 oz whole kernel corn, drained
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 C chicken broth
- 1 C heavy cream
- 3 Tbsp cornstarch
Meatballs:
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1/2 C seasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 C parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, optional
Equipment
Instructions
- Prepare your vegetables. Chop the onion, celery and carrots. Mince garlic. Drain corn.
- To the bowl of a 5-6 quart slow cooker, add prepared vegetables, spices and bay leaves. Top off with chicken broth. Cover and cook on high for an initial 3 hours (or 6-7 hours on low).
- Meanwhile, prepare meatballs. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, mix together meatball ingredients until well combined. Portion out and shape into roughly 8g sized mini meatballs. This will create roughly 70. Place shaped meatballs on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Set aside until ready to add to the soup.
- When initial cook time is up, remove and discard bay leaves. Whisk together cream and cornstarch until smooth. Pour into slow cooker. Stir to combined. Carefully add cooked mini meatballs. Continue cooking for an additional hour.
- Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.
- Serve warm.
Notes
More delicious recipes to make this season:
- Pizza soup
- Guinness beef stew
- Broccoli cheddar and potato soup
- Chicken fajita soup
- Nacho soup
- Lasagna soup
- Loaded potato soup in bread bowls
- Chicken pie soup
- Bacon cheeseburger soup
- New England clam and corn chowder
