Buffalo Chicken Soup (original) (raw)
The best Buffalo Chicken Soup Recipe you’ll ever have. Easy to make, healthy and delicious – you won’t believe it’s dairy free!
We absolutely love buffalo sauce (doesn’t everyone?) and have created many recipes with it like our healthy buffalo turkey meatballs, buffalo chicken salad, and our popular healthy buffalo chicken dip.
Soups are another one of our favorite meals, so I wanted to find a way to get the flavors of delicious buffalo chicken into a creamy and delicious soup. This recipe is exactly what I was hoping for!
The best part… it’s totally dairy free, paleo & Whole30 friendly!
- Why we love this Easy Buffalo Chicken Soup
- Ingredients:
- Substitutions
- Cooking Instructions:
- What dishes go well with this soup recipe?
- Storage Options
- FAQ’s
- Other healthy buffalo chicken recipes:
- Buffalo Chicken Soup
The creaminess in this soup comes from the Yukon gold potatoes and a little almond milk making it a perfect option if you are dairy-free or just trying to reduce your dairy intake.
If you are a buffalo sauce lover, this will become one of your go-to family recipes!
Why we love this Easy Buffalo Chicken Soup
This recipe is a favorite for us because it’s:
- Hearty & Delicious – the potatoes in this soup make it incredibly filling!
- Made with simple ingredients – only 10 ingredients are needed for this soup
- Paleo, Dairy-Free, Whole30 friendly – this soup is a great lunch or dinner for a variety of diets
Ingredients:
To make this soup you will need:
- chicken breasts – boneless skinless chicken breasts work best. You could use bone in thighs but would need to pick the meat from the bone which adds a bit of time.
- extra virgin olive oil – our favorites are Bono and Garcia De La Cruz
- onion, celery, garlic, carrot – this is your mirepoix aka diced vegetables to be cooked in oil/butter
- yukon gold potatoes – Idaho potatoes and russets will work well too but we like the texture of yukon golds.
- Frank’s Red Hot – franks red hot and primal kitchen buffalo sauce are the best!
- no/low salt chicken broth – you could swap chicken broth for vegetable or beef broth but definitely something low or no sodium.
- almond milk – oat milk or coconut milk are also good options
Substitutions
Meat: Boneless chicken thighs or cooked chicken will also work in this recipe. I would recommend cutting the cook time in half if using cooked chicken (like rotisserie chicken). You can use leftover turkey in this buffalo soup as well! We also have a Healthy Turkey Pot Pie Soup or this Leftover Turkey Soup is great too!
Veggies: You can use any vegetables you have on hand in this recipe. More onion, carrots, and celery are always a good idea! I’ve also stirred in chopped spinach after making this and it’s great!
Potatoes: Yukon gold potatoes are the best potatoes to use for this recipe because they are the creamiest. Other potatoes will work but they might result in a starchier soup.
Almond Milk: You can replace the almond milk with coconut milk to keep the recipe dairy-free or substitute regular milk if you’re not dairy-free. (1:1) You really can’t taste the almond milk in this recipe though! If you want to add heavy cream.. feel free to do so!
Vegetarian: Skip the chicken, double up on all the veggies and add a can of rinsed, drained chickpeas for a vegetarian buffalo ‘chicken’ soup!
Broth: Chicken broth, beef broth, or vegetable broth /stock can all be substituted in this recipe. We recommend using low or no sodium broth since buffalo sauce is salty.
Stovetop/Instant Pot/Slow Cooker: You can make this soup using whichever method you’d like! All instructions are included in the recipe below!
What kind of chicken makes the best soup? Chicken breasts or chicken thighs make the best soup. Breasts are lean and have a lot of meat on them, making them the perfect addition to any chicken soup.
If you’re making chicken soup from scratch, you can also use a whole chicken or a split chicken breast. You can also use a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store to save time!
Cooking Instructions:
Making this chicken soup is so easy and it all comes together in one pot. Here’s how to make it:
How long does it take to make this soup?
- In the crockpot: 6 hours 20 minutes
- In the Instant Pot: 30 minutes
- On the stove: 40 minutes
What dishes go well with this soup recipe?
This soup is pretty hearty, so it’s fine to enjoy it on its own – but I also like to serve it with:
- Citrus salad
- Crackers or a big loaf of bread
- Even tortilla chips if you want a buffalo chicken dip feel
Storage Options
How long does this healthy buffalo chicken soup recipe last? This soup will last up to 4 days in the refrigerator or 4-6 months in the freezer in an airtight container.
How to Store: You can store this soup in the fridge or freezer in. We like these containers for freezing soup! Check out our tips on freezing chicken soup.
Freezing: Store in airtight containers and allow it to cool completely before freezing. When ready to eat, defrost the night before in your refrigerator or just pop in a microwave/soup pot and heat! If stored properly it should last for up to 6 months.
FAQ’s
**How do you know when buffalo chicken soup is done?
You’ll know this soup is done when your chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes. From there you can remove your chicken, shred it, and add it back to the pot.
**Can you thicken buffalo chicken soup?
You can thicken this chicken soup if you’d like, but we don’t recommend it. The potatoes are a natural thickener in this recipe. The easiest way to thicken up soup is to bring it to a low boil and stir in 2 tablespoons of flour. The soup should thicken almost instantly.
The best Buffalo Chicken Soup Recipe you’ll ever have. Easy to make, healthy and delicious – you won’t believe it’s dairy free!
Prep Time : 10 minutes
Cook Time : 30 minutes
Serves : 4 2 cup servings
(hover over # to adjust)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts about 2 large breasts
- 1 cup onion finely chopped
- 1 cup celery finely chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic finely minced
- 1 cup carrot cut in small coins
- 2 cups yukon gold potatoes cut into ½ inch cubes
- 1 cup yukon gold potatoes cut in half so that you can remove them at the end (about 1 large potato)
- ¼ cup Frank’s Red Hot
- 5 cups no/low salt chicken broth
- 1/2 cup almond milk or milk/ other dairy free milk
Crock Pot Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a pan on the stove. Add in the celery, carrot, onion and garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes or until slightly translucent. (This step is optional, but recommended!)
- Layer raw chicken, cooked vegetables and potatoes in the crockpot. Add broth and buffalo sauce. Cover and set to low for 6 hours.
- Once cooked, remove the large potato pieces and chicken breasts.
- Place large potato halves, milk + 1/2 cup of broth *from the pot* (a few ladels full!) into a blender until smooth. Add back into the pot.
- Place chicken breasts on a cutting board and shred. Put the shredded chicken back into the pot. You can shred the chicken by using two forks, your hands with food grade gloves, or a stand mixer!
- Stir together until combined and smooth. Garnish with parsley, blue cheese or green onions and serve.
Stovetop Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot on the stove. Add in the celery, carrot, onion and garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes or until slightly translucent.
- Add raw chicken, potatoes, broth and buffalo sauce in the pot. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat to a simmer and cook on medium heat for 30 minutes
- Once cooked, remove the large potato pieces and chicken breasts.
- Place large potato halves, almond milk + 1/2 cup of broth *from the pot* (a few ladels full!) into a blender until smooth. Add back into the pot.
- Place chicken breasts on a cutting board and shred. Put the shredded chicken back into the pot. You can shred the chicken by using two forks, your hands with food grade gloves, or a stand mixer!
- Stir together until combined and smooth. Garnish with parsley, blue cheese or green onions and serve.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Set Instant Pot to regular sauté function. Add olive oil to the pot. Lightly sear the chicken breasts on each side for about 2 minutes. Remove the breasts to a plate and set aside. The chicken will not be cooked through, but this is ok.
- Add in the celery, carrot, onion and garlic. Sauté for 2 minutes or until slightly translucent. Add in small cut potatoes + stir.
- Lay the chicken breasts on top of the vegetable/small potato mixture. Add large potato halves on top of chicken. Pour in broth and buffalo sauce.
- Turn the Instant Pot to High Pressure (manual on older models), sealing and cook for 9 minutes. Allow it to natural release for 5 minutes. Manually release the rest of the pressure after 5 minutes.
- Remove the large potato pieces + chicken breasts.
- Place large potato halves, milk + 1/2 cup of broth *from the pot* (a few ladels full!) into a blender until smooth. Add back into the pot
- Place chicken breasts on a cutting board and shred. Put the shredded chicken back into the pot. You can shred the chicken by using two forks, your hands with food grade gloves, or a stand mixer!
- Stir together until combined and smooth. Garnish with parsley, blue cheese or green onions and serve.
This recipe can be made with raw chicken breasts, chicken thighs, a whole chicken or a precooked rotisserie chicken from the supermarket!
Almond milk is a great way to make this creamy and dairy free but you can also use whole milk, heavy cream, oat milk, and other dairy alternatives to make this soup creamy.
Serving: 2cups | Calories: 331kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 590mg | Potassium: 1397mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 5498IU | Vitamin C: 42mg | Calcium: 59mg | Iron: 2mg