This Creamy Crack Chicken Soup recipe is loaded with incredible cheesy flavor! The perfect winter comfort food prepared with bacon, chicken, cheese, spinach, and ranch seasoning. Low carb and Keto approved, too!
Looking for more crack chicken recipes? Try this Baked Crack Chicken Breasts or this Instant Pot Crack Chicken recipe!
CRACK CHICKEN SOUP
Warm up to a big bowl of this Creamy Crack Chicken Soup! Judging by the popularity of my Baked Crack Chicken Breasts AND the Instant Pot Crack Chicken, me thinks you will absolutely LOVE crack chicken in soup form.
SO good, so comforting, and really easy to make, this soup is by far my favorite homemade chicken soup. Ready in less than 30 minutes, you will enjoy every spoonful of it. Crack Chicken Soup makes an ideal meal for cold winter nights, but we enjoy it year round, no matter the Season.
Just pick up a cooked rotisserie chicken and let’s get on it! OR, you can use leftover cooked chicken breasts.
HOW TO MAKE CRACK CHICKEN SOUP
- We start with cooking some bacon in a Dutch oven or a soup pot; cook bacon to a crisp, then, remove bacon from the pot, but keep the bacon grease.
- Melt butter in the same pot with the bacon grease and stir in the onion and garlic; cook until softened.
- Stir in chicken broth and add homemade Ranch Seasoning Mix. You can use the store-bought ranch mix packets – you will need 1 tablespoon – but those contain a lot of sodium. I suggest just going with my mixture of dried dill weed, dried chives, onion powder, and garlic powder.
- Bring all that to a boil; reduce heat and keep at a steady boil for 5 minutes.
- Next, shred some cooked chicken – use leftover chicken breasts or rotisserie chicken – and stir it into the pot. Continue cooking for 5 minutes.
- Then, add a block of softened cream cheese to the pot. If the cream cheese is not soft enough, put the block of cream cheese on a plate and pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds.
- Whisk the cream cheese into the soup pot until it’s completely melted and combined.
- Stir in the cheddar cheese and continue to whisk until melted and combined.
- Add baby spinach and heavy cream.
- Taste for seasonings and adjust accordingly.
- Top with sliced scallions and prepared bacon; serve.
Tasty and creamy soup, it will have you drooling while simmering away in that pot.
CRACK CHICKEN SOUP VARIATIONS
- Instead of spinach, you can add in kale or zucchini noodles.
- For those not following a low carb/keto diet, add pasta noodles to the boiling chicken broth and cook for 8 minutes. Then, continue to add the rest of the ingredients per the recipe directions.
- If you don’t have any leftover cooked chicken to use, I suggest to make my Oven Baked Chicken Breasts. Use these shredder claws to shred afterwards.
CAN YOU FREEZE CRACK CHICKEN SOUP?
- YES! I say make a double batch and freeze it. Just pour soup into freezer bags and keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- When ready to serve, remove from freezer the night before and let thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Reheat over medium heat, stirring frequently. Do not boil.
HOW TO STORE LEFTOVER CHICKEN SOUP
- Store soup leftovers in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Reheat over medium heat, stirring frequently.
WHY IS IT CALLED “CRACK CHICKEN”?!?
I get this question on ALL my crack chicken recipes; the basic internet explanation is that the flavors of dry ranch seasoning mix paired with the creaminess of cream cheese and cheddar cheese make this chicken 100% addictive, just like crack. 🤷♀️
MORE CHICKEN SOUP RECIPES
- Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup with Chicken
- Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup
- Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup
ENJOY!
TOOLS USED IN THIS RECIPE
This Creamy Crack Chicken Soup recipe is loaded with incredible cheesy flavor! The perfect winter comfort food prepared with bacon, chicken, cheese, spinach, and ranch seasoning.
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 to 6 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
- 1/2 teaspoon dried chives
- salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 1 package (8 ounces) softened cream cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 3 to 4 cups baby spinach
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- sliced green scallions, for garnish
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Cook diced bacon to a crisp in a Dutch Oven or soup pot.
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Remove bacon from pot with a slotted spoon, leaving bacon grease in the pot.
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Add butter to the pot and melt over medium-high heat.
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Stir in onions and cook for 3 minutes.
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Stir in garlic and cook for 20 seconds.
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Add chicken broth and scrape up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
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Season with garlic powder, onion powder, dill weed, chives, salt, and pepper.
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Add bay leaf and bring to a boil; lower heat to medium low and cook for 5 minutes.
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Stir in shredded chicken; cook for 5 minutes.
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Add cream cheese and whisk in until completely melted and combined.
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Stir in shredded cheese; whisk until melted and thoroughly combined.
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Add baby spinach; cook for 2 minutes.
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Stir in heavy cream and cook for 1 minute.
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Taste for seasonings (salt and pepper) and adjust accordingly. Remove bay leaf.
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Remove soup from heat; top with scallions and previously prepared bacon.
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Serve.
WW FREESTYLE POINTS: 8
- Reduce points down to 3 by using fat free cream cheese, fat free cheddar cheese, and turkey bacon.
Slow Cooker
Instant Pot
Beef
Can I put this in a slow-cooker?
I want to màke this recipe but no where in it does it call for ranch. I have no idea how much it when I should add. Help!!!!
I made this soup tonight because it sounded good and I needed to use up a couple of cups of left over broiled chicken, and I also needed to use up 3-4 cups of fresh mushrooms. I used mushrooms in place of the spinach first I slicing them and sauteing them in butter, salt and pepper, then I added them to the pot where I would have normally added the spinach. I also eliminated the dill, chives and bay leaf and scallions using only the bacon to top the soup.
This was absolutely DELICIOUS!!!
Thanks for the recipe!!
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Can this soup be frozen ?
Hello. Quick question. How many does this recipe feed? We are a family of 4 adults – 3 of which are men. So I usually try to cook for at least 6 since rhey are big eaters. It looks amazing.
Hi 👋
This recipe will certainly give you around 8 to 10 cups of soup, depending on how much broth you use, but if you want to serve it as a main, you can double up on the ingredients.
It’s pretty filling I make it for a family of 4 same 3 are men and we always have leftovers
If I am adding noddles to it how much would you add??
I loved this! I used 3 whole chicken legs, thigh and drumsticks because I like dark meat. I added way more garlic, and I only had half of a white onion, and I used two large shallots. I used the whole packet of ranch powder, a huge tablespoon of fresh dill, and extra salt with fresh CRACKed pepper. I didn’t add the heavy cream because of the fatty cream cheese. Oh ya, and I added neufchatel cheese which is like a lower fat cream cheese. I will definitely make this again! Thanks!
That’s great to hear! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Looks yummy! Does it freeze well?
So good! I added extra chicken broth and a large can of petite diced tomatoes!
Thank you! I am very glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Oh my gosh! This is amazing! I just started eating low carb and needed something good! HIT THE SPOT! I added Roma tomatoes and green and red peppers! So good! Thank you !
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much! 🙂
This soup is fantastic! I made it per instructions but did not use ranch mix. I used sour cream and chive reduced fat Whips cream cheese, and added red peppers, green chili’s, and mushrooms.
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Can this soup be frozen?
I have a question…I don’t see Ranch dressing mix in the ingredients, is that an oversight?
Asking because you explained the reasoning behind the name is the Ranch dressing mix.
Just want to be sure I get the recipe right.
Thanks!
Hi!
This recipe includes a homemade ranch seasoning mix prepared with garlic powder, onion powder, dried dill weed, dried chives, etc.. But, if you want to use the store-bought Ranch Mix, you’ll only need to use 1 tablespoon of it.
Thank you, Lisset. Very well stated.
Looks delicious & I’m gonna try it this weekend. Btw, nothing wrong with the name. Not everyone associates the word “crack” with drugs.
My family loves soups and we plan to try this! This may seem like a weird question, is there a suitable sub for the bacon, I know, who sub’s bacon, ha! But, we are pork-free and need a decent substitute or I could leave it out all together 🙂
Hi!
Can you use turkey bacon? You can definitely leave out the bacon, but if you can have turkey bacon, I’d go for it. 😊
Thanks! Could definitely try it with turkey bacon!
I just made this I added in about 2 TBLS of dry ranch mix. This soup is amazing. Love it and so keto friendly
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Love this soup. I added zucchini and fresh mushrooms because we like a lot of veggies. The entire family loved it! I will definitely be adding this to our soup rotation, thank you so much for this delicious recipe!
I am happy to hear that! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Do you think I could just up the cream by a cup if i don’t like cream cheese??
Or would a different cheese work, maybe?
Looks good!!
Hi!
Sure, heavy cream should work since cream cheese is a cheese made with heavy cream and milk, but you’ll just be missing out on a bit of that tanginess and saltiness that cream cheese adds.
I would start with 1 cup cream, give it a taste and decide how much more you may want to add in. You might also want to adjust some of the seasonings, salt in particular.
This is hands down an amazing comfort soup. I made it for the first time tonight, WOW!! Just an FYI, we make and sell beef jerky and one of our best sellers is called “ass crack”, marinated in cracked pepper. People have fun with the name, not everyone sucks lemons! Thanks again!
That’s such a fun name for beef jerkey!! 😀 I am very glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thank YOU! 🙂
This was amazing!! I will definitely be making this again!!! BTW, I love the name! Don’t change it!
Thank you so much!! I am very glad you enjoyed it!! 🙂
Keep the name crack chicken makes me think of pepper or spice. Silly we take it so personal blah anyways making this tonight I’m excited! Might add a bean or pasta to try t like bow tie mmmm
I also want to suggest we stop calling recipes crack anything. It doesn’t sound appetizing, it’s unimaginative and lazy, it’s incredibly tone deaf to the struggles people actually addicted to this devastating drug, and if you open up a thesaurus I’m sure you can find plenty of words that actually will make me want to make this recipe.
Thank you!
I agree with Lisset’s comment above. I also haven’t tried this soup It looks good but also looks a little greasy.
It’s always that one if you don’t want to try it then don’t try it and just shut up!
OMG the word crack has been around longer then the drug has been a common problem. You CRACK me up, plumbers CRACK, there’s a CRACK in the wall people give it a rest. The word CRACK in a recipe most of the time means it has bacon in it. If you are offended by this word then don’t make the soup I think it look delicious and will be trying it tonight but with turkey bacon because I can’t have the other will let you know how it turns out.
Please consider calling this recipe something other than “crack.” I’m sure you mean no disrespect, but the word carries a lot of history.
Omg really?! The name crack got my attention and not because I’m on crack or ever thought of being on crack. But I can assure you the name is not disrespectful. I really doubt that any one of those folks would get on here to look for a recipe anyways. Good grief. This recipe is excellent btw! Thank you for sharing
I am very glad you enjoyed it! THANK YOU!! 🙂
Awesome🥰
🙄 crack chicken has been a thing for a long time. If you don’t like the name, call it something else for your personal preference. This soup looks fantastic and I can’t wait to make it. I love crack chicken so I have no doubt this soup will taste amazing. Thank you for sharing it!
Would it ruin the soup to use frozen spinach? We don’t get fresh spinach on our island, and normally I can’t stand frozen spinach, but this looks too amazing to pass on.
Hi!
It should be OK, but do thaw the spinach and drain it as well as possible, just to avoid all the extra liquid.
This soups looks so tasty! I was thinking about adding some type of white bean to it. Would that be a good mix?
I think that is an excellent idea! I suggest cannellini beans. Just drain the can and rinse and they are ready to go, and if you mash half of them they really add body to the broth.
Loved this soup! So flavorful! I cannot wait to make this again!
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
I didn’t see where and how much ranch seasoning to add!!! Am I missing something??? I’m so excited to make this I can barely stand it!!!
Hi!
So the recipe is to be made with homemade ranch seasoning, and that includes the garlic powder, onion powder, dill weed, chives, salt, and pepper. Those are already included in the recipe above. But, if you’re going to use store-bought Ranch seasoning, you will need 1 tablespoon. Also, if going with the premade seasoning, don’t use the garlic powder, onion powder, dill weed, chives, salt, and pepper that are in the recipe. I hope that makes sense. 😁
Woops, I used both. Noticed it wasn’t in the 2nd set of instructions so reread the first and figured it just got overlooked in the second, so in it all went. I’d do it the same way again – I liked the very savory flavor. I may have overlooked it, but I scroll down to the recipes and don’t bother with all the pictures and blog chat. For someone who can’t have a lot of carbs, this was like loaded potato soup, minus the potatoes – which weren’t missed with all that chicken. Will make it again, but will probably refer to it as loaded chicken soup; I nearly overlooked it because of the name (there are so many awful “crack” recipes) but the photo was so alluring.
Thank you so much!!! We love this recipe!!
THANK YOU! 🙂
This will quickly become a favorite at my house! It looks SO good!
Your crack chicken recipes are the best! Love this soup!
Turns out fabulous every time!
This Creamy Crack Chicken Soup recipe looks totally awesome!
My family is going to be really happy when I serve this. It has all of their faves… chicken, bacon, cheese, and ranch!
This is amazing thank you for sharing!
I love soup and this soup is soooo good! All the flavors combine to make it a wonderful hearty soup.
Oh heavens, so many tasty flavors in this soup. I wasn’t quite sure about the dill, but it added a subtle flavor that was so yummy! Can’t wait to make this again with my homemade breadsticks for dipping!
I love how comforting this is! Perfect for weeknights!
DeliciouS!! Easy n Fast!
The creamy crack chicken soup recipe is new for me. I will try it home very soon. Thanks for nice recipe.