This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This Creamy Crack Chicken Soup recipe is loaded with incredible cheesy flavor! It is a delicious soup with bacon, chicken, cheese, spinach, and ranch seasoning. Low carb and Keto-approved, too!
Are you looking for more crack chicken recipes? Try this baked crack chicken breasts or my 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 slow cooker crack chicken and this cozy and delicious chicken noodle soup, 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. Like a good ol’ split pea soup, this chicken soup also makes an ideal meal for cold winter nights, but we enjoy it year round, no matter the season.
Why It’s 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.
How To Make Crack Chicken Soup
Just pick up a cooked rotisserie chicken, and let’s get on it! Or, you can use leftover cooked chicken breasts or even boneless chicken thighs. It’s a tasty and creamy soup, and also a keto chicken soup, and it will have you drooling while simmering away in that pot.
- Cook the bacon. We start with cooking some bacon in a Dutch oven or a soup pot; cook the bacon until crispy, then remove it from the pot.
- Cook the aromatics. Melt butter in the pot; add onion and garlic until soft.
- Stir in the broth and seasoning. Add chicken broth and homemade Ranch mix and boil for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the chicken. Add shredded chicken, and cook another 5 minutes.
- Add the cheese. Stir in softened cream cheese until melted, then add cheddar cheese.
- Add the spinach. Mix in baby spinach and heavy cream. Adjust seasoning as needed.
- Serve. Garnish your creamy crack chicken soup with scallions and cooked bacon to serve.
Recipe Tips & Variations
- Veggie options. In this crack chicken soup, you can swap out the spinach for kale or zucchini noodles. Or, take a cue from my chicken vegetable soup and add your favorite mix of veggies to make it your own!
- Add pasta. 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.
- Chicken recipes. If you don’t have any leftover cooked chicken to use, I suggest making my oven baked chicken breasts. Use these shredder claws to shred afterward.
- Use store-bought Ranch seasoning. If you’re using store-bought ranch seasoning mix, substitute with about a tablespoon. Start with two teaspoons, taste, and adjust as needed since the mix already contains salt, which could make the dish too salty if you add too much.
Serving Suggestions
This crack chicken soup recipe is everything you need on a cozy night—loaded with bacon, chicken, cheese, and ranch-seasoned goodness. To round out your meal, pair it with a crisp and refreshing radish cucumber salad, or keep it hearty with my chicken cobbler. Need bread for dunking? My dinner rolls are perfect for soaking up all that cheesy, creamy broth. It’s comfort food at its best!
How To Store Leftover Soup
- Fridge. Store soup leftovers in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 3 days. Reheat over medium heat, stirring frequently.
- Freezer. To freeze this keto soup, store it in freezer bags and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before serving. Reheat on medium heat without boiling.
More Chicken Soup Recipes
- Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup with Chicken
- Chicken Orzo Soup
- Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup
- Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Thai Chicken Soup
Pin this now to find it later
Pin It
Creamy Crack Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 to 6 cups low sodium chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon dried dill weed
- ½ teaspoon dried chives
- salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 8 ounces package cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 3 to 4 cups baby spinach
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- sliced green scallions, for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the bacon. Cook diced bacon to a crisp in a Dutch Oven or soup pot. Remove bacon from pot with a slotted spoon, leaving bacon grease in the pot.
- Saute the aromatics. Add butter to the pot and melt over medium-high heat. Stir in onions and cook for 3 minutes; then stir in garlic and cook for 20 seconds.
- Stir in the broth and season the soup. Add chicken broth and scrape up all the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Season with garlic powder, onion powder, dill weed, chives, salt, and pepper.
- Cook the soup. Add bay leaf and bring to a boil; lower heat to medium-low and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add chicken and cheese. Stir in shredded chicken and cook for 5 minutes. Add cream cheese and whisk it continuously until completely melted and combined. Stir in the shredded cheese; whisk until melted and thoroughly combined.
- Stir in the spinach and cream. Add baby spinach and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream and cook for 1 minute.
- Finish. Taste the soup for seasonings and adjust accordingly. Remove the bay leaf.
- Serve. Remove your crack chicken soup from the heat and top it with scallions and previously prepared bacon before serving.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
Good morning 😊 Katerina , you have the patience of a saint! I am going to make this soup today and as I always read the comments before deciding on a recipe . Not only did you provide the recipe, there was a narrative and a video. 3 sets of instructions available. How have we become so lazy that we don’t look before we ask repetitive questions? Also why is it necessary to criticize? Thank you so much for your recipe! I am looking forward to enjoying this soup! Have a great day!
THANK YOU so much for the very kind comment. 🙏 ❤️ I write lengthy posts so to make sure that most questions are answered, but yeah, a lot of people do not take the time to read through. But, I try! 😀
So delicious!! This creamy soup base could be used a number of ways…sausage and potato…add some cayenne or Cajun seasoning with some shrimp…tortellini or gnocchi with some Italian seasoning…it would be a great base for any chowder…the possibilities are endless!! Restaurant-quality soup base and so easy…Thank you!!
I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much! 🙂
This is SO good! I added a few more vegetables and after stirring in the cream cheese, I realized I liked it the way it was so I didn’t add any cream (well, really, I was going to add milk ’cause I didn’t have any cream) and it was amazing! I also used proscuitto since I didn’t have any bacon. Wonderful recipe and one I’ll be making lots in the coming months. Now if it would ever get cold outside!
This was delicious! I used 8 cups (two boxes) of broth, bc I like brothy soup. I used a packet of ranch, and didn’t add any salt or pepper, and it was enough seasoning. Used baby kale bc I thought it would holding up better with freezing. The only thing I would change for next time (and I will def be making this again!) is to completely melt the cream cheese ahead instead of trying to incorporate the whole block (used Neufchâtel cheese–lighter Philly brand). Thanks for sharing! This is a winner!
The explanation for why this is called Crack Chicken does not make sense. This recipe did not call for ranch dressing mix. We omitted the cream, added carrots and corn. Next time I will omit the bay leaf.
Hi!
This recipe does not call for store-bought “ranch dressing mix” because the recipe lists the ingredients for making your own homemade mix; garlic powder, onion powder, dried dill weed, and dried chives.
Crack doesn’t mean Something has ranch dressing in it. It means that it’s addictive.
From this very page:
“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. 🤷♀️”
This Creamy Crack Chicken Soup is so delicious! I added a bit of Kikkoman Ponzu Citrus Seasoned Dressing & Sauce for a more flavorful taste. Loved it! Best paired with my favorite Cold Barley Tea.
That’s great! I’m very happy you loved it! Thank YOU! 🙂
it was really good.
Thank YOU! I’m very happy you enjoyed it! 🙂
Made this tonight. Amazing. Thank you. I always find a recipe and add to it. I added, sliced celery, zucchini, yellow squash, yellow and green bell peppers, diced tomatoes and turmeric, and of course with all the other things ingredients. Delicious. Thank you. Wish I could post a picture.
I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you so much! 🙂
Wow. I consider myself an avid cook, and I’m rarely amazed by a recipe. This was so so good. And, as a person who tried to cut unnecessary carbs/calories from recipes, my version had 278 for 6 servings (10 servings way too small! It’s too good for that small a serving.) No cream, fat free cream cheese, and used broccoli instead of spinach only because I was out of spinach.
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
Absolutely delicious! I added celery, carrots and potatoes to the onions and garlic. I added 8 cups of broth since I added so many more veggies. I didn’t have any dried chives so I added dried parsley and then added fresh chives right at the end. Also used lactose free cram cheese and dairy free heavy cream and it was awesome! I will definitely be making it again!
Amazing taste, easy to follow recipe. It was wonderful!
Thank YOU! I am very glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
no where in the recipe list or the instructions does it mention ranch dressing mix! I made it without and it was bland, bland bland…. Maybe put the ranch dressing in the list. Especially when husbands do the shopping.
You’re making your own ranch mix; it’s in the recipe.
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon dried chives
salt and pepper
You obviously didn’t read through the recipe. It says taste for seasoning. Did you miss that part? I didn’t and my soup was delicious! Not bland bland bland at all!
I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂
My hubby and I loved this. I didn’t use any Ranch powder and it was delish. How can you call this bland? The garlic, dill, bacon and cream cheese gave it tons of flavor!