The Cozy Cookbook is here! 
This homemade Cream of Chicken Soup recipe is an easy substitute for condensed soup and adds comforting home cooked flavor to your favorite casseroles and soups. It’s also freezer-friendly and easy to make!
Be sure to try my homemade condensed cream of mushroom soup next!
Cream of Chicken Soup
I literally stood in my kitchen with an open can of condensed Cream of Chicken Soup, and a pot of this homemade version, and took a spoon to each one to perform a very serious taste-test to compare the two.
All of a sudden, I was hyper-aware as to how processed it tasted from a can compared to the soothing and comforting homemade version.
Since this recipe is freezer-friendly and can be easily stored in can-sized portions, I think we should all try to take our cooking to the next level by making our favorite casseroles and soups with this Cream of Chicken Soup recipe whenever we “can”. 😂
(That was terrible, and I’m sorry.)
How to Make it
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Let it fully melt and begin to foam. This allows the water in the butter to cook off which will create a smoother consistency.
Gradually sprinkle in the flour and whisk continuously for 3-5 minutes to cook off the raw flour taste. It will become the consistency of wet sand.
Remove from heat. Add 1/3 of the chicken broth, whisk well. Whisk in 1/3 more, until combined. Finally, whisk in the rest. Temper the milk by microwaving it for 45 seconds, slowly add it to the saucepan and whisk to combine.
Add the seasonings. Add to medium-high heat to thicken it back up.
Whisk continuously as it increases in temperature and reaches near-boiling point. It will become very thick. Remove from heat immediately once it’s thickened. It will thicken even more as it sits.
PRO TIP: Run the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to make it super smooth, just like a can of condensed soup.
This strainer is also a perfect tool for making homemade chicken stock, or to run oil through if you want to reuse it after making a batch of fried chicken or french fries. It’s a great investment in the kitchen.
Using as a Substitute for Condensed Soup
- This recipe serves as a direct substitute for canned Cream of Chicken soup.
- 1 batch= two (10.5 oz.) cans of soup, each can is about 1 + 1/4 cups.
- I recommend storing these in freezable soup containers.
Using as a Base for Homemade Soup
My Homemade Chicken Stew recipe is a perfect way to put this recipe to use, as it uses a can of Cream of Chicken Soup as a base. It’s also Stove Top, Crock Pot, and Instant Pot friendly. (Check out the reviews, it’s one of the most popular recipes on the blog!)
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 4 months.
Recipes That Use Cream of Chicken Soup
See my complete collection here.
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- Chicken Divan
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- Chicken Tetrazzini
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- Creamy Chicken Stew
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- Crock Pot Chicken and Stuffing
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- Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
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- Chicken Noodle Casserole
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Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Cream of Chicken Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons Butter
- ½ cup + 2 Tablespoons Flour
- 2 cups Chicken Broth
- 1 chicken bouillon cube, or 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon. (Optional- see notes.)
- 1 cup milk, preferably whole but any kind works
- 1/3 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/3 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/3 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/3 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Note: It’s important to whisk continuously throughout this process to ensure the smoothest possible consistency.
- Temper the milk by microwaving it for 45 seconds. This prevents curdling but also prevents lumps from forming when it’s added. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Let it fully melt and wait until it starts to foam, about 3 minutes.
- Gradually add the flour, whisk continuously for 3-5 minutes, until it’s the consistency of wet sand. Remove from heat.
- Add 1/3 of the chicken broth and whisk well. Add 1/3 more, whisk well.
- Add the remaining chicken broth, chicken bouillon, warm milk, and seasonings, whisk continuously.
- Return to heat and bring to a near boil. Continue to whisk until it begins to get very thick. Immediately remove from heat.
- Soup will continue to thicken upon standing.
- If possible, run the mixture through a fine mesh strainer for a super-smooth consistency.
- Use as a direct substitute for condensed cream of chicken soup, this recipe makes enough for two (10.5 oz.) cans.
Notes
Reducing Sodium: You can use unsalted butter and reduced sodium chicken broth and bouillon to lower the salt content. You can also refrain from adding salt as a seasoning.
Storage:
- Refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 4 months. Mixture may separate slightly once reheated but whisking will correct that.
- I recommend storing these in freezable soup containers.
- This soup cannot be canned as it contains dairy.
Be sure to try my homemade condensed cream of mushroom soup next!
This is a great recipe because I do dislike using canned soups. But really, who ever uses a 1/3 teaspoon?
In order to portion the recipe to conveniently equate to 2 cans of condensed soup, it means using 1/3 teaspoon of seasonings to make the flavor on point for you.
Hi! what if I want to add rice to this? At which part of the process would I incorporate the rice?
Hi Vanessa! This recipe is meant to replicate a can of condensed cream of chicken soup and isn’t ready to serve as-is, so I wouldn’t add rice to this unless you modify it to create a soup with it, which would require adding more liquids, maybes ome vegetables, chicken, etc. At that point you could cook rice separately and add it to the soup at the end. I hope that helps!
Hello. I made this to add to Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing recipe. I wanted a more ‘healthier’ meal. The end result came out the same as pictures but the step by step was different. (Mine never took on the crumbly look after adding flour). Its my first time making a soup on stove. I will make again and soften up onions and celery before adding to the recipe. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
So glad that you enjoyed both of these Crock Pot recipes Joy, I hope you continue to try more! 🙂
I love making my soups and broths from scratch! So much healthier!
It is so nice having the nutritional information on your recipes!
Thanks!
Thanks so much Beth! I totally agree, there’s something about making soups and broths from scratch. Healthier and such a better flavor😋. Glad you found the nutritional info helpful! Thanks so much for the review!!!
This was so damn delicious! I want to keep eating it…but then I won’t have what I need for the stuffed pork chops! Haha thank you so much! Now I can actually make the casseroles that I’ve had pinned but avoided because they call for nasty condensed soup!
Hey Emily- That’s so great, I’m so glad to hear that! I’ve been wanting to offer this as an alternative to a can for years, I’m so glad I finally nailed it down! 🙂 Thank you so much for your comment!! -Stephanie
Hi – is the nutritional value for the entire recipe or is there a servings size (other than the 2 cans) that I’ve missed?
Thanks!
Hey Tammy!! The nutritional information is based on 1 “can” of soup, (about 10.5 ounces).
So delicious. Now to make the chicken and rice casserole. 😉
Thanks Diane, so glad you liked it!!! Hope you like the chicken and rice casserole as well!😋
How do you whisk the flour for 3 min when it gums up in the whisk? And 1/3 teaspoons….why the odd measurement?
Hi Barb, I used a fork to whisk it so it was easier to handle, (you can check out the process shots if that helps), and I found 1/3 to be just the right amount of flavor without being too overpowering. I really test my recipes and give them a lot of thought to get just the right balance. I don’t round measurements if it might compromise taste.
Thanks for sharing this. We hate the processed taste of can cream soup but so many recipes use it to bind ingredients. Is there a way to use this as a base and change it to make cream of celery and cream of mushroom soups as well? With these two added to my freeze I will never buy canned again. I love your blog and have saved many good recipes I am working my way to trying.
Hey Becky!! You are so welcome for this recipe, it’s been a long time coming, I wish I did this years ago. I never realized how much you can taste the processed taste from a can until I did a side-by-side comparison of the homemade stuff to the can! Holy moly, huge difference. So right now I still need to do some testing to learn how to properly adapt this to be a cream of celery, mushroom, etc. It’s on my to-do list!!! 🙂 Hopefully I can get that done sooner than later. Thank you so much for your support!! I truly appreciate it! -Stephanie 🙂
I just made this to go with your Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole and it was a HIT with my kids, I’ll be using this recipe all the time now, thank you so much. -Kathleen
I am so happy to hear that Kathleen! If there is any way that casserole can get any better, it’s by making the cream of chicken soup from scratch! Nicely done! 🙂 -Stephanie
I can’t believe how good this was, and it really DID take 15 minutes to make, tops. I am definitely making a double batch of this again and freezing it- thanks for this recipe!
Hey Tonya! I am so happy that you liked the recipe! This will really take your recipes up a notch now, the homemade stuff tastes so good! 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to leave a review! -Stephanie