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This slow cooker chicken and noodles without cream of chicken soup will warm your soul in the best way! This meal offers juicy chicken breast, rich broth, tender egg noodles, and optional veggies all in one, so you can enjoy Crockpot convenience from real, everyday ingredients. Feel good about the comfort food on the menu tonight.
A Note from Monica
Why you’ll love this family favorite recipe!
I don’t shy away from a shortcut, but I do have a personal thing about canned condensed soup. Is it residual childhood food trauma? A texture thing? A lifetime of well-meaning guidance to shop the perimeter of the grocery store? Probably a little bit of everything, but the result is I can’t touch the stuff.
Fortunately, I don’t have to! Just like my late mother-in-law’s sausage noodle casserole can work beautifully even without cream of anything soup, slow cooker chicken and noodles can come together with just broth, cream, and a touch of cornstarch. The result is a one-and-done dinner that simmers away while you live your life, then lets you be the dinner hero when everyone returns home to piping hot bowls of cozy comfort food.
Ingredient Notes
- Large chicken breasts. Don’t use thin-sliced chicken in the slow cooker; it will cook through in no time and turn dry.
- Whole carrots. Leave these out if you know it’s a “no” from your kids, or swap with a full bag of frozen veggies if you like.
- Egg noodles. We like extra-wide, and you’re looking for dried, uncooked noodles if you plan to cook them directly in the Crockpot, as written.
- Cream and cornstarch. A magic combination for rich but light sauce.
- Staples and seasonings: low-sodium chicken broth, garlic powder, parsley, thyme, sage, kosher salt, and black pepper.
- Bonus flavor boosters: a small spoonful of chicken-flavored Better Than Bouillon goes a long way. A jar lasts forever in the fridge and comes in handy a lot! A squeeze of fresh lemon juice is always my favorite finishing touch on an otherwise rich dish.
If you’re loving the cozy chicken comfort food, try my from-scratch chicken and dumplings, extra easy chicken and biscuits, or silky turkey and dumplings soup next. The soup is our beloved holiday leftover tradition!
Set Up for Success
If your kids will complain about the egg noodles being mixed into everything else—no shame, one of my own darlings does this every time—there is absolutely no problem with cooking them separately. If you plan to do this, add only 2 cups of broth to the slow cooker instead of 3, so you won’t have too much excess liquid at the end. The noodle-free chicken and sauce will still need a few minutes to thicken after adding the cornstarch and cream, but when it reaches a consistency that you like, it is done.
How To Make Slow Cooker Chicken and Noodles
The beauty of this all-in-one goodness starts simply with combining the carrots, broth, and seasonings all in the bowl of a large slow cooker. Add the chicken breasts and spoon a small bit of the liquid on top of each.
Best part: set and forget. Cook for 2-3 hours on high or 4-6 hours on low.
Please resist the temptation to let it cook all day: chicken actually can overcook in the Crockpot, and it doesn’t taste good. Earlier this year, I upgraded to a programmable slow cooker that can automatically switch into a “keep warm” mode after a set amount of time. It’s a total game-changer for recipes like this!
Shred the chicken, either inside the slow cooker or by removing to a cutting board to shred with two forks. The trick of placing the cooked chicken in a stand mixer and beating with the flat blade works well, too!
Add uncooked egg noodles and a slurry made from combining the cool cream with the cornstarch. Dissolving cornstarch in a cool liquid first avoids any clumping, and sets it up to perfectly thicken a silky, smooth sauce.
Stir well, put the lid back on, and cook on high for another 12-18 minutes. Stir at least once halfway through, and add the chicken back in if you removed it to shred.
Check frequently at the end. Egg noodles in the slow cooker go from al dente to gummy more quickly than you might expect—it may not be boiling, but it’s still pretty warm in there!
Serving Suggestions
Unsurprisingly, my kids like this as plain as possible. If you’d like to dress it up a little, a sprinkle of fresh parsley, extra black pepper, or red pepper flakes goes a long way.
Everyone welcomes bread on the side, and this Dutch oven loaf really matches the rustic chicken and noodles vibe. For a little extra vegetable action, simple green beans or peas do the trick for me, either on the side or mixed in.
More Crockpot Dinner Ideas
- Creamy Crockpot Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Slow Cooker Tomato Soup
- Slow Cooker White Bean Parmesan Soup
- Crockpot Shredded Chicken Tacos
Slow Cooker Chicken and Noodles
Ingredients
- 3-4 large whole carrots, peeled and chopped into coins
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon chicken base Better Than Bouillon, see note
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
- 2-4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 8-10 ounces egg noodles, uncooked, we like extra-wide
- fresh parsley and lemon juice, optional garnish
Instructions
- Add carrots, broth, Better Than Bouillon, parsley, salt, pepper, garlic powder, thyme, and sage to the bowl of your slow cooker. Stir to combine.3-4 large whole carrots, 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth, 1 teaspoon chicken base Better Than Bouillon, 1 teaspoon dried parsley, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
- Nestle chicken into the pot and spoon a bit of the liquid on top of each piece.2-4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-6 hours, until the chicken is very tender and easy to pull apart into bite-sized pieces. Shred in the slow cooker, on a cutting board, or in the bowl of an electric mixer.
- Measure out the cream, then add the cornstarch directly to it and stir to dissolve. Add this to the slow cooker together with the egg noodles. Stir well to coat.1/2 cup heavy cream, 2 Tablespoons cornstarch, 8-10 ounces egg noodles
- Return the cover, be sure the slow cooker is now set to high, and cook for another 12-18 minutes, stirring once. (If you removed the chicken to shred, this halfway stirring point is a great time to add it back in.) Check more often as you near the end of the cooking time; the noodles can go from al dente to gummy surprisingly fast!
- When the noodles are tender, remove the lid, turn the slow cooker to “keep warm,” and sample to season with more salt and pepper to taste. Try to serve right away, with a sprinkle of fresh parsley and more pepper as desired. I find most adults and some kids like it with a little squeeze of lemon juice mixed in or on top. Enjoy!fresh parsley and lemon juice
Notes
- Bouillon: You can omit this or substitute with another bouillon powder, paste, or cube. If you omit it entirely, I recommend starting with a 1 full teaspoon of salt in this recipe, and adding more to taste. And if you don’t keep Better than Bouillon on hand, I highly recommend it—a jar lasts forever, and it’s one of those secret ingredients you’ll reach for again and again! It’s also amazing in my magic one pot mac and cheese.
- Sage: I’m partial to the texture of rubbed sage, which is more airy and flakey than ground sage, but it really doesn’t make a big difference. If using ground sage, it’s a bit more concentrated, so you may want to use a scant 1/2 or just 1/4 teaspoon.
- Chicken: Chicken thighs make a fine substitute; they may take a touch longer to cook, depending on size.
- Egg Noodles: If your kids will balk at the egg noodles mixed into everything else (one of mine does), you can absolutely just cook them separately. It helps to plan ahead to do this and reduce the broth to 2 cups instead of 3, so you don’t have excess sauce at the end.
- Storage: Refrigerate leftovers for 1-2 days in an airtight container; the noodles do get more mushy the longer they sit. Reheat as needed in the microwave or in a small saucepan. If it looks a bit gluggy, don’t worry; it will thin back out as it warms. I don’t recommend freezing this.
