This creamy chicken & corn soup is lightened up, yet still wonderfully rich and hearty thanks to its thyme-infused broth and generous mix of root vegetables, chicken, and sweet corn. A little prep happens on the stove, then everything finishes together in the slow cooker, making this one of those low-effort, high-reward meals you’ll want to repeat all season long.
I originally published this recipe in 2016 and have since added new photos and helpful success tips.
With smoky bacon, sweet potatoes, cream-style corn, and a velvety broth, every spoonful is comforting, filling, and deeply satisfying.
Creamy Chicken & Corn Soup Details
- Texture: This creamy chicken soup has plenty of hearty, satisfying texture from chunks of chicken, sweet potatoes, and vegetables, plus lots of corn in every bite. Everything cooks in a light, creamy broth made from chicken broth, whole milk, and cornstarch.
- Flavor: Lots to love here! Smoky bacon, sweet corn, earthy thyme, tender vegetables, and plenty of black pepper build layers of flavor as the soup slow-cooks. It’s sweet, savory, creamy, and finished with a fresh pop of herbs.
- Ease: The soup begins with cooking bacon and then moves on to soup-starter basics like onions, garlic, carrots, and celery. These are cooked on the stove, but that’s the only “work” you’ll have to do. You then throw everything else right into the slow cooker except for the milk and cornstarch (see recipe directions below). Are you cooking this during the day while you’re at work? You can prep the veggies on the stove the night before.
- Time: This is a low-and-slow-style soup. About 8 hours total, with only about 20 minutes of active prep.
This is a soup recipe that requires little effort, yet delivers so much flavor. If this appeals to you (little prep, big results!), you’ll also appreciate my minestrone soup, creamy cauliflower potato soup, slow cooker chicken chili, and sweet potato turkey chili recipes.
A Few Key Ingredients
- Bacon: Optional, but highly recommended for flavor depth.
- Celery, carrots, onion, and sweet potatoes: These vegetables add flavor, bulk, and texture.
- Corn & Creamed Corn: Using both whole-kernel corn and cream-style corn gives this soup the best of both worlds. How? The whole kernels provide texture and those sweet little pops of corn, while the cream-style corn adds a creamy richness that ties everything together. You can use frozen or fresh corn in place of the regular canned corn, but I do not recommend skipping the can of cream-style corn.
- Thyme: With its subtle hints of earthy, floral notes, thyme is an essential flavor enhancer in this soup.
- Whole milk: To keep things on the lighter side, we use and recommend 1 and 1/2 cups of whole milk, but you could easily replace it with half-and-half for a thicker soup. You could also combine 1 cup whole milk with 1/2 cup heavy cream.
- Cornstarch: Essential for thickening—do not skip.
How the Creamy Chicken & Corn Soup Comes Together:
Cook the bacon in a large skillet. Let cool and then crumble. Sauté vegetables & garlic in some of the bacon grease until tender. If you are skipping the bacon, sauté it all in a little butter or olive oil.
Combine everything (except for the milk & cornstarch) in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6–7 hours.
Whisk in the warmed milk & cornstarch mixture, and then cook for 1 more hour. If desired, finish with extra parsley and/or thyme.
You can serve the soup plain, with crackers, in bread bowls or with various breads such as: artisan bread, biscuits, dinner rolls, breadsticks, or asiago-crusted skillet bread.
It pairs beautifully with these oatmeal molasses dinner rolls, too!
For more dinner inspiration, see my list of 30 delicious fall dinner recipe ideas or cozy winter dinner ideas.
Yes. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs work wonderfully and stay extra tender.
Yes. Use full-fat coconut milk or unsweetened oat milk.
Yes, no problem at all! See detailed recipe Note below.
Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken & Corn Soup
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 hours, 30 minutes
- Total Time: 8 hours
- Yield: 12 cups
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: American
Description
Ingredients
- 4 strips bacon
- 1 cup (130g) sliced carrots
- 1 cup (130g) sliced celery
- 3/4 cup (100g) diced yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (14.75-ounce/418g) can cream-style corn
- 2 (15.25-ounce/432g) cans corn, drained (or use about 3 cups fresh or frozen)
- 3 cups (400g) peeled & cubed sweet potatoes (around 2 medium)
- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced (about 1.25 pounds or 570g)
- 5 cups (1200g/ml) chicken broth (I use reduced-sodium)
- 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360g/ml) whole milk, slightly warmed
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- optional: fresh (or dried) parsley and/or thyme for garnish
Instructions
- Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until browned on both sides. Reserve 2 to 3 Tablespoons of the grease. Place cooked bacon on a paper towel–lined plate and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, chop into crumbles.
- To the greased skillet, add the carrots, celery, and onion. Stir and cook until soft and tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Remove from heat.
- Place the creamed corn, corn, sweet potatoes, chicken, chicken broth, thyme, parsley, salt, and pepper into a 5-quart or larger slow cooker. Add the celery/carrot/onion mixture and the crumbled bacon (save some for garnish, if desired). Stir to combine and cover with the lid.
- Cook on low heat for about 6–7 hours.
- After 6–7 hours, whisk the warmed milk and cornstarch together. Pour into the soup. Give it a good stir, then cover.
- Cook on low heat for 1 more hour.
- Serve warm with a sprinkle of parsley, thyme, and/or any leftover bacon crumbles.
- Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. To reheat, simply pour into a pot and cook over medium heat until warm. Soup freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw and then reheat.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Large Skillet | Slow Cooker (5-quart or larger)
- No Slow Cooker? No Problem. Prepare recipe through step 2. Instead of placing ingredients into a slow cooker in step 3, place into a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir together, then allow to boil and cook until chicken is no longer pink, about 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to low, whisk the warmed milk and cornstarch together, and then stir it into the soup. Let simmer for 10 minutes more.
- Can I Use Chicken Thighs Instead of Chicken Breasts? Yes. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs work wonderfully and stay extra tender.
- Whole Milk: We use and recommend 1 and 1/2 cups of whole milk, but you could easily replace it with half-and-half for a thicker soup. You could also combine 1 cup whole milk with 1/2 cup heavy cream. For a nondairy option, use full-fat coconut milk or unsweetened oat milk.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 cup
- Calories: 208
- Sugar: 8 g
- Sodium: 1123 mg
- Fat: 6.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 28.6 g
- Protein: 9.7 g
- Cholesterol: 21 mg
Reader Comments and Reviews
Delicious! The flavors complement each other very well.
A lot of prep work but it was worth it. Very tasty soup and it made a lot. I froze a good portion of it.
The recipe was not clear regarding why we were saving the bacon grease. I left enough in the pan to sauté the veggies , but had the recipe been clearer I would have used more. I only realized afterwards and by reading other comments that the grease we were told to remove from the skillet was to be used for the sautéing.
Hi! I am new here. Is the creamy chicken and corn soup freezable? I am concerned about the the dairy.
Hi Christina! Soup freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw and then reheat.
What can use to substitute canned creamed corn?
Hi Jacqueline! The cream-style corn adds a creamy richness that ties everything together. We do not recommend skipping the can of cream-style corn. You could try making a homemade version, like this one: https://www.saltandlavender.com/easy-creamed-corn/
Hmmmm… what am I missing? I’m making it now and after cooking the bacon, it says “Reserve 2 to 3 Tablespoons of the grease.” Do I add it to the recipe at some point or is this for another use? Thanks!
Hi Marilyn, You will sauté vegetables & garlic in some of the bacon grease.
Don’t have a slow cooker. Could I make this on stove-top or oven in my LeCrueset?
Hi Kathleen, we haven’t tried it, but that should work.
Please confirm…is the chicken pre-cooked?
thank you
Hi Pat, the chicken is not pre-cooked. It will cook in the slow cooker. You could use pre-cooked chicken if you wish, just add the cooked chicken at the end with step 4. The soup may cook a little faster.
Could you swap the sweet potatoes for white potatoes?
This looks absolutely delicious! You may havee snswered the question in an older comment (there are so many wonderful reviews), but approximately what size slow cooker do you recommend? Thanks!
Hi Jen, a 5-quart or larger slow cooker is best. Hope you enjoy the soup!
Can’t wait to try this soup. My local diner makes, what looks like yours, this but only every other Friday. Love it!!!
Can I put any kind of pasta noodle with this dish?
Hi Angela, you certainly could try! Or you might prefer our Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup.
Hello. Can this soup be frozen? Thank you, Carol Ann
Hi Carol Ann! Soup freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw and then reheat.
Thank you. It looks delicious.
Outstanding. Comforting, perfectly composed soup… loved it. I made the stove too version. I didn’t use a measuring cup for a darn thing. I used poached and shredded chicken breasts for this, and realized the only milk I had was a 12 oz can of evaporated and it worked like a charm… and I thought it was thick enough for my liking so I skipped the cornstarch. Can’t wait to enjoy this the rest of the week! Meal prep magic!
It was good but idk if I would go through the hassle to make it again. I didnt see the recipe nutrition facts until after I made it. Def has alot of sodium for the amount of food you are getting. I think if I did make this again I would get a broth that had low or no sodium to control that aspect of it. But that’s just my preference.
She did say she uses sodium reduced broth.
I simmered it on the stove for a couple of hours instead of lugging out my crockpot. Because my son has a dairy allergy I added Silk almond whipping cream and cornstarch about a half hour before serving. It has a different flavor than our usual hearty meals, it is sweet. I felt that it needed something (not salt) maybe more thyme. My family enjoyed it, perfect for a dreary, drizzly, cold day!
This sounds delicious, but makes a lot for a two-person family. Any chance this will freeze well?
Hi Teresa! Soup freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw and then reheat.