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Warm up with some delicious cream of chicken soup with bacon and mushrooms. It’s sure to take the chill out on a cool fall or winter day and satisfy hunger.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been doing a lot more real cooking these days. In the warmer weather, I typically eat a lot of simple meals like grilled meats and salads.
Now that fall is in full swing with the leaves in their pretty colors, I’ve been craving comfort foods like soups and casseroles. Last week, I had the urge to make some cream of chicken soup.
Cream soups have always been my favorite. I don’t like ones that are overly thick, though.
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I used to thicken soups a little with xanthan gum, but now I don’t bother. The only advantage is that it sticks better to the spoon. Not a big deal to me and I’d rather not put any extra fillers in the soup.
I wanted the soup to be extra filling and full of fat so I used chicken thigh meat and added yummy bacon. For a little crunch, I put in some celery towards the end.
I thought about picking up a daikon radish for some potato like chunks, but didn’t feel like trekking to the one store that I know carries it. I did add some mushrooms as I’m crazy about cream of mushroom soup, too. To make it a bit different than my normal, I used shiitake mushrooms.
This soup is hearty enough to serve as a main course which is how I served it. You could serve it in smaller portions at the start of a meal as well. Or, make it ahead and keep it in the fridge to heat up as a filling snack.
It wasn’t that long ago that I would only buy chicken breast meat. Now I prefer the leg meat because it’s got a lot more healthy fat to it and I find it more flavorful.
It took me a while to really embrace a high fat diet. Like a lot of people, I was brainwashed into thinking too much dietary fat was bad.
In fact, when I first started on a low carb diet over a decade ago, I thought low carb high protein was the way to go. I never really understood how it all worked.
I was under the impression that it was the protein that keeps one full rather than the fat. However, I didn’t realize that too much protein can turn into glucose in the body.
It wasn’t until recently that I discovered that I needed to up my fat intake to truly take advantage of my low carb diet. Â I eat so much less when I’m eating high fat foods because I can go so much longer without feeling hungry.
I’ve found that I do best when IÂ get 70% or more of my calories from fat. I don’t even pick the fat off the meat any more like I used to. I no longer choose the leanest cuts of meat or drain off all the fat anymore and my meals taste much better now.
Low fat foods aren’t always the healthy choices and so many people fall into that trap. I really wish that products geared towards kids would go back to being high fat.
Even the fast food restaurants use low fat milk and yogurt products in the kids meals. I only give my daughter whole milk so she wants nothing to do with milk that doesn’t have the full fat.
It’s tough when we are out on the road because it’s often difficult to get whole milk with a kids meal. A lot of times, I just get some water and let her have full fat ice cream for dessert.
I really am looking forward to spending more time making more savory dishes. The holidays always seem to be about the sweet treats, but I’ve been getting more into the meat and vegetable dishes instead.
I still haven’t decided on what to make for Thanksgiving. But, I’d like to try some new creative sides to serve along with the traditional turkey.
Next time I make this cream of chicken soup with bacon and mushrooms, I need to make a double batch. It was super delicious and didn’t last long. I would have liked a few leftovers to heat up and enjoy in my lunch crock pot at work.
I don’t have a lot of soup recipes so I’ll have to spend some time developing more to cook and enjoy over the winter. What kind of soup do you prefer, clear broth or creamy?
Low Carb Cream of Chicken Soup Recipe Video
Cream of Chicken Soup with Bacon and Mushrooms – Low Carb & Gluten Free
Cream of Chicken Soup with Bacon
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3.5 ounces shiitake mushrooms sliced
- 1/3 cup white cooking wine or water
- 1/2 cup coconut milk or almond milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 4 ribs celery chopped
- 4 pieces deboned skinless chicken thighs cooked and chopped
- salt
- pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
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Cook bacon in 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat in large soup pot until crispy. Remove bacon from pot and set aside.
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Add 1 tablespoon butter to pot, add garlic and cook until golden. Add mushrooms and cook until they are softened.
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Add wine or water and cook until liquid is reduced by half.
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Stir in coconut milk, heavy cream, and chicken broth. Add celery and chicken. Simmer until heated throughout. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley and bacon.
Recipe Notes
3.9g net carbs
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Sandy says
I just started a vlchf lifestyle. I figure I’ll try it and see if this is something I can do on the daily. It’s been almost two weeks and I am still learning to find foods and meals that work for my numbers. I have a hard time getting enough fat and I’m usually getting a tad too much protein. So I thought, “Soup can be low-carb, right?” I Googled low carb soup and this one came up and that’s when I remembered that cream is great! This is a great soup recipe! Thanks for sharing, and I’ll do the same!
Lisa says
You’re welcome Sandy! Wishing you well on your new eating plan.
Lúc says
I made this with mushroom stock instead of chicken stock, and added savoy cabbage rather than celery. I guess that really makes it a cream of mushroom soup but it was delicious nonetheless!
Lisa says
Yum! I’ve never used mushroom stock.
Gail A Valence says
Loved the recipe. I made a couple of changes. I added 1/2 of a medium chopped onion and about a cup of chopped bok choy when I added mushrooms. Ten minutes before done I added 1 tsp. lemon juice. I find that really helps the spices in most soups and stews.
Lisa says
Thanks for the tip Gail!
Angelica Barquero says
This has become a family favorite! The only thing I’ve done different is add some cheese to make it a little thicker. I share this recipe and site regularly with my online fitness challenge groups! THANK YOU!
Lisa says
Thanks for sharing Angelica! And, thanks for the tip on the cheese 🙂
Kinsey says
I added diced onion along with the garlic. Also added rosemary and basil. Very satisfying.
Lisa says
Great additions!
Lloyd Wilson says
Made this soup last night, very very nice, i made a couple of changes, i added milk instead of wine (because i didn’t have any 🙂 and i added a good amount of white pepper 1/2 t spoon, and a dash of paprika and i left out the celery. i will definitely be making this again.
looking forward to another bowl full 🙂
definitely 5 stars
Lisa says
Sounds yummy with the changes!
Ella says
I may be wrong, but I found this under paleo recipes. Has anyone considered that bacon is a processed food with nitrates and tons of sodium? Just asking.
Lisa says
There is no nitrate bacon that only has pork and salt. It’s the cream that wouldn’t be paleo because paleo is a dairy free diet.
Patrick says
I came across this recipe when I searched for “low carb cream soup”.
I made this soup last night. I followed the recipe as written, except I added about 1/4 tsp. xanthan gum to thicken it slightly and keep the fats from separating.
It was delicious! I had to pace myself so I wouldn’t burn my poor tongue!
Keep up the good work!
(from one engineer to another 🙂
Lisa says
You just happened to stumble upon the most popular soup recipe on the site! So glad you enjoyed it!
Nichole says
I struggle with the xanthan gum. How exactly do you use it to thicken soups and sauces?
Sharon Rogers says
I find it always works best if you just sprinkle a little bit directly into the cooking soup…but I use guar gum not xanthum
gummylick says
tried this last night and i’m *horrible* at cooking… turned out FANTASTIC!! froze half for next week and taking left overs for lunch. thanks!
Lisa says
I’m sure your cooking isn’t as horrible as you think. I used to be one of the worst cooks ever and I managed to get better.
Sabrina says
Thanks for the recipe. I just made it tonight for some meals this week. I did saute the celery(2 stalks used) with the garlic and I added about 1/2 cup of onions. I also added some herbs. The soup was still bland. Maybe because I used homemade stock. So I had to add a chicken bouillon cube. That did the trick. I also added some xantham gum as a slight thickener. Yummy!
Lisa says
Commercial stocks are seasoned so that was probably it!
Kristy says
Made this tonight and SO SO SO good! I added a little extra white wine just for the tang.
Lisa says
Thanks for writing in. It’s been a super popular recipe for very good reason!
Stephen C. says
The measure of “4 deboned chicken thighs” doesn’t provide me enough information to get to the nutrition values specified. It’s not just your recipes I see this everywhere and it makes it rather difficult to purchase given the thighs from my butcher are a different size then the store.
TL;DR – how much chicken thigh meat is used for the recipe.
Lisa says
It was about 1.5 pounds of meat that was used.
Jami says
This is delicious! I made it twice. First time with Turkey stock and turkey and the second time with chicken. I was telling my mom about it and I forwarded the link to her! So yummy!
Gina says
Has anyone frozen this? Does it freeze well? I love soups in the winter, but do not have time to make it from scratch all the time. Would love some recipes that freeze great for grab and go for work.
Lisa says
I have not tried it with this recipe, but soups typically freeze well.
Mary says
is there a substitute for the heavy cream? I’m lactose intolerant so dairy and I don’t get along too well. I would definitely like to add creamy soups back into my diet. I miss them!
Rosann Gomez says
Thicken it with cauliflower puree
Lisa says
Cauliflower can be used as a thickener.
Angelina says
Cashew cream! Its worked in every soup I’ve tried it in, and is super easy to make.
Soak 5 oz cashews in water for at least 4 hours. Drain, then blend in high-speed blender with 1/2 to 2/3 c. water, depending how thick you want your cream. I use a magic bullet for this and it works great.
Angelina says
RAW cashews. Sorry, missed that word. The cashews must be raw for this to work.
Lisa says
Thanks! I need to give this a try. I know cashews are a bit higher in carbs than other nuts, but worth a try.
Jaird says
Just add more coconut milk
Libby at ditchthecarbs.com says
Hi Lisa, this soups looks absolutely incredible. I have included it in my recipe roundup – Top 20 Low Carb Thanksgiving recipes from my favourite low carb websites. Love your recipes. Libby
Lisa says
Thanks Libby!
MADELINE says
I love creamy soups and look forward to trying it. Was just wondering what kind of coconut milk you use? The kind in the can or the kind in cartons? Thank you!
Lisa says
Either can or carton works, but I usually use the coconut milk in a carton for convenience.
Linette Houser says
Thanks Lisa for taking time to share so many awesome recipes just found you last night and have been writing every since lok
Lisa says
Hi Linette! Great to connect with you 🙂
Elaine Markley says
Love mushroom soup! This looks scrumptious! Lisa, I made the same mistake you did with the low carb diet. I thought it was all about low carb and the right amount of protein. So I didn’t get anywhere near the fat I should have. Consequently, my weight loss would stall after I had lost 20 pounds, and that was that! Since that last time, I really did my research and now know better!
Lisa says
Unfortunately, too many people fall into the “fat is bad” trap. Glad you were able to research and find the truth!
Gaia Dewailly says
Hi there, just wondering how best to cook the thighs before adding to the soup? Tia!
Lisa says
I like to poach or pan fry the chicken.