Chicken White Bean Soup is a delicious soup made with canned cannellini beans, chicken, celery, carrots, onion, garlic, and spinach for a hearty easy-to-make soup.
This chicken white bean soup is an easy soup to make, the canned beans help with the cooking time, and it’s ready to eat in an hour or so. It is the perfect meal when you are looking for something hearty and healthy.
Soup is one of my favorite things to cook and eat. I can never get enough of them. This chicken bean soup is packed with veggies and protein for a healthy lunch or dinner. I love making this soup at the beginning of the week and having it for a quick lunch during the week.
Helpful tips
- Rinse the canned beans before adding them to the soup. This will help rinse off excess sodium from the beans.
- Use low-sodium chicken broth if store-bought broth is used. This will also help to reduce the sodium.
- The chicken bouillon cubes are optional, but I like the flavor that they give the soup. Just remember that the bouillon cubes will add more salt to the soup. After the cubes have dissolved, taste the soup before adding additional salt.
- Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
- The microwave or stovetop can be used to reheat the soup. Heat to your desired temperature.
- The soup can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months. Make sure to cool the soup completely before freezing it.
Ingredients for this chicken bean soup
- Olive Oil
- Onion
- Celery
- Carrots
- Garlic
- Cannellini Beans
- Cooked Chicken
- Chicken Broth
- Bay leaf
- Spinach
- Chicken Bouillon Cubes (optional)
- Salt and Pepper
Steps for making chicken and white bean soup
Steps one and two
Add the carrots, onion, celery, and garlic to a large soup kettle or Dutch oven. Cook the vegetables for 10 to 12 minutes.
Steps three, four, and five
Once the vegetables are done, add the chicken, beans, and broth. After the soup cooks for 20 to 30 minutes add the spinach, salt, pepper, and bouillon cubes (if adding them). Cook another 5 to 10 minutes.
Do you need to use cannellini beans?
No, you can use northern white beans or any white bean you prefer.
Do you have to use canned beans for this recipe?
No, you can use dry beans for this recipe. If using dry beans, I would recommend that you precook them before adding them to the soup. The beans should be soaked overnight and then simmered until they are tender. The cooking time for cannellini beans is usually around 90 minutes.
Here are additional soup recipes that I think you may enjoy
If you make this chicken white bean soup, I would love to hear about it! Please leave me a comment and a rating.
Chicken White Bean Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 3 stalks celery chopped
- 1 cup carrots sliced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 15.5 ounce cans cannellini bean or other white beans
- 3 cups cooked chicken cut into bite size pieces
- 64 ounces chicken broth low sodium
- 2 cubes chicken bouillon Optional
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup spinach chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- To a large Dutch oven or soup kettle add the olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic. Cook the vegetables for 10 to 12 minutes or until they start to get tender.
- Once the vegetables are tender add the beans, cooked chicken, chicken broth, bouillon cube(s), and bay leaf. Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring the soup to a boil.
- Once it starts to boil reduce the heat slightly and continue to cook for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked.
- Add the chopped spinach, salt, and pepper, and cook 5 to 10 minutes more
Notes
- If using canned white beans, rinse before adding them to the soup. This will help remove some of the salt from the beans.
- For less sodium in the soup, use low-sodium chicken broth.
- If adding chicken bouillon cubes, let the cubes dissolve before seasoning the soup with additional salt.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
- Reheat leftover soup in the microwave or stovetop to the desired temperature.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on October 11, 2015. It has been updated with new content and pictures on January 30, 2025.
This makes a perfect complete lunch for me. Love the combo of creamy white beans and tender chicken.
This soup looks delicious Dawn, and I love these beans, somehow I feel that all white beans are creamier than the other ones. Looks so comforting…it sure makes a great meal.
I hope you are having a wonderful weekend!
Such a wonderful, hearty soup filled with so many things I love…especially beans! 🙂 Perfect for this colder weather we’ve been having!
Sounds good for this cool weather, I’d probably use northern beans though. Thanks for sharing!
Oh, it is most definitely soup season here now! I think Fall just skipped us and we’re into early winter. And it’s been rainy, too. Ugh. But a good soup is the key to making things better, and this chicken white bean soup sounds delicious!!
This recipe sounds great! Do you need to drain & rinse the cans or beans or no?
Hi Jennifer, yes, the beans should be drained. I am sorry I should have had that in the recipe. Thank you for stopping by my blog!
This is literally the exact thing I need right now! We’ve got a a cold going around the house right now, and a good bowl of chicken soup is exactly what the doctor ordered. And I love the addition of spinach in this version!
Mmm… I love the fresh and savory flavors of your gorgeous soup! I also love that this can be made ahead of time, then stored in the fridge for several days. This makes this recipe so perfect for easy meal prep.