Chicken butternut squash soup is cozy, creamy, and full of delicious fall flavors, like roasted butternut squash, brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, and thyme. This autumn inspired soup is loaded with protein and whole grain carbs, making it a healthy dinner option. Garnish with croutons, crumbled bacon, coconut cream, or fresh herbs to round out this dish.
Ingredients
- Butternut squash – this orange beauty is the star of the show. Adds deliciously rich, buttery flavor.
- Carrots – for a hint of natural sweetness and boost of beta carotene.
- Chicken – we generally use chicken breast in this recipe, but chicken thighs work well and are extra juicy.
- Low sodium chicken broth – for the base of the broth.
- Brown rice – wholesome carb to add a little volume to this soup.
- Coconut milk – full fat coconut milk gives this soup extra depth and creaminess. You can also use coconut cream for added richness.
- Yellow onion – helps flavor the soup.
- Brown sugar – for a touch of sweetness. Excellent complement to the warm, sweet spices.
- Seasoning – we loaded this soup with tons of cozy spices and seasonings, like garlic cloves, sea salt, thyme, black pepper, sage, cinnamon, nutmeg, and smoked paprika that add so much depth to this soup.
- Extra virgin olive oil – for sauteing veggies and chicken. Loaded with healthy plant-based fats and flavor.
- Optional garnish – green onions, croutons, pumpkin seeds, coconut cream, crumbled bacon, and/or fresh herbs are delicious toppings.
How to Make Chicken Butternut Squash Soup
Roast the Butternut Squash and Carrots
Preheat your oven to 400F.
Prepare the butternut squash by cutting off both ends. Peel the skin. Cut the squash in half horizontally. Then cut in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds. Cut the quarters into 1-inch slices, then cut into 1-inch cubes. Check out this tutorial on how to cut butternut squash from Gimme Some Oven for extra help.
Peel and slice the carrots. Dice the onion. Mince the garlic.
Toss 6 cups of butternut squash and the carrots with 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil. Season with a pinch of salt, pepper, thyme, and sage. Toss well to coat. Spread the squash and carrots onto a large baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the squash is tender. Remove from the oven and set aside.
Make the Butternut Squash Soup
While the squash and carrots cook, warm ½ tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large Dutch oven. Add the chicken and season with ½ teaspoon of salt, ¼ teaspoon of black pepper, sage, smoked paprika, and cinnamon, and ⅛ teaspoon of nutmeg. Cook the chicken until browned on all sides, about 4 to 5 minutes. You may want to cook the chicken in two batches for better browning. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
In the Dutch oven, warm the remaining ½ tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, or until translucent.
Add the roasted squash and carrots to the dutch oven. Stir in the chicken broth, brown sugar, and remaining thyme, sage, smoked paprika, cinnamon and nutmeg. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Alternately, you can transfer the soup to a large food processor and blend until smooth. You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your processor. Return the pureed soup to the Dutch oven.
Rice in Soup: Add the coconut milk and rice to the soup. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the rice is tender.
Rice Separately: Combine 1 cup of rice with 2 cups water in a pressure cooker and pressure cook on high for 22 minutes (or prepare using alternate method like rice cooker or stovetop). Depressurize and fluff with a fork. Add the coconut milk to the soup and simmer for 5 minutes. Divide the rice among bowls.
Season the soup with additional salt and pepper, if desired. Return the chicken to the soup and warm another 1 to 2 minutes.
Remove the soup from heat and serve. Garnish with green onions, croutons, pumpkin seeds, coconut cream, crumbled bacon, and/or fresh herbs, if desired.
How to Store
- Refrigerate – store chicken butternut squash soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze – allow the soup to cool completely. Transfer to a large Ziploc baggie and press out air when sealing. Lay flat (we place on a cookie sheet) and freeze. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months. If you plan to freeze this soup as a make-ahead or meal prep meal, we recommend NOT adding rice to the soup before freezing. Instead make fresh rice on the side and add to individual portions or add uncooked rice to the soup when reheating over the stove.
- Reheat – for refrigerated soup, warm chilled soup over the stove on medium heat. For frozen soup, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then warm on the stove over medium heat. You may want to add a little extra broth to the soup when reheating, as the rice will absorb some of the liquid when stored.
Modifications for Butternut Squash Soup
- Cream cheese – sub in 8 oz of cream cheese in place of coconut milk. Just be sure to warm the cream cheese before adding it to the soup to prevent curdling.
- Spicy – add a hint of spice with red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, chipotle powder, and/or chipotles in adobo for a zesty, southwestern flare.
- Squash – sub out some of the butternut squash with pumpkin, acorn, or honeynut squash.
- Sweeten – add a few apples, pears, or more brown sugar for a little extra sweetness. Use honey or maple syrup for a more natural sweetener.
- Grain – replace brown rice with your favorite grain, like farro, barley, quinoa, or couscous. Or go grain free by omitting the rice (but also reduce the broth by 1 cup).
- Precooked chicken – you can use leftover chicken in this soup. We love using shredded chicken.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This butternut squash soup is full of lean protein, healthy plant-based fats, and whole grain carbs.
Yes. This recipe calls for peeling and cubing the butternut squash before roasting in the oven. However, you can also cook the squash in halves with the skin on and then scoop the cooked squash out of the skin after roasting.
No. This butternut squash soup contains brown rice, so it is not considered low carb. However, you can omit the rice for a low carb option.
Check out our other fall dinner recipes
- Butternut squash and spinach lasagna
- Fall minestrone soup
- Pumpkin miso ramen
- Roasted red pepper pasta
- Apple chicken sausage pasta
Chicken Butternut Squash Soup
Equipment
- 1 Immersion blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 6 c butternut squash, cubed
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1½ Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed and cubed
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- ½ tsp cracked black pepper
- ½ tsp dried sage
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 5 c low sodium chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp light brown sugar
- 1 15 oz can coconut milk, full fat
- 1 cup brown rice, uncooked
- optional garnish: green onions, croutons, pumpkin seeds, coconut cream, crumbled bacon, and/or fresh herbs
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400F.
- Prepare the butternut squash by cutting off both ends. Peel the skin. Cut the squash in half horizontally. Then cut in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds. Cut the quarters into 1-inch slices, then cut into 1-inch cubes.
- Peel and slice the carrots. Dice the onion. Mince the garlic.
- Toss 6 cups of butternut squash and the carrots with ½ tablespoon of olive oil. Season with a pinch of salt, pepper, thyme, and sage. Toss well to coat. Spread the squash and carrots onto a large baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the squash is tender. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- While the squash and carrots cook, warm ½ tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large Dutch oven. Add the chicken and season with ½ teaspoon of salt, ¼ teaspoon of black pepper, sage, smoked paprika, and cinnamon, and ⅛ teaspoon of nutmeg. Cook the chicken until browned on all sides, about 4 to 5 minutes. You may want to cook the chicken in two batches for better browning. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
- In the Dutch oven, warm the remaining ½ tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, or until translucent.
- Add the roasted squash and carrots to the dutch oven. Stir in the chicken broth, brown sugar, and remaining thyme, sage, smoked paprika, cinnamon and nutmeg. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Alternately, you can transfer the soup to a large food processor and blend until smooth. You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your processor. Return the pureed soup to the Dutch oven.
- Rice in Soup: Add the coconut milk and rice to the soup. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the rice is tender. Rice Separately: Combine 1 cup of rice with 2 cups water in a pressure cooker and pressure cook on high for 22 minutes (or prepare using alternate method like rice cooker or stovetop). Depressurize and fluff with a fork. Add the coconut milk to the soup and simmer for 5 minutes. Divide the rice among bowls.
- Season the soup with additional salt and pepper, if desired. Return the chicken to the soup and warm another 1 to 2 minutes.
- Remove the soup from heat and serve. Garnish with green onions, croutons, pumpkin seeds, coconut cream, crumbled bacon, and/or fresh herbs, if desired.
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