So the title’s a mouthful. I get it.
You know what else is a mouthful? This soup. A mouthful of awesome.
I’m a big fan of butternut squash soup (as is my squash-hating husband) as evidenced here and here. So what makes this soup different? What makes it extra special? Well…
It’s creamy and rich without a drop of cream, and it’s loaded with vitamin and veggie goodness with a healthy dose of protein from the chicken. It soothes a sore throat and can make you feel cozy and warm on a chilly day. Is there anything this soup can’t do? (Laundry).
A big plus for me with any recipe is versatility. It’s the number one way I keep from getting bored in the kitchen. I like to change up the same recipe several different ways as I make it, and it also helps when you can adapt a recipe to fit different dietary needs.
This Slow Cooker Thai Chicken and Butternut Soup with Quinoa (again, I know it’s a mouthful) is just that. Super versatile. For instance:
- Paleo or grain free? Skip the quinoa. It’s delicious without it. You can even add more chicken if that’s your thing.
- Vegan? Skip the chicken. The quinoa fills the soup out nicely and you’ll still come away feeling full and satisfied.
- Hate quinoa? It’s just as good with cooked white or brown rice, or you can just leave it out!
- Not a slow cooker fan or short on time? No problem. You can make this on the stovetop.
- Love make-ahead meals? This freezes like a dream.
So it won’t do your laundry and I cannot be responsible for how many bowls you eat in a sitting (it’s SO good), but I’ll gently suggest you try adding this one to your weekly menu.
NOTES ON THE RECIPE
- Slow Cookers. I always get asked about slow cookers. My favorite is this one. It’s programmable and can automatically switch to the WARM setting after it’s cooked the set amount of time, which means you won’t over-cook your meal if you’re running late or it’s done early. I’m also a mega fan of the lid clips which makes transporting your slow cooked meals a slosh-free experience.
- Immersion Blender. You don’t need an immersion blender for this recipe, but it’s a really great, affordable tool for the kitchen. I have the Cuisinart Smart Stick and it works like a dream (plus it comes in a bunch of cute colors these days). I use it for warm sauces and soups, but I also use it for making Paleo Mayo.
- Freezing. This recipe freezes like a dream. No cream to curdle, and it re-heats beautifully.
Like this post? You may also like:
- How to Cook Quinoa
- Slow Cooker Quinoa Vegetable Soup – Super Healthy Kids
- Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
Slow Cooker Thai Chicken and Butternut Soup
- Yield: at least 6 servings. 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
This cozy soup warms you from the inside out. There are lots of variations for paleo and vegan eaters and quinoa haters. See the notes for more ideas!
Ingredients
- 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed (6–8 cups)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 14oz full-fat coconut milk
- 2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 – 1 1/2 Tbsp red curry paste
- 1 Tbsp Thai sweet chili sauce or chili oil
- 1 Tbsp fresh ginger, finely minced
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 1/2 tsp salt (or, to taste)
- 1lb. chicken breast
- 2 cups cooked quinoa (or rice, or you can leave it out)
- 2 roasted red bell peppers, diced (fresh or jarred)
- 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- Juice of 1 lime
Instructions
- Place the cubed squash, onion, coconut milk, broth, curry paste, sweet chili sauce, ginger, garlic, and salt into the slow cooker. Stir to combine (this won’t be perfect since the curry paste will dissolve as it heats up, but give it a good start). Add chicken.
- Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 8 hours. Remove chicken and shred.
- Using an immersion blender, puree the squash and broth mixture until very smooth. (If you don’t have an immersion blender, let the soup cool a bit and, working in batches, puree in a food processor or blender).
- Stir in shredded chicken, quinoa, diced bell peppers, and cilantro.
- Squeeze in the lime juice or cut the lime into 6 wedges and let everyone squeeze over their own.
Paige says
January 7, 2016 at 10:17 amThis soup looks incredible! I wish I had some for lunch right now!
Jennifer says
January 21, 2016 at 10:22 amThis soup has made my January. Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Emily says
January 21, 2016 at 3:10 pmI’m so glad! Such a great comment to brighten my day!
Linda says
March 4, 2016 at 4:51 amThis is now one of my favorite soups. I’m about to make it for the 3rd time. It’s delicious. Thank you.
Emily says
March 4, 2016 at 8:37 amI’m so glad you enjoyed it Linda! I can’t get enough!
Linda Manning says
March 4, 2016 at 4:53 amFilling and very tasty. Highly recommended. I couldn’t find chili oil so just made it without. It’s excellent
★★★★★
Lisa C. says
March 26, 2016 at 11:17 amI need to make this! How long would you cook it on the stove? Or even better, in a pressure cooker? (My Instant Pot is my new favorite thing!)
Emily says
March 26, 2016 at 11:27 amI’ve been hearing how amazing Instant Pots are!! I don’t have one, so I couldn’t give you a good suggestion for the Instant Pot, but on the stovetop, you’ll just need to simmer till the squash is very tender (which, depending on your heat could be a little as 30 minutes on med-high, or 45 minutes to an hour on med-low heat). Hope that helps!!!
Aubrey says
May 23, 2016 at 5:47 pmAmazing! Even my 5-year-old loves it!
Emily says
May 23, 2016 at 7:07 pmI’m so glad you liked it! It’s one of my all-time favorites.
Janette says
September 16, 2016 at 9:26 pmSo I don’t see cheese in the ingredients list, what kind and how much do you use
Janette says
September 16, 2016 at 9:28 pmOmg! I put my glasse on now it says shredded chicken not cheese! Sorry?
Emily says
September 17, 2016 at 7:21 amNo problem Janette!
jim says
October 10, 2016 at 6:45 pmDo you put the chicken in raw, or brown it first?
Emily says
October 10, 2016 at 7:32 pmJim – Uncooked. Hope that helps!
MB says
October 17, 2016 at 9:32 amI really loved this, thanks! I didn’t have curry paste, so I used curry powder. I also opted to use my food processor vs a blender. It made almost two weeks worth of work lunches when I added some jasmine rice!
Emily says
October 17, 2016 at 6:47 pmOoh, yum! That sounds so great!
julie says
October 24, 2016 at 12:04 pmI was thinking to add the red peppers in the last hour (I’m going to do 4 hrs. on high).
Were the peppers too hard/firm without putting them in the slow cooker?
Emily says
October 24, 2016 at 12:18 pmJulie – Are you using raw peppers instead of the roasted ones? If you’re using raw, you’ll definitely want to give them that hour at least to soften, though you may want to give them even more time unless you prefer a little bit of bite. Roasted bell peppers will be soft enough, as is. I hope that helps!
Leah Taylor says
November 15, 2016 at 9:33 pmJust made this for my roommate and I. It was an absolute hit! I browned the onion and chicken in coconut oil before adding them to the crockpot for extra flavor. Will definitely be making this again. Thank you!!!
Emily says
November 16, 2016 at 5:32 amI’m so glad you liked it!
Kelli says
December 4, 2016 at 5:43 pmLove this soup. Great for cold days. I also add crushed red pepper to add a little more spice/heat.
★★★★★
Emily says
December 5, 2016 at 5:15 amYum! That sounds delicious!
Johanna says
January 5, 2017 at 12:24 pmCan you skip cooking the quinoa and just have it uncooked in the slow cooker instead? Especially when going low for 8hrs?
Emily says
January 5, 2017 at 2:15 pmJohanna, The only trick is that if you add the quinoa, you can’t puree it later (unless you plan to puree the quinoa). It’s up to you!
Ann says
January 8, 2017 at 8:43 pmI found your recipe on Pinterest and just had to try it. So glad I did! My husband and I loved it. It will definitely become a regular feature in our kitchen. Just curious–do you have the nutiritional information for this?
Emily says
January 10, 2017 at 5:19 amI’m so glad you enjoyed it! I don’t have the nutrition information readily available, but you can plug the ingredients into any online calculator for a good estimate. My favorite is My Fitness Pal (either the site or the phone app–both free!). You can even import recipes from the web so you don’t have to manually enter everything!
Gayla says
March 2, 2017 at 12:11 pmMaybe it’s me, but how do you get 6-8 cups of cubed squash out of ONE butternut squash, unless they’re really large where you live (??)
Gayla says
March 2, 2017 at 12:14 pmDuh! I was envisioning acorn squash when I wrote the comment about size – sorry!
Emily says
March 2, 2017 at 1:22 pmNo worries Gayla! I hope you love it!
Sheena Mawson says
March 23, 2017 at 10:40 amThis sounds delicious!! One question… My husband doesn’t like red peppers (well any type of bell pepper). Any suggestions on what I could sub? Or maybe i just make it for myself and then I don’t have to share!
Emily says
March 23, 2017 at 12:22 pmSheena – You could totally use other veggies instead. Snap or snow peas, broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, whatever you like!
Sheena Mawson says
March 26, 2017 at 10:31 pmAwesome!! Thanks!
Emily says
March 26, 2017 at 6:09 pmMade this today for my hubby and I. As newlyweds, we’re still putting together a rotational menu of things we both like. Needless to say, we both agreed that this is going into the rotation. Thank you for a keeper!
★★★★★
Emily says
March 26, 2017 at 7:23 pmOh, I’m so glad to hear that Emily! You made my day!
Karen says
November 21, 2017 at 11:05 amI discovered this recipe last winter and it has become an absolute staple at my house. I usually throw in some extra veggies towards the end (almost always kale). I love putting a serving or two in the freezer to have on hand as well.
The rating stars don’t seem to be working here, but definitely 5 stars from me!
★★★★★
Emily says
November 21, 2017 at 12:05 pmKaren – THANK YOU for letting me know! I’ll look into why the ratings aren’t working. SO so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Joy says
February 12, 2018 at 4:19 amHas anyone tried to make this in the instantpot?
Emily says
February 12, 2018 at 5:57 amI haven’t yet, but I’d love to know how it goes if you give it a try!
Cathy says
March 31, 2018 at 7:02 amThis soup is a favorite of ours now, and a great way to use the butternut squash from our garden throughout the winter months!!! I do not change a thing when making the soup, and yes I use Quinoa! I will be making the soup today on this cold rainy day per my husbands request. The soup freezes nicely too which will happen today as I am doubling the recipe. So glad I stumbled upon this soup recipe last fall in search of ways to use our garden butternut squash!! ~Thank you~
★★★★★
Emily says
March 31, 2018 at 12:18 pmOh, I’m SO glad you love it! I can’ get enough on a chilly or rainy day!
Pixie @ Cheerfully Vegan says
October 17, 2018 at 3:57 pmA friend posted a lovely list of soups that Dr. Axe put together. This was among them. We’re vegan, so I switched out the chicken for a stir-fried tofu with onions that I make. I added some chopped broccoli and kept some stir fried red peppers on the side for me, since hubby isn’t a fan. I made it on the stove-top, since I found the recipe too late for the crock-pot! This is AMAZING!! It is so delicious!! It is a wonderful way to use up frozen cubes of squash that I got at Costco that had been languishing in the freezer for much too long. Great job on the recipe!!
★★★★★
Emily says
October 17, 2018 at 4:39 pmOh my GOODNESS! Thank you so much for sharing this with me! I had no idea he’d shared one of my soups! (I’m such a huge fan of his!)
Emily says
October 23, 2018 at 8:18 amDo you think this would work with chicken tenders?
Emily says
October 23, 2018 at 4:33 pmI do think it would! I don’t think you’ll need to adjust your cook time either 🙂
Lisa says
October 29, 2018 at 8:40 amI made this dish without a grain and it was fantastic! Wish it had a little stronger flavor (the butternut squash seemed to wash it out) but it was great.
★★★★
Emily says
October 29, 2018 at 11:39 amI’m so glad you enjoyed it! (Maybe a little extra curry paste next time?)
Erin says
November 27, 2018 at 6:11 pmThis soup is so yummy! I couldn’t find red curry paste so I subbed with yellow curry paste and I used a garlic chili oil instead of the sweet Thai chili sauce. So good!!
★★★★★
Emily says
November 27, 2018 at 8:07 pmYAY! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Your substitutions sound delicious!
Carene says
December 17, 2018 at 9:19 amHi! Any tips on cooking this on the stovetop?
Emily says
December 17, 2018 at 9:37 amHi, Carene! You could follow the same basic directions for my other butternut squash soups (like this one made on the stovetop) and use cooked chicken for a speedier finish. I hope that helps! 🙂
Rachel A Mock says
March 15, 2019 at 10:48 amJust found this and excited to try it! Can anyone confirm that they have used frozen Butternut Squash cubes? I have such a beast of a time peeling and cutting the actual squash that when I’m tight on time I opt for frozen – any one tried this with success? Thanks!
Emily says
March 15, 2019 at 11:11 amRachel – I don’t think anyone’s left feedback about using frozen, but I think it would work GREAT! I hope you love it!
Rachel A Mock says
March 22, 2019 at 1:36 pmComing back to confirm – frozen butternut squash worked beautiful. I think I used 2-3 bags, cause that’s what I had. 🙂 I’ve also been really into Chicken Thighs lately, so I used those instead of breasts and it was great. I have ZERO spice tolerance, so the curry paste and chili oil had me scared, but I’m in LOVE with this soup. It’s perfection. Thanks so much!
Emily says
March 22, 2019 at 2:01 pmI’m SOOOO happy to hear that! And thank you SO much for taking the time to share this feedback with me!