Chicken Sweet Potato Soup is incredibly easy! Just add everything to a slow cooker for a comforting and filling meal.
Pair this hearty soup with crusty bread or crushed chips and a simple kale salad!
Chicken Sweet Potato Soup
I love a hearty slow-cooker meal, and creamy soups are my ideal comfort food, but you don’t see many broth-based, slow-cooked soup recipes on the internet.
That’s where Chicken Sweet Potato Soup comes in! It’s broth-based and anything but bland. This soup bursts with texture and flavor. It’s packed with protein from black beans, quinoa, and chicken, and loaded with veggies from tomatoes and sweet potatoes. Seasoning it with a chili mix means this soup is prepped in no time. You won’t believe how quickly this meal is ready to eat!
Chicken Sweet Potato Soup Notes
- Chicken: This recipe originally called for chicken breasts, but I’ve switched to boneless, skinless thighs. They’re tender, easier to shred, and less likely to dry out if cooked all day.
- Rinse: Rinse quinoa before adding it to the slow cooker to remove its bitter coating, saponin. Use a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold water for 30-60 seconds.
- Cook time: Quinoa expands and absorbs liquid as it cooks. After about 3-1/2 to 4 hours, this soup thickens to a stew-like consistency. If your cooker runs hot, it may be done even sooner.
- High heat: Cooking on low doesn’t work well; the quinoa cooks unevenly and absorbs too much liquid. Sweet potatoes and black beans can also get too soft.
- Small pieces: Dice sweet potatoes to 1/2-inch to ensure they cook evenly with the other ingredients.
- Spice levels: This soup is mild as written, but you can increase the heat by adding 1-2 tablespoons of diced jalapeños and extra chili powder.
- Seasoning: Adjust salt and pepper to taste; it can make a big difference in flavor.
Homemade Chili Seasoning
I shorten prep time by using a packet of chili seasoning. After trying many, I recommend McCormick’s® Chili Seasoning (not sponsored). Some packets lack flavor, but this one delivers. Sometimes it pays to go with the national brand!
If you prefer homemade seasoning, here are the ratios I recommend:
- 1 tablespoon chili powder (McCormick is very mild)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon roasted garlic powder
- Optional: 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (add slowly; cayenne pepper adds a lot of spice!) Alternatively, 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes could be used.
- Salt and pepper to taste (I add 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper)
Quick Tip
Looking to save even more prep time? Buy pre-diced sweet potatoes. Many stores sell peeled and diced sweet potatoes in the produce section.
Toppings
While this soup is great as is, toppings can add even more flavor and texture. Here are my favorite additions:
- Sharp or extra-sharp Cheddar cheese: Grate the cheese directly onto each bowl and let it melt for a minute before stirring it into the soup.
- Ripe avocado or guacamole: For extra creaminess, top the soup with ripe avocado slices. Not sure about avocado but still want a creamy element? Try plain Greek yogurt or sour cream.
- Fresh lime juice: A few squeezes of fresh lime heighten the flavors and add a burst of brightness.
- Chips: Crushed tortilla chips (or strips) add a satisfying crunch.
- Fresh cilantro: If you love cilantro, it adds freshness and a nice citrusy flavor. Not a fan? Try chopped parsley instead.
More Quinoa Recipes
- Quinoa Chili with sweet potatoes
- Southwest Quinoa Salad with a cilantro-lime vinaigrette
- Avocado Orange Quinoa Salad with a citrus dressing
- Quinoa Salad with avocado and a lemon dressing
- Quinoa Enchilada Bake with sweet potatoes
Chicken Sweet Potato Soup
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 1-1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, 24 ounces
- 1 cup quinoa
- 3-1/2 cups diced sweet potatoes 2 to 3 large sweet potatoes
- 1 (15.25-ounce) can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 (14.25-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 (1.25-ounce) packet chili seasoning mix see note 1
- 5 cups chicken broth or stock
- Fresh cilantro or parsley, optional
- Optional toppings see note 2
Instructions
- Spray the slow cooker with cooking spray. Remove the fat from the chicken breasts or thighs. If using large chicken breasts, cut them into 3–4 pieces so they’ll cook more evenly. Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh sieve (see note 3). Peel and dice the sweet potatoes into small 1/2-inch cubes.
- Add the chicken thighs or cut chicken breasts into the slow cooker. Add the rinsed quinoa, diced sweet potatoes, drained and rinsed black beans, undrained diced tomatoes, minced garlic, packet of chili seasoning, and chicken broth/stock to the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on high for 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 hours (see note 4).
- Using tongs, remove the chicken to a small bowl. Using two forks, shred the chicken, then return to the slow cooker. Taste the soup and adjust for seasonings; I typically add an additional 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, but add until the flavors sing.
- Ladle soup into bowls and top with your favorite toppings. I love fresh cilantro, fresh lime juice, and ripe avocado. My boys love sour cream and lots of Cheddar cheese.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Chelsea! Question. Do you put the chicken in uncooked? And could you use frozen chicken breast? Decided to start my journey on clean eating and this might be my first meal on it 🙂 Thank you!
Hi Rhea!! I haven’t tried frozen chicken, but I did put the chicken in uncooked. I worry frozen chicken might not cook as fast as the quinoa, so I would recommend just uncooked chicken! Good luck on your journey and hope you love this soup! 🙂
Made this tonight and it was very, very good. I didn’t change a thing. It is definitely a keeper.
Yay!! So glad you to hear you liked it! Thanks for the comment Pam 🙂
Would it work to put beef stew meat in this instead of chicken?
My boyfriend would prefer that over chicken I think 🙂
Making this tomorrow , so excited!!!
This stew is AMAZING! I made it for lunch today and my husband and I both absolutely loved it! We couldn’t get over how simple the prep was either for how absolutely mouth-watering delish it was! I’ll be sharing this recipe on my own blog this week and linking my readers back to you. I’m currently trying different ways to cook quinoa that are easy and your recipe so far is at the top of my list. Thank you so much for sharing and your photographs are gorgeous.
Thank you so much for your comment and review Jessica!! You are so sweet! And I’m excited to see it on your awesome blog! 🙂 XO
Absolutely! Here you go:
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 Recipe total Servings 6
Calories 352
Total Fat 12.23 g
Saturated Fat 3.52g
Monosaturated Fat 5.23g
Polysaturated Fat 3.47g
Total Carbohydrate 23.3 g
Fiber 2.8 g
Sugar 0.8 g
Protein 33.1 g
Cholesterol 72.73 mg
Calcium 40 mg
Iron 2.81 mg
Potassium 672 mg
Sodium 757 mg
Zinc 2.2 mg
Thiamin 0.22 mg
Riboflavin 0.25 mg
Niacin 14 mg
Vitamin B6 0.78 mg
Vitamin C 0.7 mg
Vitamin B12 0.59 Ug
Vitamin A 911 IU
Vitamin E 0.94 mg
Vitamin K 0.5 Ug
Points 7
Points Plus 8
Thanks so much for the nutritional info! I saw your recipe on pinterest and made it last night. It was so good!!!!
I made this soup tonight and it was delicious and filling! I’m so glad you have posted this recipe! 🙂 I know that you have said this recipe serves 6 but for the nutritional information, what is your “per serving” size? 2 Cups?
Is it 352 Calories per serving or for the whole meal? And how much is 1 Serving?
Per serving! Divide the soup into 6 equal parts and each of those parts is 352 calories
Do you happen to have the nutrition info for this recipe? Calories, fats, carbs, proteins, etc.
This looks so good! I have my own chili spice that I make. How many tablespoons would that be?
Thx!
Hi Katie! It will be approximately 2 and 1/2 tablespoons. You may want to err on the side of less and you can always add more if needed! Hope that helps!
Hi. It sounds good. One question: Did you rinse and/or cook the quinoa before adding it to the crock pot?
I rinsed it but no need to cook!
Thanks! :o)
This looks so AWESOME and I cannot wait to make this…Putting it on the list for next week…Thanks for sharing!
If I cooked this on low, would you expect 6-8 hours??
I would think so! I haven’t tried cooking it on low ever since quinoa tends to do better on high. If you give it a try, I’d love to hear the results!
I cooked it on low for 8 hrs and it was great. What a wonderful consistency!
Oh that is so great to hear!! Thank you Amanda!!
I made this on low and it took 6 hours…came out PERFECT!