Cream of Chicken Soup Substitute
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Alright, I admit it. I sometimes make casseroles or other dishes using that weird, gloppy cream of whatever soup from a can. It’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s cheap.
For the most part, though, I try to make my own cream soups for use in those recipes. Not only is this healthier than the salty canned goo, it’s also super (souper!) simple.
Not to mention, sometimes I just don’t have cream of anything in my pantry and I’m too lazy to get to the store. I pretty much always have the ingredients to make this on hand. Although, I will admit, there have been times when I didn’t have chicken stock and (I can’t believe I’m admitting this) I just used salty water. It’s true. I substituted salty water for chicken broth. Don’t kick me out of the food bloggers’ club, okay?
Check out this Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole using this cream of chicken soup substitute and you can put it to the test yourself.
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SaveCream of Chicken Soup Recipe
Yield: Equivalent to one can of soup
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon flour
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. When melted, whisk in the flour and continue whisking until smooth and bubbly. Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the chicken broth and milk. Return to the heat and bring to a gentle boil, whisking constantly, until the soup thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste.
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What a timely post for me
I was just thinking that I need to figure out how to make Cream of ‘Whatever’ soups so I don’t have to use the crap outta the can 
One question…..what is the diff between the 1 tbsp of flour and 3 tbsp of AP flour you have listed?
I make a homemade condensed cream of mushroom soup all the time. Don’t know why I didn’t think to make cream of chicken soup too!
We’d never kick you out of the food bloggers club!
You crack me up with your salty water admission! This is a great idea for a homemade version of the gloppy canned stuff
Salty water? Too funny!
But you’re right. Most canned soups are LOADED with salt. Great idea to make your own!
Hahahaha! I love your chicken stock substitution.
Is this recipe equivalent to a can of cream soup?
Nevermind, I re-read the recipe and it says right there! Can’t wait to try this!
You are my hero. I am forever finding recipes and then turning away because they contain the dreaded can of soup ingredient. This is AWESOME, thank you!
Brilliant! I’m going to start using this substitute in my casseroles right away! Like MrsDragon, I’ve been ignoring recipes that call for canned soup, but now… I don’t have to!
My husband and I are lactose intolerant, so we never cook with creamy soups. Last night we were really craving turkey pot pie, so I started searching for substitutes. Your recipe is fantastic! We used plain soy milk and gluten-free flour mix (I am also gluten intolerant), and it was SO delicious! We are so excited to make some favorite recipes that we have been avoiding. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
Brittany — October 1st, 2012 @ 3:35 am
@Rebecca, So glad someone has tried it with soy!! I can’t have dairy so I’ll be using almond milk!
Do you think this would freeze well? The only reason I ever use the soups is time- between working 60+ hrs/wk and 3 kids I just don’t have enough of it! I could totally whip up a big batch to freeze though, unless you think it would come out nasty.
Ali Duggan — October 6th, 2012 @ 1:02 pm
@Mar, I would think it would freeze pretty nicely. I thought about making a big batch of this to freeze in an ice cube tray, pop out and put into a freezer bag. (Each cube is about 1oz, roughly.) If I do it – I will come back here and let you know how it turned out!
Did a Google search for sub canned cream of chicken and found your blog. LOVE this substitution!! My dish turned out delicious, Thank You!
I love this! Just used it tonight in a chicken divan, and it was wonderful knowing exactly what I was putting in my food. Thank you for the great recipe!
As a substitute for cream of chicken soup I bring a can of low sodium chicken broth to a simmer. Then I mix 2 TBS of cornstarch into 1/4 cup cold water. Once mixed, I slowly add it to the simmering broth and cook until thickened. If it’s too thick, stir in a bit of water. I’ve added shredded cheese for a creamy cheese substtute, and a small can of sliced mushrooms with the juice for a creamy mushroom soup.
I, too, did a Google search and found your site. Thanks soooooooooooo much!
Thanks! This worked so well when needed some soup for a recipe at the last minute. I love the fact that it is preservative-free, too! This will be a standby in the future.
I came across this as the top result in a Google search too, and I am psyched to try out a couple of new recipes that I’ve been avoiding because ot the cream of chicken soup! I am not above using the canned stuff, but I do try not to! Thanks!
Thx for this! I used a double batch in my lemon chicken rice soup….nice and creamy without the extra salt and strange looking chunks of chicken! My 4yr old and 2 yr old are eating it up as I type!
Also found this using a Google search and LOVED it. I am gluten-free & dairy-free, so I used Rice Flour and Low-Fat Coconut Milk as substitutes. It turned out great, and the Coconut Milk gave it a nice sweet finish for my recipe. Thank you!
Thanks for the recipe! It had a great flavor, but I think I did something wrong because the rue didn’t incorporate very well with the liquids. It was still sort of chunky.
How can you use this to make other cream of _____ soups (i.e. mushroom, asparagus, etc)?
@Sarah,
I would just use veggie stock in place of chicken stock and sauté some mushrooms or asparagus to add to it.
I was looking for a lower-fat substitute for cream of chicken soup, and found yours. This looks superb, but butter is literally off the table for me I will try using canola or olive oil as a fat instead, and equal parts skim milk and fat free chicken broth. Hope it is still a good substitute.
I love this reciepe. I also made cream of mushroom soup by just adding some finly chopped portabella mushrooms. It made my greenbean cassarole sooo yummy!
Thanks for posting this! You saved my sour cream chicken enchiladas.
I don’t know what I did wrong. I followed the instructions to a T. Though I substituted salty watery for chicken broth. I stirred that thing for around 20 minutes. It did not thicken until after I turned the heat up to med-high and I had to leave it set for a minute to go discipline a child which also helped thicken it up (but it also slightly burned to the bottom too :/ ) I ended up tossing it all because by the time this substitute was almost finished (total of 40 minutes when i finally gave up) my husband was almost home with the condensed can stuff. Any ideas on what I did wrong? It was still very watery when I poured it out.
Karly — October 30th, 2012 @ 8:15 am
@jozie,
Hmm, not sure. Did you bring it back to a boil? It’s just like making gravy…it won’t thicken unless it gets hot enough.
Sorry you had trouble with this one!
Can you make this ahead of time and refrigerate it? I’m making a casserole at a family’s house and it would be easier to have it just to add instead of making the soup there.
Karly — December 22nd, 2012 @ 8:02 am
I’ve never tried it, so I’m honestly not sure. It might separate a bit, but I think you could whisk it back together. No guarantees though.
If you try it, please come back and let us know!
Thanks so much for this post! I was also in a lazy panic when I went to make some of my weekly freezer meals and realized I totally missed that one recipe called for cream of chicken soup!
WOW! This is amazing. I used 1/2 heavy cream (leftover from making whipped cream) instead of milk. It was amazing. I was disappointed when I realized I had no cream of…. soup for my salsa chicken recipe. I figured I’d make it without, but then I found this. I could have eaten it right out of the saucepan. I will definitely be using it in my chicken pot pie recipe too! And, it’s not a funky yellow colour!
I’m sure it would be just as good done low-fat, just not as creamy.
This is great!! Just in time. I was going to make a yummy chicken dinner, but didnt have the can of soup!!
Hey so this is the equivalent I assume to the condensed can pre-dilution, I assume? Of is it to the soup made up?
Wow, that’s great, thanks for sharing! I’ll definitely be using this recipe next time I make something with cream of chicken soup!
Thank you! Found you in a google search! Now I can do all of those “no no” canned recipes! Thanks!