Chicken Alfredo Soup Recipe
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
Blackened Chicken
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- cajun seasoning for generously seasoning chicken
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for cooking, plus more for seasoning chicken
Chicken Alfredo Soup
- 4 slices bacon
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 large yellow onion diced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon cajun seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 5 cups unsalted chicken stock plus more as needed
- 3 cups half-and-half
- 8 ounces dry Mafaldine pasta broken into thirds
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- 1 cup freshly shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- fresh parsley chopped, for serving
- warm breadsticks optional for serving
Instructions
Cook the bacon
- Add the bacon to a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat. Cook until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and reserve the rendered bacon grease. Once cooled, chop or crumble the bacon and set aside.
Prepare and cook the chicken
- While the bacon cooks, pound the chicken breasts to approximately 1/4-inch thickness. Lightly drizzle both sides with olive oil and generously season with Cajun seasoning.
- Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the same pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook undisturbed for about 4 minutes, until deeply browned. Flip, reduce the heat to low, and continue cooking for approximately 4 minutes more, or until cooked through. Transfer to a plate and loosely tent with foil.
Build the soup
- Add about 1 tablespoon of the reserved bacon grease to the pot along with butter over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook for 4–5 minutes until softened and translucent, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, just until fragrant.
- Stir in the Italian seasoning, cajun seasoning, black pepper, and salt. Sprinkle in the flour and cook, stirring continuously, for 1 minute.
- Gradually pour in the chicken stock while stirring. Add the half-and-half and stir to combine. Increase the heat and bring to a gentle boil.
Add the pasta & chicken
- Add the Mafaldine and stir well. Cover, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook until the pasta is tender, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cooking time will vary by pasta brand and shape, so use tenderness as your endpoint.
- Dice the rested chicken and add it back to the soup along with any juices that accumulated on the plate.
- Reduce the heat to low. Add the Parmesan and Monterey Jack and stir until completely melted and incorporated into the creamy broth. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed, remembering that the bacon will add additional salt when served.
- Ladle into bowls and top generously with the crispy bacon, fresh parsley, and additional freshly grated Parmesan. Serve with warm buttery breadsticks, if desired.
Notes
- Cajun seasoning: Salt and heat levels vary significantly between brands. Season the chicken generously, but keep your particular blend in mind when seasoning the soup itself.
- Mafaldine: Breaking the long ribbons into thirds makes them much easier to eat in soup while preserving their beautiful ruffled texture. Pappardelle is the closest substitute.
- Pasta quantity: Eight ounces creates a hearty soup while leaving plenty of creamy broth. You can add a little more for a thicker, more noodle-forward soup, but additional pasta will absorb additional liquid.
- Freshly grated cheese: For the smoothest broth, grate the Parmesan and Monterey Jack yourself. Add them over low heat rather than while the soup is rapidly boiling.
- Salt: Unsalted chicken stock gives you much better control because the Cajun seasoning, Parmesan, Monterey Jack, and bacon all contribute salt.
- Leftovers: The soup will continue to thicken as the noodles absorb broth. Refrigerate for up to 3–4 days and add a few splashes of chicken stock when reheating to restore the desired consistency.