Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup

This Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup is the kind of cozy, creamy dinner that makes a long day feel a little softer. Everything cooks low and slow in the crockpot until the broccoli is tender and the soup is rich, cheesy, and full of comforting flavor. It’s a simple, hearty recipe that feels warm, easy, and so satisfying.

Broccoli cheddar soup has always been one of my favorite soups of all time. It’s hearty, cheesy, and delicious. However, until a few years ago I had never made it at home before because it sounded kind of intimidating.

That being said, it was also one of the first recipes I decided I wanted to make when I was put on stress leave from work.

The first time I made it, I was more than a little intimidated when I went to look up a recipe online and found out it had a million different steps and seemed to take forever. Chop a bunch of ingredients, sauté them, create a roux, whisk several different times, use an immersion blender… no thank you.

So I decided to create my own recipe and alter one of my other slow cooker recipes to cook a broccoli cheddar soup, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint. That’s why I’m sharing it today. I hope you like it.

Make this Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup recipe when…

• you have a craving for soup
• you want something cheesy, hearty, and delicious
• you want something with minimal effort that is pretty hands off and basically cooks itself

Ingredient notes…

Here is what you’ll need to make this Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup recipe. Please be sure to check the recipe card for the exact ingredients and measurements.

• Broccoli: One of the most important ingredients to any Broccoli Cheddar Soup recipes. I used frozen bags this time, but I’ve tested it with fresh Broccoli as well and it also works.
• Onion: Gives the dish a savory depth. Can omit if you wish.
• Garlic: Adds flavor to the soup. Can omit if you wish.
• Carrots: I used a bag of shredded or matchstick carrots. You could also cut/shred your own if you wish.
• Chicken Broth: Builds the base for the soup. Could use a different broth or stock if needed like beef or veggie.
• Cornstarch: To help thicken the soup and make it extra creamy.
• Shredded Cheese: I used a bag of shredded double cheddar, but you can use any kind you wish. I used shredded for convince but you could always shred your own as that tends to incorporate even better than pre-shredded cheese.
• Heavy Cream: Gives the soup a creamy texture and helps to thicken. You could always omit, or add half-and half or milk instead. It just may change the texture.
• Cream Cheese: I had a round of Boursin Garlic and Fine Herbs that was going to expire in my fridge so I used that instead of regular cream cheese, but regular cream cheese is fine too.
• Onion powder: For flavoring. You can omit if you like.
• Garlic Powder: For flavoring. You can omit if you like.
• Paprika: For flavoring. You can omit if you like.
• Salt and Pepper: To taste.

Equipment I swear by…

• A large Crockpot or slow cooker (The Ninja one is my favorite)
• A veggie chopper

While the Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup Simmers…

This soup takes a few minutes of prep time and then hours of hands off time to cook so once you have it in the crockpot, the day is basically yours:

• Go for a walk, take an exercise class, or even go for a swim
• Have an everything shower
• Take a relaxing bubble bath

How to make Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup…

See the recipe card below for ingredient quantities and full instructions.

1. Mix your 3 cups of chicken broth with the cornstarch until smooth. Add your broccoli florets, shredded carrots, diced onion, minced garlic, and the chicken broth and cornstarch mixture to the crockpot. Add one more cup of chicken broth.
2. Add Onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and salt and pepper. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours.
3. Add shredded cheese, cream cheese and heavy cream. Mix well and let cook for another 30 minutes until melted and combined.
4. Enjoy.

My tips and tricks to make this Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup recipe…

Healthier/Lighter: This recipe is meant to be hearty and comforting, but if you want to try to alter it to be healthier and lighter, you could always substitute the heavy cream for half and half or milk, omit the cream cheese, and use light shredded cheese. Just be aware it may change the taste and consistency.

Protein: For even more protein you could always add your favorite meat to this soup, some chicken or group beef would work great.

Thinner or thicker or smoother: If you are new here, I love a thick soup. If you want your soup to be thin and liquidy I would omit the cornstarch slurry, and if needed add more broth. If you want your soup to be even thicker, you could always add another cornstarch slurry at the end if you feel it needs to be even thicker. Also if you find your broccoli is still in bigger chunks then you would like at the end, you can always use an immersion blender or even a potato masher to get them into smaller pieces.

Spicy: Want to add a little kick to this recipe? Add some diced jalapenos and your favorite hot sauce.

Storage notes:

Refrigerate: This soup tastes even better the next day. If it continues to thicken as it sits, you can always add some more broth if you would like to thin it out. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3 to 4 days.

Freeze: I haven’t personally tested freezing this recipe yet, but normally soups that have dairy don’t freeze well. This one would separate a fair amount when you thaw it, and leave a grainy texture which isn’t very nice.

Are you struggling right now?

• Use prechopped onions and jarred garlic to cut down on chopping.
• Use a veggie chopper to make chopping easier
• Use frozen veggies (frozen broccoli, onions and carrots) so you can just throw it all right into the crockpot with no fuss
• Use a crockpot liner for easier clean up

Thank you for stopping by Comfort In a Bowl. If you have any questions, or made any additions/shortcuts that you think other people may love feel free to comment below. If you create this recipe or any other from our site, we would greatly appreciate you taking the time to share, comment and rate the recipe! Take care of yourself.

Looking for what to serve with your Easy Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup?

• The Best Grilled Cheese Sandwich
• Garlic Bread
• Ham and Pineapple Grilled Cheese Sandwich
• Salad
• Breadsticks

My burnout situation…

Having all this sudden free time, as well as lots of therapy has really had me doing a lot of self-reflection obviously. And not only is it making me examine why I am the way I am, why I do the things I do, and why I think the way I think, but it’s making me look at what I do and don’t want out of life.

And honestly it’s making me a little sad.

I can’t believe how many years I’ve wasted putting everyone else in my life before myself and doing things just because I felt like I “should” or it was the “right thing to do” instead of what I truly wanted or what was the right thing or me or would make me happy.

An example of that would be my job. I went into the line of work I did kind of on a fluke.

At the time I couldn’t really figure out what I wanted to do. I had been taught that in order to be successful in life I needed to get good grades, and go onto secondary education to get a good job and buy the house and get married and all that fun stuff. So I was looking at secondary education and found a program and I had interests that lied in a similar field, so I just decided it sounded interesting and it could be cool so I went for it. And I don’t usually go for anything half-assed. It’s all or nothing with me. So I went at it really hard and I succeeded.

But I hadn’t done as much thinking and research and self-reflection as I should have. I didn’t look at what type of environment I could be working in when I graduated, what types of hours I could be working, the people I would be working with etc. I didn’t consider growth opportunities, or how transferable this job was. All sorts of things that I wish I would have considered first.

But as my therapist likes to tell me, I need to stop being so hard on myself. I made the best decision I could for myself with the knowledge I had at the time. People change. Interests change. We move into different chapters of life. And all I can do is make the best decisions I can for myself where I am now. It won’t do anyone any good for me to sit and dwell and feel sorry for myself.

And I can learn from the past and make better decisions for my future.

So that is what I’m trying to do.

Conclusion…

While there is no use dwelling on the past and letting it drag you down, it can be useful to gather information from it to use to make better decisions in the future.

Like knowing you like easier recipes like this one instead of long complicated ones with lots of steps.

If you try this soup I hope you like it.

Take care of yourself

-Caitlin