Easy Vegan No-Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe (With Protein!)

You’re going to love our delicious vegan chicken noodle soup recipe. It’s quick and easy to make, cozy and nutritious, and offers all the comforting nostalgic flavors of classic chicken noodle soup – but with a vegan/vegetarian twist! We often make a double batch to enjoy throughout the week, or to freeze leftovers for easy future meals.

We created this recipe with inspiration from my Dad’s homemade chicken noodle soup (my favorite as a kid), our love for plant-based meals and leafy greens, and the voice of my nutritionist Mama in the back of my head – saying “eat your protein!” You can easily make gluten-free vegan chicken noodle soup too.

NOTE: This recipe was originally published in February 2021 but more recently updated.

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How do I make chicken noodle soup vegan? 

It’s very easy to make classic chicken noodle soup completely vegan or vegetarian. All you need to do is swap the broth and skip the chicken!

Rather than using chicken broth, replace it with vegetable broth, ‘no-chicken broth’, or vegetable bouillon. We love to use homemade vegetable broth that we make from saved veggie scraps.

Instead of chicken, we usually like to add beans as a source of protein – though you can make vegan chicken noodle soup with cubed or crumbled tofu, tempeh, faux chicken, or other vegan meat substitute instead. Vegetarians may also enjoy the addition of eggs.

Ingredients 

• 1 large yellow, sweet, or white onion
• 4 large celery stalks
• 4 large carrots 
• 3 Tbsp olive oil (or butter)
• 5 cloves of garlic 
• 1 Tbsp fresh thyme (1 tsp dry)
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 2 or 3 bay leaves, fresh or dry 
• 3 packed cups of chopped hearty leafy greens such as kale, green cabbage, Swiss chard, or collard greens (de-stemmed)
• 8 cups (2 quart containers) of no-chicken broth or vegetable broth (low sodium). Or, use concentrated “better than bouillon” paste mixed with water to achieve the same volume. 
• 1 can (15 ounces) beans of choice such as white beans, pinto beans or chickpeas – or similar volume of diced or crumbed tofu or other chicken alternative.
• 1/8 tsp of ground cloves (my Dad’s special touch)
• salt and pepper to taste
• Up to one 12 oz package of noodles of choice (see options below)

Optional Ingredients

The base recipe is excellent without these few optional, less-traditional ingredients – but they’ll elevate your vegan no-chicken noodle soup to the next level of delicious, and are what make this recipe extra special! So if you can, try to add at least a couple of them.

• 2 Tbsp miso paste – which gives the soup a wonderful umami taste! We love the organic chickpea or light white miso from Miso Master (found at our local Whole Foods). 
• 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 Tbsp fresh sage, about 8 to 12 leaves finely minced (1 tsp dry)
• chopped fresh parsley to top/serve

Noodle Options

Egg noodles are a chicken noodle soup classic, though obviously not vegan. So, simply choose your favorite noodles instead! You can use long noodles like spaghetti, fettuccini, or pappardelle or short noodle options such as tubular penne, spiral-shape fusilli, bowtie farfalle, or orzo. We’ve even used pad thai noodles in a pinch! 

If you’re looking for a gluten-free option, I highly suggest organic brown rice noodles from Jovial. They hold up really well in the soup, even after re-heating leftovers.

As a lower carb option, you can easily use only half or two-thirds of the 12-ounce package. (We used an 8 ounce package in this particular batch and it was plenty.)

Instructions

1) Saute Veggies and Herbs

• To prep: chop or dice the onions, carrot, and celery into bite-size pieces, and finely mince the garlic and herbs. Wash and de-stem the leafy greens (kale, cabbage, etc) and roughly chop or tear into bite-size pieces as well.
  
  
• Heat 3 Tbsp of olive oil, butter, or vegan butter in a medium to large saucepan and add the onions, carrot celery along with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Saute over medium-high heat until the onions are translucent and the celery and carrots become just fork-tender (about 10 minutes). Stir occasionally. 
  
  
• Next, add the chopped leafy greens, minced garlic and herbs (plus bay leaves) to the pot and sauté another for 5 minutes, stirring occasional. This is where the flavor and aroma of vegan chicken noodle soup starts to come to life!

2) Add Broth, Beans and Noodles

• Once the veggies and herbs are nice and happy, add all of the other called-for ingredients EXCEPT the noodles and miso: the vegetable broth, nutritional yeast, ground cloves, and beans. (Drain and rinse the beans before adding them.)
  
  
• Now, turn up the heat up and bring the soup to a boil before adding the noodles. I personally like to break long spaghetti-like noodles in half first.
  
  
• Following the recommended time on your chosen noodle package, boil the soup until the noodles are just about done but still slightly al dente so they don’t get mushy or fall apart. (They’ll continue to cook a bit once you turn off the heat.) Stir occasionally.

Alternatively, you could cook the noodles in a separate pot of water, drain them, and then add the cooked noodles to the rest of the soup. This will keep the broth slightly less starchy, but we don’t find it necessary! The simple one-pot nature of this vegan chicken noodle soup recipe is part of what makes it extra easy.

3) Add Optional Miso

• If you’re adding the optional miso paste, wait to do so until the soup is about finished cooking or just before serving. Simmering is okay, but it’s best to avoid boiling miso to preserve the maximum nutritional value, probiotics, and flavor!
  
  
• Rather than adding the paste straight to the pot, thoroughly mix and dissolve the miso paste in a separate bowl of warm water (about 1/2 cup of water) before adding to the soup. Otherwise it tends to stay in clumps.
  
  
• Finally, give your vegan chicken noodle soup a taste-test and add more salt and pepper to taste (if needed).

4) Serve and Enjoy

It’s time to dig in! We love to serve our vegan chicken noodle soup with a slice of homemade sourdough bread and a sprinkle of fresh chopped parsley on top. Don’t miss our simple no knead sourdough bread recipe or our extra-fluffy and delicious sourdough focaccia!

Store leftovers in the refrigerator and enjoy within 5 days. Or, freeze extras in freezer-safe containers – (like our favorite BPA-free quart containers) where it will stay good for up to 6 months. For the best results, defrost in the refrigerator one day before you want to eat it and reheat on the stovetop.

Enjoy!

Thank you for following along and giving our vegan no-chicken noodle soup recipe a try! We hope you have a comforting, cozy, and highly-satisfying meal in your near future. Please leave a review to let us know how you liked it!

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