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Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup: Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Soy-free

March 23, 2012

Before we learned of Joseph’s allergies, I didn’t cook with Condensed Cream of X Soups very much. My husband hates casseroles, and they’re not that tasty on their own. So we didn’t miss them very much. But when I saw that the April/May issue of Living Without had an article about making dairy- and gluten-free cream of x soups, I immediately thought of Our Best Bites’ recipe for chicken pot pie which used a homemade cream of chicken soup base, and I had to make it NOW. So this week’s First Try Friday resulted in two recipes for you. Enjoy!

The Changes

Ironically, though my desire to make this recipe was sparked by Living Without, I didn’t follow their guide to making cream of X soups at all. I adapted Our Best Bites’ recipe (which was originally by Tammy’s Recipes) by substituting coconut milk for the milk (1:1 ratio) and cornstarch for the flour (in a 1:2 ratio, since cornstarch thickens more than flour does). I also found that it needed more salt than originally called for.

The Method

In a small bowl, combine 1 cup of coconut milk with the cornstarch. Whisk until smooth and set aside.

In a medium sized saucepan, combine remaining 1/2 cup of milk with chicken broth and seasonings.

Bring chicken broth mixture to a boil. Stir the cornstarch mixture (since it will have settled some) and then add it to the chicken broth mixture. Stir continually over medium heat as it comes back to a boil. Continue stirring for 1-2 minutes until it comes to the desired thickness.

Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup

Adapted from Tammy’s Recipes

Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Soy-free

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups coconut milk (divided)
  • 6 Tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon parsley
  • dash of paprika

In a small bowl, combine 1 cup of coconut milk with cornstarch. Whisk until smooth. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine remaining 1/2 cup coconut milk with chicken broth, poultry seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, salt, parsley, and paprika. Bring to a boil.

Stir cornstarch mixture again until smooth, then add to broth mixture. Stir continuously until it starts boiling. Stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes until thickened to desired consistency.

Makes 3 cups, or the equivalent of two cans.


cover copy copy

This recipe is featured in my cookbook The Best of the Rice of Life: Over 70 Gluten-free, Dairy-free, and Nut-free Recipes available now in print (Amazon, Create Space) and e-book (Kindle, iBooks, nook, Kobo and Smashwords).


Use this recipe to make an allergy-friendly chicken pot pie!

Shared on Allergy Friendly Friday, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Allergy-Free Wednesday, Gluten-free Friday, Gluten-free and DIY Tuesday, and Waste Not Want Not WednesdayKindle

40 Comments leave one →
  1. Pat Frink permalink
    November 15, 2012 10:28 am

    Thank you so much for posting this recipe. I am gluten and dairy intolerant and I have been looking for a recipe for cream of chicken soup but having trouble finding one that is dairy free. It sounds great. I have a new dressing recipe that you cook in the crock pot that calls for two cans of cream of chicken soup. This recipe is perfect.Thanks again!

  2. Grace permalink
    November 15, 2012 5:46 pm

    This looks delicious. I’m trying to make a dairy and soy free green bean casserole and I think this will work great. Does it matter whether or not the coconut milk is sweetened? I couldn’t tell from the picture what type you used.

    • November 15, 2012 7:46 pm

      I used original flavor, which still has some sweetening, though not as much as vanilla. If you’re going for a more savory dish, then you probably want less sweetening.

  3. January 1, 2013 12:02 pm

    This looks like a great recipe – it’s saved in my Pocket program as a probable future go-to. Thanks for posting!

  4. Rebecca permalink
    January 2, 2013 9:28 am

    Can you use Almond milk?

    • January 2, 2013 12:48 pm

      Probably. I don’t use it, since my son reacts mildly to it. So I’m not sure how it will affect the taste. If you try it, I’d love to hear how it turns out.

  5. dysfunctionaldose permalink
    February 16, 2013 12:33 pm

    I just copied this down for tonight’s dinner. I’ll add some mini diced carrots and last nights leftover chicken. Thanks for posting this. I was wondering if you can taste the sweet from the milk? I buy the unsweetened almond milk so I’m hoping they won’t complain!

    • February 16, 2013 10:09 pm

      You’re welcome. I use original flavored coconut milk, which isn’t very sweet, and in several dishes it still has a coconut taste, but I’m not remembering the coconut flavor coming out as much in this. I hope it turned out well for you!

  6. Kelli permalink
    February 25, 2013 8:11 pm

    Do you have a cream of mushroom soup, allergy free recipe?

    • February 26, 2013 10:11 am

      I do not, sorry.

    • Candy permalink
      March 14, 2013 9:32 pm

      I’ve made mushroom broth by using the dried shitaki mushrooms, salt and water. I can’t remember amounts, but it’s something you could probably find online. Then after draining the dried mushrooms out, you could use that in place of the chicken broth in this recipe. It’s worth a try in my book! 🙂

  7. Nikki permalink
    March 21, 2013 6:14 am

    Can’t wait to try this however my son is allergic to corn. Any substitutes for cornstarch?

    • March 21, 2013 7:59 am

      I’m not familiar with cooking corn free, but if your son can’t handle flour, then here are some other thickeners I have heard of that are corn free – oat flour, arrowroot flour, or tapioca starch. You’ll want to use either equal amounts as corn starch, or twice as much, I’m not sure which. Hope it works for you!

  8. Lori permalink
    March 23, 2013 10:07 pm

    does it make the equivilant of 2 cans condensed or 2 cans diluted (and in prepared)

  9. August 5, 2013 10:59 am

    This is a WONDERFUL start and I thank you SO MUCH for that
    and
    I have to believe that I would also add one can of the canned chicken (ingred: chicken, water, salt) like one can get in the stores – – the large cans or two of the small ones, and maybe (in the beginning) a bit of powdered shiitake mushroom, maybe top it all with a little bit of finely chopped fresh asparagus tips…
    and
    a PS:
    Can you tell us what brand of chicken broth you used? I use Kitchen Basics or Pacific.
    Thank you.

    • August 5, 2013 2:23 pm

      Adding some actual chicken meat would be really nice. The recipes where I’ve used this already have chicken in them, so I haven’t bothered.

      As for the brand of chicken broth I used, usually its just the store brand or swanson. My son doesn’t react that much to gluten, so I’m not as particular as some (such as celiacs) are when it comes to brands.

  10. Jalynne permalink
    January 30, 2014 6:22 pm

    I have recently discovered some health issues are related to intolerances of gluten and dairy. Just starting to find recipes to replace the crm. of whatever soups I used so often. Made this tonight to top off our hawaiian haystacks and it was wonderful! I used original coconut milk and didn’t notice a coconut flavor at all. I also added oregano per another recipe I saw and think when making this again I’ll leave it out. Aside from that, it was great! Thank you for sharing this recipe!

  11. libby McIntyre permalink
    February 5, 2014 7:46 am

    I was wondering is this something that you can double and then refrigerate for later or something that you have to do when you are doing the rest of the recipe?

    • February 5, 2014 7:59 am

      I haven’t tried it, but you probably could if you don’t mind it getting thick.

  12. ItsMe permalink
    June 27, 2014 4:14 am

    Can Arrowroot starch be substituted for cornstarch?

    • June 27, 2014 7:21 am

      I haven’t tried it, but I believe so. Let me know how it goes.

  13. September 23, 2014 11:58 am

    Thanks for linking up at our Gluten Free Fridays party! I have tweeted and pinned your entry to our Gluten Free Fridays board on Pinterest! 🙂 I can’t wait to see what you share this week! Its LIVE!

    Cindy

  14. October 22, 2014 9:24 pm

    I am allergic to cornstarch can I use a gluten free flour such as rice flour or another one?

    • October 22, 2014 9:44 pm

      Yes. Rice flour probably won’t thicken things well, though. Others have had good success with potato starch, or arrowroot starch.

      • October 22, 2014 10:33 pm

        Thanks so much I have tapioca starch I will try it.

      • October 23, 2014 6:45 am

        You’re welcome, and good luck!

  15. February 20, 2018 1:56 pm

    Thank you very much! This is great! I didn’t have all the seasonings you did, so instead I added peas and carrots (as well as cooked chicken).
    I’m so glad to see a way to make recipes that take the cream of xxxx soup, but not use it. (I worded that wrong, but you know what I mean)
    Thank you very much again.

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