Caldo de Pollo Crock Pot Recipe

This Caldo de Pollo Crock Pot Recipe with jalapeños and marjoram is a cold-sufferer’s dream! Brothy and flavorful, and loaded with vegetables like carrots and celery, this soup comes together in 15 minutes and simmers away in the Crock Pot until you’re ready to eat.

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Do you have a favorite chicken soup recipe? I’m pretty sure everyone does. It is the ultimate comfort food after all. In our house, this traditional Mexican Caldo de Pollo recipe is hands down our favorite.

In addition to being exceedingly satisfying, it is a snap to make—thanks, in part, to the wonder that is the slow cooker. Pile all the ingredients in, put the lid on, and walk away.

Caldo de Pollo means Chicken Broth and even though it refers to the whole soup—the broth is really where it’s at! There is a lot of water in this recipe for good reason; we want to make a lot of delicious broth.

what you need to make caldo de pollo in the slow cooker

The ingredient list for this soup is pretty minimal. We get the maximum flavor from our chicken because we are using a whole chicken with the skin and bones instead of boneless, skinless pieces.

The chicken bones pack a ton of flavor and you throw them away before you eat but if you’d prefer to use boneless, skinless chicken instead I recommend substituting chicken thighs; it will make the richest chicken stock.

• Carrots add sweetness. I like to leave mine in big pieces so they don’t overcook in the crock pot.
• Garlic to flavor the broth.
• Celery a must in any chicken soup.
• Kosher salt and pepper. Add the measured amount of salt called for in the ingredients list and then taste the soup once it is all done. If it doesn’t knock your socks off, add more salt, a teaspoon at a time until it tastes amazing.
• Bay leaves. I love the anise flavor they give to the soup.
• Jalapeño. There aren’t enough jalapeños in this soup to make it spicy, but if you are sensitive, remove the stems and seeds before using.
• Onion. Classic chicken soup ingredient.
• Cilantro. The stems add flavor to the broth and the leaves get used as a garnish.
• Dried Mint. This may seem unusual, but it makes such a delicious soup.
• Dried Marjoram. Marjoram has a nice lemon flavor, substitute dried thyme if you don’t have any.
• 1 Whole Chicken. A whole chicken makes the best broth, second best would be cut-up chicken pieces, third best would be boneless, skinless chicken.
• Lime. Cut into wedges and squeezed over each bowl at the end.

how to make slow cooker caldo de pollo

To make the soup, add all the ingredients, except the chicken to the slow cooker. Stir everything together with a whisk to dissolve the salt.

Add the whole chicken (or chicken pieces, if using), cover, turn the slow cooker to High, and let the soup cook for 4 hours.

After 4 hours, remove the chicken to a baking sheet or large plate and let cool. Once it is cool enough to handle, remove all the skin and bones (you can discard these) and shred the cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces. Return the shredded chicken to the crock pot.

For a more traditional version, break the whole chicken into pieces with your hands (don’t worry, this will be easy after it has been cooking for so long) and serve the soup with the chicken pieces.

I like serving each bowl of soup with wedges of lime to squeeze over the top, a sprinkling of fresh cilantro, and pickled jalapeños and carrots on the side.

can I make this on the stove?

Yes! To make this on the stove, combine all the ingredients, except the chicken in a large pot. Stir to dissolve the salt. Add the whole chicken.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce heat so the soup is simmering gently and cook until chicken is fall-apart tender, about 1 1/2-2 hours.

Remove chicken to a baking sheet or large platter, let cool. When cool, shred chicken removing the skin and bones and return chicken pieces to the pot.

how to serve caldo de pollo

As with any Mexican soup, it’s not ready until you have all the garnishes in each bowl. Make sure to serve this soup in big bowls so everyone gets plenty of broth and all the chicken and veggies too.

My favorite garnishes are:

• Fresh Cilantro
• Lime wedges, for squeezing over each bowl
• Pickled jalapeños and carrots
• Minced white onion
• Hot Sauce
• Don’t forget the warm corn tortillas for dipping!

tips and variations

The beauty of this Mexican chicken soup recipe lies in its high-impact chicken broth flavored with chiles, cilantro, and fresh-squeezed lime juice. Like I mentioned, using a whole chicken makes the best broth.

The vegetables may vary—zucchini, corn and green beans in the summer, carrots and celery in the winter—sometimes I add potatoes, occasionally I’ll also add a scoop of cooked white rice to each bowl before serving.

The jalapeños don’t make this soup spicy. That being said, you can adjust the amount of jalapeños to your liking—more if you want a spicy broth or less if you really, really don’t.

more authentic mexican food recipes to try!

• How To Make Mexican Chorizo From Scratch
• Pork Albondigas with Arbol Chile Tomato Sauce
• Carne Deshebrada {Shredded Beef for Tacos}
• Crispy Beef Flautas with Zucchini
• How To Make Corn Tortillas
• Instant Pot Pork Carnitas
• Carne Asada Sopes with Avocado

this is a pretty easy chicken soup recipe, right?

It’s amazing how so much flavor can come from such simple ingredients and basically zero work. Thanks to the crock pot you can throw everything together before work and come home to your house smelling like heaven! Please let me know if you make it by snapping a pic and tagging me on Instagram @holajalapeno and #holajalapeno so I can see or leave me a comment below (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating) !

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