This healthy whole30 chicken pot pie soup is creamy, delicious, made with lots of veggies, and total comfort food. Perfect to use up leftover rotisserie chicken, or turkey from the holidays! The recipe for this nourishing homemade soup is whole30, gluten free, paleo-ish, and with a vegan option.

Reason number one to make a normal sized turkey even when you’re not cooking for a crowd? This healthy pot pie soup 😉
Yes, yes, I know that this is a recipe for chicken pot pie soup, but I whipped up the first round of this recipe with leftover turkey from our Thanksgiving dinner and it was so 👌🏼 I just had to share it with you.
And really it’s just as perfect to make with some leftover rotisserie chicken, or pre-cooked chicken that you whip up during meal prep. I decided to make it a chicken pot pie soup recipe because that’s likely how we’ll make it for the rest of the year when we’re not using up Thanksgiving leftovers – but it would be delicious either way.
Why you’ll love this Healthy Whole30 Chicken Pot Pie Soup
This healthy pot pie soup is:
- Creamy
- Comforting
- Cozy
- Easy to make
- Filling
- Versatile
- Dairy free
- Great for meal prep
- FREAKING DELICIOUS 🙌🏼
Healthy Whole30 Chicken Pot Pie Soup Ingredients
This dairy free chicken pot pie soup recipe is made with some pretty basic ingredients that come together to create the most flavorful creamy soup. A perfect combination of some classic flavors to create a healthier spin on a comfort food classic. It truly is a winning dairy free dinner that everyone will love!
(If you’re already ready to get started, scroll all the way down to the bottom for the full recipe!)
Here’s exactly what you need to make this healthy whole30 chicken pot pie soup:
- Raw cashews – Raw cashews are what makes this soup full of such a dreamy texture. Blended with some of the broth until they surrender to the richest creamy broth with no dairy at all. If you can’t have cashews, consider substituting part of the broth with your favorite unsweetened non dairy creamer, and / or blending part of the soup until smooth BEFORE adding the chicken and peas in the final steps.
- Onion, carrots & celery – These three vegetables (called mirepoix in culinary terms) are the start of many classic dishes, and for good reason! When sautéed with a generous glug of olive oil they provide an incredible flavor base.
- Yukon gold potatoes – You could really use just about any type of potato for this recipe. Yukon gold are my favorite for their mild and buttery flavor.
- Garlic
- Poultry seasoning – Homemade or store bought both work. All purpose seasoning could also be used.
- Nutritional yeast – Nutritional yeast is not necessary for this recipe, but it does add lovely depth of flavor. If it’s a new ingredient to you and you do a lot of dairy free cooking I highly recommend making the small investment to keep in your kitchen.
- Salt + pepper
- Cooked chicken or turkey – Really either one would work beautifully! This recipe is the perfect way to use up leftover rotisserie chicken or turkey over the holidays. If you want a meat free / vegan option consider substituting it with canned chickpeas or cauliflower florets.
- Broth – Chicken, turkey, or vegetable broth would all be delicious.
- Frozen peas – Peas are added at the end to bring that classic chicken pot pie vibe. You could always substitute them with another green vegetable like broccoli, baby spinach, or collard greens.
How to make this healthy whole30 chicken pot pie soup
This healthier chicken pot pie recipe is incredibly easy to make and comes together in right around 30 minutes. It’s made with only 1 pot, without milk or heavy cream, and is perfect to re-heat for leftovers throughout the week. It makes a fairly large amount (4-6 servings), but I doubt it will last long once you try your first bite 😉
Here’s the step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Soak the cashews
Add raw cashews to a heat proof bowl and cover with hot (ideally just boiled) water – allow to soak for at least 30 minutes while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
Step 2: Sauté onions, carrots, & celery
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, and celery. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally – until softened and onions are translucent.
Step 3: Add potatoes and spices
Add potatoes, garlic, poultry seasoning, nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper and cook 2-3 minutes more – stirring often.
Step 4: Make the cashew cream broth
Drain and rinse soaked cashews. Transfer to a blender with 2 cups broth and blend on high speed until completely smooth and no lumps or small pieces remain.
Step 5: Add broth & chicken
Add cashew mixture broth along with remaining 2 cups broth, and shredded chicken or turkey to the soup pot. Scrape up any stuck on bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a simmer.
Reduce heat to low and cover. Gently simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally – until potatoes and veggies are tender.
Step 6: Add peas + serve!
Just before serving turn off the heat and add frozen peas. Stir to combine and let the soup sit for a minute or two until the peas are bright green and warm.
Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve!
Is this chicken pot pie recipe dairy free?
Yep 100% dairy free! Thanks to raw cashews this recipe is made without any milk or heavy cream.
How to store, re-heat, and freeze this dairy free chicken pot pie soup
To store: This dairy free soup can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
To re-heat: To re-heat this healthy soup, simply heat gently on the stove, stirring frequently, until warm. Alternatively it can be re-heated in the microwave. If it has thickened while warming, simply thin with a bit of broth until desired consistency is reached.
To freeze: This soup freezes beautifully. To thaw, transfer to the refrigerator overnight, and warm gently on the stove before serving. This recipe would be an excellent way to get a bit ahead on some meal prep for nights when you just don’t feel like cooking!
Substitutions & swaps
This healthy whole30 soup is already dairy free, flourless, paleo friendly, and whole30 compliant. But there are a few swaps and substitutions that can be made for various allergies / preferences.
Here’s some ideas for substitutions:
To make this soup vegan / vegetarian: Choose olive oil over ghee for the fat you use to sauté the onions and veggies in. For the broth – choose a vegetarian option, and swap the chicken for canned chickpeas or cauliflower florets.
To make this recipe paleo / whole30 compliant: As written, this recipe is paleo / whole30 compliant. Peas can be omitted or swapped for another green vegetable if following a strict paleo diet.
To make it cashew free: If you can’t have cashews, consider omitting them and substituting part of the broth with your favorite unsweetened non dairy creamer. You could also blend part of the soup until smooth BEFORE adding the chicken and peas in the final steps.
Love this dairy free soup recipe? Here’s some other healthy soup recipes to try!
- Dairy Free Gluten Free Lasagna Soup
- Creamy Roasted Cauliflower and Mushroom Soup
- Ultra Creamy Vegan Corn Chowder
- Creamy Dairy Free Chicken and Vegetable Soup
If you love this chicken pot pie soup recipe please let us know by leaving a REVIEW and RATING below!
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PrintHealthy Whole30 Chicken Pot Pie Soup {whole30 + gluten free + vegan, paleo option}
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This healthy whole30 chicken pot pie soup is creamy, delicious, made with lots of veggies, and total comfort food. Perfect to use up leftover rotisserie chicken, or turkey from the holidays! The recipe for this nourishing homemade soup is whole30, gluten free, paleo-ish, and with a vegan option.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 2 cups hot water
- 3 tablespoons olive oil or ghee
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 carrots, sliced into half moons
- 3 stalks of celery, diced
- 2 medium yukon gold potatoes, diced (about 2 1/2 cups worth)
- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning or all purpose seasoning
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 cups pre-cooked shredded chicken or turkey (from about 1 1/2 pounds meat)
- 4 cups low sodium broth
- about 2 cups frozen peas
- herbs to garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Add raw cashews to a heat proof bowl and cover with hot (ideally just boiled) water – allow to soak for at least 30 minutes while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
- Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, and celery. Cook for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally – until softened and onions are translucent.
- Add potatoes, garlic, poultry seasoning, nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper and cook 2-3 minutes more – stirring often.
- Drain and rinse soaked cashews. Transfer to a blender with 2 cups broth and blend on high speed until completely smooth and no lumps or small pieces remain.
- Add cashew mixture broth along with remaining 2 cups broth, and shredded chicken or turkey to the soup pot. Scrape up any stuck on bits from the bottom of the pan and bring to a simmer.
- Reduce heat to low and cover. Gently simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally – until potatoes and veggies are tender.
- Just before serving turn off the heat and add frozen peas. Stir to combine and let the soup sit for a minute or two until the peas are bright green and warm.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve, topped with fresh herbs if desired.
Notes
- To store: This dairy free soup can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
- To re-heat: To re-heat this healthy soup, simply heat gently on the stove, stirring frequently, until warm. Alternatively it can be re-heated in the microwave. If it has thickened while warming, simply thin with a bit of broth until desired consistency is reached.
- To freeze: This soup freezes beautifully. To thaw, transfer to the refrigerator overnight, and warm gently on the stove before serving. This recipe would be an excellent way to get a bit ahead on some meal prep for nights when you just don’t feel like cooking!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: soup
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: american
Keywords: paleo, whole30, comfort food, soup, dairy free, healthy, vegan, pot pie, chicken, turkey, thanksgiving, leftovers, easy, kid friendly
Sarah says
Recipes like this make me forget I’m doing Whole30! So delicious!
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
That is the highest compliment Sarah! So glad that you loved this one and that it could support you on your Whole30 journey 🙂 Happy cooking! – Nyssa
Laura Tanner says
This soup is better than any chicken pot pie I’ve ever had & is so much healthier & easy to make. Thank you Nyssa, mom.
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
Aw yes Laura! I’m so glad that you loved this one! We make it all the time 🙂 XO
Caitlin says
Thankyou for this recipe – so delicious! I’ve made it multiple times now and my family really enjoys it! I swapped the potato for turnip and added a bit of cornflour to make it into a casserole and served with rice/quinoa. 🙂
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
Ohh what!! This soup as a casserole sounds DIVINE! Love hearing how you made this recipe your own. Thank you for the comment and happy cooking! – Nyssa
Christina says
Such a comforting and tasty soup with clean eating ingredients.
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
I’m so happy you loved it! Thanks for the review! 🙂
Cheryl says
This is fantastic, made zero adjustments. Thank you,
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
I’m so happy you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing your feedback 🙂
Lisa says
This soup is so more-ish! Even my husband, who is normally not into ‘creamy’ soups, was ALL about it. I grew up in Australia, and Chicken Mushroom pies were a staple of my childhood and one of the things that I truly missed about going Paleo – but now I no longer need to miss out on the delicious umami flavour goodness – by swapping them out for this soup! Nom.
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
Ahh yes! I’m SO happy you and your husband enjoyed, and that it reminded you of food that you love from your childhood. That’s where the inspiration of this recipe came from for me so hearing that totally made my day 🙂
Stacey says
Thanks for sharing. We really loved this soup! It’s delicious and very satisfying. Next time I may add a few mushrooms too. So far we have enjoyed all your recipes we’ve tried! Thanks again
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
I’m so glad you loved it! Mushrooms sound like the perfect addition – I’ve thought about doing that myself 🙂 Thank you for your thoughtful comment!
Katie says
What if you don’t have nutritional yeast? Can you do without or sub something?
Nyssa Tanner says
You could just leave it out! If you’re not doing a Whole30 you could substitute with a tablespoon of white miso paste and reduce the salt in the recipe slightly. But if you want to keep it Whole30 / Paleo just make it without – it will still be delicious 🙂
Steph says
Wanting to try this but I only have roasted cashews. Will they work?
Nyssa Tanner says
Roasted cashews will work in a pinch for cashew cream as long as you soak them for a minimum of 12 hours, or give them a simmer in boiling water for about 30 minutes. You want them to look plump and paler in color before using! Hope you enjoy!
Candara says
I made this for the first time tonight and it’s absolutely delicious! It’s officially saved in my fav recipes. Thank you for sharing this 🙂
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
Hooray!!! So happy you loved it. Thanks for your comment! 🙂
Vanessa says
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Suzanne says
This looks so good! What a great lunch meal prep for the week that is healthy and hearty!
Kathleen says
Loved this recipe! I have tried with both almonds and cashews and 100% it tastes better with cashew.
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
I’m so happy you you’ve been enjoying it!
Megan says
Can you use coconut milk instead of cashews?
Nyssa Tanner says
Hi Megan! You could definitely use coconut milk instead of cashews. The soup will be slightly less thick, but still delicious. I would suggest reducing the broth to 3 or 3 1/2 cups, and using 1 13.5 ounce can of full fat coconut milk (you can always add more broth to thin out the soup if you need to). If you give it a try I would love to hear how it turned out for you!
Mel says
Do you think I could use a slow cooker for this recipe?
Nyssa Tanner says
Hi Mel! Yes I think you could! I would suggest that you prepare the cashew cream and broth mixture, saute the onions, carrots, and celery in step 2, and maybe add the garlic to the veggies to saute for a minute or so before removing from the heat. I would add the sauteed veggies to the slow cooker with the potatoes, poultry seasoning, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, cashew cream broth, remaining 2 cups broth, and shredded chicken or turkey. If you’re starting with raw chicken breasts you could also add those in during this step and then take them out to shred before serving.
I think 3 hours on high would do the trick. Add the peas about 10-20 minutes before serving until they’re bright green and season to taste with salt and pepper!
Hope that helps! xo – Nyssa
Kaley says
I am so happy I found this recipe – it’s absolutely delicious and so easy!! Truly tastes like a chicken pot pie and the cashews give it such a yummy creaminess. Can’t wait to make this again.
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
Yess! Thanks so much Kaley! So happy you enjoyed the soup recipe 🙂
Ingrid says
Chicken pot pie is such a comfort food for me and we adore this healthier alternative at our house. the cashews are such a great sub for cream/dairy and honestly I can’t tell the different. Cannot get enough of this one!
★★★★★
Nyssa Tanner says
Yess girl! All about that healthy comfort food life ☺️ hats off to cashew cream for making it so easy!