Our Crockpot Broccoli Cheese Soup is a simple, hearty soup that’s rich and creamy. Just 4 net carbs per bowl, loaded with nutritious goodness, and perfect for a chilly night.
Broccoli is officially my favorite vegetable, which is weird because I feel like broccoli really gets a bad rap.
I mean, it’s so green and funky looking. Kids love to hate it. It kinda stinks when you steam it.
But, y’all, it’s just so GOOD and so easy to doctor up! I can do a million things with broccoli, like make this simple Crockpot Broccoli Cheese Soup, our famous broccoli salad or our chicken broccoli casserole.
I kind of wonder if the broccoli haters out there are mostly only hating it because they are starting with frozen broccoli rather than fresh.
When I finally discovered my love of broccoli, I quickly grew tired of chopping up heads of broccoli every other day, and I ran to Costco and bought a jumbo sized bag of frozen broccoli florets. I thought I was soooo smart.
Then I steamed that frozen broccoli and served it to my family and basically no one ever spoke to me again. They still hold a grudge.
Moral of the story: if you think you don’t like broccoli, be sure to try fresh broccoli instead of frozen. They’re different. 🙂
Anyway, let’s talk about this crockpot broccoli cheddar soup! It’s basically comfort food in a bowl, but it’s also healthy (hello, vegetables), low carb, and will feed a crowd. Love this recipe!!
Ingredient Notes:
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Veggies – I think I made my feelings on broccoli pretty clear: use fresh broccoli! It has such a better texture and flavor. You’ll chop these into florets. No need to steam first the slow cooker will work its magic! You’ll also add in half an onion and some garlic.
Dairy – You’re going to add in some heavy cream along with a whole bunch of shredded cheddar and monterey jack. For the most creamy texture, shred your cheese yourself.
Broth – We’re using chicken broth, but if you want to keep this meal vegetarian, go ahead and use veggie broth. It’s a delicious swap.
Seasoning – To add extra flavor you’ll mix in salt, pepper, ground mustard, and some red pepper flakes. The soup isn’t spicy, but has good flavor.
“What a wonderful chilly night dinner recipe. I love broccoli and cheese but have never made this soup. Could not have been easier. I worked downstairs while the crock pot was working away upstairs. Nice flavors and texture. Served it with a small salad and crusty bread and voila! — a filling and comforting meal.” – Jeanne
How To:
- Broccoli – Slow cooker broccoli cheese soup starts with a whole lotta broccoli. I use fresh, as mentioned above. I generally just buy the bags of already chopped broccoli florets because I’m lazy, but you can definitely start with a couple heads of broccoli and chop it up yourself. Toss the broccoli into a slow cooker. I use the Ninja and love it.
- Soup Mix – To your broccoli, add in some onion, garlic, chicken broth, cream, mustard powder, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. We want flavor in this soup and we’re going to get it! Cover and cook on low for about 4 hours or until your broccoli is very tender.
- Immersion Blend – The color gets a little funky after all that cooking, but just trust me. Things are going to get prettier and super delicious in a minute. Here comes the fun part: blending it up. I use an immersion blender and just pop it right in the slow cooker to do it’s thing. Here’s the one I have and love. I think it’s a worthwhile investment – it’s fairly cheap and, while I don’t use it every day (or even every week), it’s super handy to have when you need it and doesn’t take up much space.
- Traditional Blend – If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can carefully transfer the hot soup to a traditional blender and blend it in batches. Be sure to vent the steam as you blend and just be careful not to burn yourself. Back to the slow cooker for the good stuff…
- Cheese – You can’t make broccoli cheddar soup without cheddar, but I also add in Monterrey jack for extra creamy goodness. We like lots of cheese in our soup! Stir that around until the cheese is melted and you’re done! Creamy broccoli cheddar soup! So easy, right?
- Serve – We like to serve this low carb broccoli cheese soup while it’s good and hot and then top it with even more shredded cheese and some crispy bacon!
Serving Suggestions:
A big steamy bowl of broccoli cheese soup goes great with our keto cauliflower breadsticks, garlic bread chaffle, or cheddar bay biscuits.
Soup and salad is a classic combination. Try our homemade ranch dressing or our homemade thousand island dressing over a green salad.
Want to add some protein? Try serving this along with our keto stuffed mushrooms!
More Low Carb Soup Recipes:
FAQs:
This soup will last for 4-5 days if you keep it well sealed.
You can reheat it in the slow cooker if you’ve got the time, or just heat up a bowl in the microwave or however much you’d like on the stovetop.
The simplest way to thicken this broccoli cheddar soup is to just add more cheddar or more monterey jack. If you’re not watching your carbs, you can also sprinkle in some instant mashed potatoes – they make an easy thickener for soup.
The one and only time I will substitute frozen broccoli for fresh is in soup. Fresh still has the best flavor, but you can use frozen in this recipe if that’s what you have on hand.
It should freeze well for at least 2 months, just make sure that you cool it down completely before putting it in the freezer.
More Family Favorites:
Healthy Green Bean Casserole: This is traditionally served on Thanksgiving, but it’s good any night of the week since my version is easy!!
Roasted Cauliflower Soup: Roasting the cauliflower gives this soup extra flavor!
Spinach Stuffed Chicken: The most popular recipe on this blog!
Million Dollar Spaghetti: We’re using spaghetti squash to cut the carbs here. So good!
Crockpot Broccoli Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 32 ounces broccoli florets
- ½ onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 cups grated cheddar
- 1 1/2 cups grated monterey jack
Instructions
- Add the broccoli, onion, garlic, chicken, broth, cream, ground mustard, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to a 6 quart slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until the broccoli is very tender.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the soup to a smooth consistency. Alternately, carefully transfer the soup to your blender in batches and blend. Be careful while blending hot soup and be sure to vent the steam when blending hot soup.
- Add the cheese to the hot soup and stir well until melted and creamy.
- Serve immediately with additional grated cheese and crumbled bacon, if desired.
Tips & Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Kandi Willey says
I only have a 3qt crock, should I halve the recipe?
Karly Campbell says
I’ve only made this in a larger crockpot, but I think halving it should work.
Jason Hanson says
Made this tonight pretty much to the letter. Overall I would say it was a success. Ended up taking it out and blending it after 3 hours and then left it another 30 in the crock pot after I added the cheese. I felt like it needed a little salt but other than that pretty spot on. It was tasty but not the best BC soup I have put down. Plenty of leftovers for the week. Just found this site so excited about trying some other recipes.
Sarina says
Any suggestions on making it on the stove top? Can I just cook like a crockpot and keep the top closed?
Karly Campbell says
I haven’t made this one the stove top, but I imagine it will work just fine. It’ll take much less time though. Just cook until the broccoli is soft enough to blend well and then add in the cheese.
Sarina says
Made it on the stove top today. It took about 30 minutes and it is delicious. I added a little extra red pepper flakes for more heat, and it turned out perfect.
Kathleen Kuhn says
I’m new to this website..What if I don’t have heavy cream?? What else can I use instead?
Karly Campbell says
I’ve only made this one with heavy cream. You could try unsweetened almond milk, but I’m honestly not sure how that will work as I really don’t use almond milk often.
Alix says
so i only have a 2 qt crockpot and no blender, and I’m not as big of a fan of chicken so i slightly adjusted the recipe, it is cooking now, i used some cubed ham instead of chicken and added some baby potatoes sliced to help with space
Karly Campbell says
This recipe doesn’t call for ham or chicken, but I’m sure it will be a good addition.
Shelley Beverly says
Fresh! Frozen is pretty much all stems!!!!
Rose Burdine says
I just made this…delicious BUT I strongly suggest adding a splash or 2 of Worcestershire sauce, yes it has some sugars but so worth that little extra- I remember going to fondue restaurants and they use that in their cheese fondue and so I added it and it really changed the flavor for me!!
Drew B. says
I made this a few weeks back with fresh broccoli, but didn’t REAAAAALLY know how to measure out the 32 Oz. I think I overdid the portion because it was verrrrry green and not so cheesy. However it did have wonderful flavor and I had it throughout the whole week without getting tired of it. I made Keto rolls to go with it.
I’m currently remaking the soup with frozen broccoli hoping that the measurements make a difference in keeping that cheesy texture that you’d expect with so much cheese. Thanks for posting this, as it is my new go to!!
Karly Campbell says
Hope it turned out for you! I use fresh broccoli too, but normally buy the pre-cut florets and they’re sold by weight, if that helps. A kitchen scale is also cheap and comes in so handy! 🙂
Jessica Jones says
To anyone wanting to use pre shredded cheese, be sure to check the back of the bag. Some shredded cheese has added carbs and sugars due an additive that keeps the cheese from clumping after being shredded and bagged.
sharon says
I have cheddar but no monterey jack -would mozzarella work? Or just more cheddar?
Thanks,
Karly Campbell says
Extra cheddar or mozzarella would work fine. Any cheese you love should work here. 🙂
Lynda Brooks says
I am one who tries new recipes all the time and this one was an expensive disappointment! I read your post from top to bottom and followed the directions completely and it did not turn out. Not for sure if I can attach my pics but I will try.
Karly Campbell says
Hi Linda, I’m sorry to hear it didn’t turn out for you. I’m not sure what could have gone wrong as we make this all the time and it turns out perfectly. What was wrong with it?
Susan Harvey says
I have been on the Keto diet for 6 months. My weight stalled. I made this soup and put it in mason jars. I lost an additional 8 lbs. eating this soup. I basically live on it. Making another batch as I write this. Really wonderful recipe.
Janice says
My cheese came out clumpy , otherwise it was
Awesome !
Karly Campbell says
Oh no, sorry to hear that! Curious if you use pre-shredded cheese or if you grated it yourself? Or was it maybe not melted all the way through? So strange!
Shelley Beverly says
Use Velveeta. Shredded cheddar is not good for a soup. One would think the author would know that. Duh!!!
Karly Campbell says
Shredded cheddar works fine in a soup. Velveeta isn’t even cheese.
susan says
Yup. I was thinking the same ting Karly!
Tater says
Duh… Velvet isn’t Keto.it’s not even real food.
D says
could you use frozen broccoli for this
Karly Campbell says
I think so.
Blaine says
Did you shred your own cheese or use pre shredded?
Karly Campbell says
I normally shred my own, but either will work.
Jessica Jones says
Be sure to check the back of the bag. Some shredded cheese has added carbs and sugars due an additive that keeps the cheese from clumping after being shredded and bagged.
Teresa Anne Glotfelty says
This soup was delicious! I will definitely make over and over again!
Val says
Fresh broccoli or frozen?
Karly Campbell says
I use fresh.
Jen says
This looks great, I am going to try it this weekend. I am going to try freezing it because I like lunches I can just grab out of the freezer.
Sandie says
Yes! I’m ready for soup this fall! I am trying this over the weekend to bring to work for lunch. Thanks!
Ivory says
Yummy, this dish looks mouthwatering. Adding to my, “must make list”.
Anita Givens says
Could this soup be frozen?
Karly Campbell says
I don’t do much freezing myself, but I think it’d freeze just like any other soup.
Connie Weiss says
Thanks, am going to definitely try!!