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This creamy Crockpot Broccoli and Cheese Soup combines sharp cheddar, cream cheese, and tender broccoli in your slow cooker with a quick and easy prep. Perfect for busy weeknights, this simple crock pot recipe delivers restaurant-quality comfort food with minimal effort!
Table of Contents
🥦 Kids (and adults!) who typically turn their noses up at broccoli often can’t resist this creamy, cheesy version. Plus you can also make this soup in the Instant Pot!
My 2 Best Tips For Making Crockpot Broccoli and Cheese Soup
Control the Consistency: The amount of chicken broth you add determines your final texture, so choose wisely! Start with 4 cups for thick, cozy soup that clings to your spoon. Use 6 cups for a thinner, more pourable consistency. Remember this golden rule: you can always thin out soup later with more broth or heavy cream, but thickening requires cornstarch or extra cooking time.
Timing Is Everything with Dairy: This is crucial: never add your cream cheese, evaporated milk, and shredded cheese at the beginning of cooking – they’ll separate, curdle, and turn grainy. Wait until that final 30 minutes when your broccoli is perfectly tender, then stir in all your dairy ingredients. The gentle residual heat will melt everything into creamy perfection without any risk of overcooking or separation. This one tip alone will transform your slow cooker broccoli cheese soup!
🩷 Melissa
You only need a handful of ingredients to throw this meal together and about 15 minutes of prep time to get it into the crockpot.
I love that broccoli is affordable year-round, and this recipe stretches beautifully to feed a crowd or provide leftovers for days. It’s often on our meal plan during most of the year!
Whether you love it silky smooth or prefer chunky vegetables, you control exactly how much to blend. I always do half smooth, half chunky for the best of both worlds!
Crockpot Broccoli and Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 stalks broccoli
- 4-6 cups chicken broth, or water + buillion paste
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 can evaporated milk, around 12 ounces
- 8 ounces package cream cheese, cubed, 1 package
- 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, (I like sharp cheddar.)
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute until the garlic is fragrant.
- While the onion is cooking, finely chop the broccoli and add it to the slow cooker.
- Once the garlic and onions are cooked, add them to the slow cooker. Add enough chicken broth to cover all of the vegetables, it should take 4 to 6 cups. (The less liquid you add, the thicker your soup will be in the end, so take that into account, too.)
- Add the salt and pepper to the Crock-Pot.
- Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours until the broccoli is cooked through and very tender.
- Thirty minutes before serving, add the evaporated milk, cream cheese, cheddar, and Parmesan to the hot broccoli mixture and stir until everything is melted. This will take a few minutes of stirring.
- Working in batches, process the soup in a blender or food processor until smooth. (If you have an emulsion blender that would work great, too). I blended half of the soup and left half of it chunky. Blend as much as you like to get the texture you prefer.
- Add all of the blended soup back to the Crock-Pot and let it reheat until you are ready to serve. Once the soup is hot, turn off the Crock-Pot and serve right away.
Notes
- When I buy fresh broccoli it comes with 2 or 3 “stalks” rubber-banded together. Use about 5 of those stalks total and not 5 whole bunches.
- If you don’t have fresh broccoli available then you can use frozen broccoli, just let it thaw first so you can remove the excess moisture and dice it.
- Using cream in place of the evaporated milk would be yummy, but don’t use milk (it might curdle).
- Freshly shredded cheese melts infinitely better than pre-shredded bags (which contain anti-caking agents that can make your soup grainy). Take those extra two minutes to shred it yourself for silky-smooth, dreamy results every single time.
- I love serving this crock pot broccoli cheddar soup with crusty sourdough or garlic knots bread for dipping.
- Make it even fancier with garnishes like crunchy croutons, extra shredded cheddar cheese, crispy bacon bits, or a dollop of sour cream on top.
- It’s also fantastic as a bread bowl filler for special occasions!
- This soup actually tastes even better the next day! The flavors blend together beautifully overnight.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- When reheating, add a splash of chicken broth or heavy cream if it’s thickened too much.
- Just reheat gently over medium-low heat to prevent the cheese from separating.
- Or reheat a serving of soup in a microwave safe bowl covered with a paper towel on 30 second intervals until hot. Give your soup a quick stir after each interval to help it reheat evenly.
Nutrition
How to Make Cheesy Broccoli Soup in the Slow Cooker
Step 1: Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat before adding your diced onion. Cook until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes. Finely chop the broccoli and add it to the slow cooker along with the onion and garlic mixture.
Step 2: Cover the ingredients with chicken broth and cook on low until the broccoli is soft and tender. Stir in the evaporated milk, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and parmesan cheese until the cheeses are completely melted.
Step 3: Use a blender or food processor to blend the soup in batches until it is smooth and creamy.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Frozen broccoli works as well as fresh in this slow cooker broccoli cheese soup. Just thaw it completely first and pat dry with paper towels or spin in a salad spinner to remove excess moisture. Then dice it into smaller, uniform pieces before adding to your crockpot. The cooking time stays the same, and you’ll still get that gorgeously creamy texture.
For thick, stew-like soup perfect for dunking crusty bread, use only 4 cups of chicken broth. Want it thinner? Go up to 6 cups. You can also add a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with cold water during the last 30 minutes for extra thickness. Remember – you can always thin it out after blending by adding more broth, but thickening takes more effort!
This usually happens when dairy is added too early or cooked at too high a temperature. Always add your cream cheese, evaporated milk, and shredded cheddar during the last 30 minutes of cooking, and keep your slow cooker on low. Stir gently until everything melts into that velvety consistency. Using freshly shredded cheese (not pre-shredded) also helps prevent graininess!
Expert Tips
- Broccoli Stalks: When I buy fresh broccoli it comes with 2 or 3 “stalks” rubber-banded together. Use about 5 of those stalks total and not 5 whole bunches.
- Careful Blending: Be careful blending that hot soup. Blending in batches will help reduce the chance of it splattering and burning you.
- No Milk: Using cream in place of the evaporated milk would be yummy, but don’t use milk (it might curdle).
- Frozen Broccoli: If you don’t have fresh broccoli available then you can use frozen broccoli, just let it thaw first so you can dice it.
- Great Crock-Pot: I’ve had this Hamilton Beach slow cooker for a couple of years and love it!
More Easy Soup Recipes to Consider
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Slow Cooker Chicken Soup
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Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Soup
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Slow Cooker Sausage Potato Soup
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Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
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My daughter loves the broccoli cheese soup at Panera so I bet she loves this too! thanks for the recipe!
Do you know the serving size and calorie counts by any chance?
Would love this information alas well
12 oz or 5oz of evaporated milk?
Thanks for asking! I used the 12 ounce can 🙂 Enjoy
Yum!
oooo I do not have a good recipe for this kind of soup! Excited to try yours!!
This looks delicious and I love ANYTHING I can make in the crockpot 🙂