Broccoli Cheese Soup in about 20 minutes. Rich, creamy, and oh-so-cheesy, this is a favorite quick meal any time of year!
Perfect for lunch, or an easy weeknight dinner with salad and loaf of french bread.
20 Minute Meal
Fresh vegetables make the best soups from cabbage to homemade tomato soup. Broccoli Cheese soup is a very quick soup to make from scratch and it has lots of flavor! If you’ve ever been to Panera, you likely know that the Panera broccoli cheddar soup is so hard to resist, this version is rich and delicious in flavor but lighter on the pocketbook (and waistline).
- Few Ingredients: I love knowing that I can make a recipe from scratch using fresh ingredients
- Quick to Make: Ready in about 20 minutes (even faster with pre-cut broccoli); perfect for a weeknight dinner
- Versatile: Add in the veggies left in your fridge from zucchini to cauliflower
We serve it with a side salad and bread for a complete meal! This soup is also amazing served in a bread bowl (and it reheats beautifully for lunches).
Prep Tip
To make this soup extra fast, prepare ingredients for the next step while the current step is cooking.
Chop the onions and carrots, while they soften in the pot, prep the broccoli. While the broccoli simmers, shred the cheese, and whisk the milk/flour. This makes the recipe flow well while ensuring it’s on the table fast!
How to Make Broccoli Cheese Soup
This broccoli cheese soup is made without Velveeta and instead is loaded with lots of real cheddar making it rich, velvety and satisfying!
- Soften onions/carrots per recipe below. Add broccoli and simmer.
- Blend the broccoli (set a little aside to add texture to the soup at the end).
- Stir in cream mixed with flour, simmer a couple of minutes. Stir in cheeses and serve.
Ingredient Tips
CHEESE
- Using a sharp cheddar adds extra cheese flavor to this recipe. You can use any kind of cheese you like, Gruyere is great too.
- Just like in a cheese sauce, add the cheese once the soup is removed from the heat. If cheese (or dairy) boils it can separate leaving a less than desirable texture. The soup should be plenty hot enough to melt the cheese to a perfect velvety consistency.
BROCCOLI
- Fresh or frozen broccoli can be used (I prefer fresh).
- You can use a regular blender (be sure not to have the lid on tightly or it can explode from the steam) but I find an inexpensive immersion blender or hand blender works perfectly (plus a hand blender means less dishes)!
To Lighten This Recipe
To make a skinnier version of broccoli cheese soup, you can substitute the cream with evaporated milk and use a light cheddar (sharp is still best for flavor). We top it with a sprinkle of pepper and sometimes a little dollop of sour cream.
We most often eat this broccoli cheese soup for lunch or a quick easy weeknight meal. I like to add a side of 30 Minute Dinner Rolls to dip into the soup and sop up any dribbles left in the bottom of my bowl! It’s great served with a fresh garden salad on the side.
Leftovers?
Diary doesn’t tend to freeze well and it can sometimes become grainy or the texture can change slightly. I would suggest keeping this broccoli cheese soup in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat it can be microwaved stirring occasionally or heated on the stove over medium-low.
More Broccoli Favorites
- Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower
- Chicken Broccoli Casserole
- Beef and Broccoli – Easy takeout at home!
- Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry
- Cheesy Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole – No condensed soup needed!
- Broccoli Cheese Casserole with Ham
- Lemon Oven Roasted Parmesan Broccoli – Quick 10 minute side dish!
Did you love this Broccoli Cheese Soup? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
20 Minute Broccoli Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 cup carrots diced
- 3 cups fresh broccoli
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon each thyme and garlic powder
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 ½ cups light cream
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- ⅓ cup parmesan cheese fresh
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, cook butter, onion and carrots over medium heat until onion softens (about 3 minutes). Add broccoli, chicken broth, and seasonings. Simmer until broccoli is softened, about 8 minutes.
- Remove 1 cup of vegetables, coarsely chop and set aside. Using an immersion blender, blend remaining vegetables and broth.
- Place flour in a small bowl. Add in cream a little at a time stirring until smooth. Bring blended vegetable mixture to a boil and whisk in cream mixture. Continue whisking until thick and bubbly, about 3-4 minutes.
- Remove from heat, stir in cheeses & reserved chopped vegetables and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Lunch, Side Dish, Soup
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Great soup
Grandson helped make this even though he said he didn’t like any of the ingredients. He had it in a bread bowl and ate the whole thing and kept saying how delicious it was His words but I agree. DELICIOUS!
Love this recipe mostly in the Fall or Autumn the cooler months the cozy creaminess feel that taste scrumptious!
this tasted really nice!
after I blended it, the brocolli had a grainy texture, I would have preferred a smoother soup but I suspect that was my fault and the broccoli wasn’t cooked enough. but regardless, it was very tasty, everybody loved it
This was SO good. I’ve made other versions but this was by far my favorite. The seasonings were perfect. It was creamy and cheesy. Will definitely make again. I do agree though it’s more than 20 minutes. It’s well worth it though!
I altered the recipe and made it with Myokos butter and coconut milk…. Wow!!! Made it 2 nights in a row the family loved it soooooo much!! With our homemade sourdough bread. Unreal Mahalo!
Made this last night and OMG!!! Are you kidding me it was soooo good!!! Thank you so much for this recipe! It is the best soup I have had so far! My family loved it and they said it tasted so good like something you would eat at a fancy restaurant. I will be making this again in the future to impress my fellow friends and family LOL! I can’t thank you enough!!!
Leftovers, are you kidding! It was so delicious that me and my husband devoured all of the soup at dinner tonight! This recipe is a keeper!!!
Quick easy to make Thumbs up from my whole family Fed 5 hungry people
Easy to follow recipe and fast. It tastes great. Highly recommend
Made this. Very good! My family enjoyed it. Takes longer than 20 minutes because of all the chopping. Well worth it!
I agree! It takes double the amount of time to make (took me about 40 mins) and I was moving fast to get this on the table. Should be renamed something different. I love this soup though!