Marry Me Chicken Soup with Gnocchi and Sun-Dried Tomato

The short answer: marry me chicken soup turns the sun-dried tomato, garlic and Parmesan combination into a creamy bowl with shredded chicken, gnocchi and spinach. Cook the chicken to 165°F, then finish the gnocchi and dairy. The batch serves about six, with roughly 10 minutes of preparation and 25 minutes of cooking; thick chicken pieces can take longer.

The quantities and basic sequence below are adapted from Jennie Alley's Budget Bytes soup. The explanatory directions are written for this page, not presented as an independent kitchen test. This is specifically the soup: for the separate skillet dinner, use the existing marry me chicken page. Keeping those two meals distinct also makes shopping and portion planning easier. If you love Tuscan chicken, this soup has the same creamy sun-dried tomato flavor in a bowl.

Ingredients for about six bowls

Broth and Parmesan bring their own salt, so the final tasting matters. Do not add more salt while raw chicken is in the pot and the broth is not ready to taste. Keep the original seasoning amount modest until the chicken is cooked and the cheese is incorporated.

How to make marry me chicken soup

1. Put a large pot over medium heat and add the tablespoon of tomato oil. Stir in the diced onion and garlic. Cook for about five minutes, stirring so the garlic does not sit against a dry, hot patch.
2. Add tomato paste, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, pepper flakes and chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Stir for one to two minutes to distribute the paste through the onion mixture. If it begins catching, lower the heat rather than letting the garlic burn.
3. Add the chicken breasts and six cups of broth. Bring the liquid to a boil, then lower the heat to a steady simmer. Begin checking after about 12 to 15 minutes, but continue until the thickest part of each breast reaches 165°F on a food thermometer. FoodSafety.gov gives that minimum for poultry. Check the meat, not just the broth.
4. Transfer the cooked chicken to a clean plate or board and shred it with two forks. Return the pieces to the pot. Do not reuse a surface that held raw chicken without washing it first.
5. Add the gnocchi. The cited recipe allows about three to four minutes; follow the package and check that a piece is tender. Floating is a helpful observation, not permission to ignore the actual texture or package directions.
6. Lower the heat and stir in half-and-half, grated Parmesan and the prepared spinach. Heat through and stir gently until the cheese is incorporated. Avoid a prolonged hard boil during this initial dairy finish, which can make the texture less smooth. Taste only now, and adjust seasoning before serving.

Marry me chicken soup tips and swaps

Gnocchi and small pasta are not interchangeable by cooking time. If you use ditalini or orzo, prepare it in a separate saucepan following its label and add a cooked portion to each bowl. That approach lets you save the remaining soup without a pot full of pasta continuing to absorb broth. It also makes it easier to serve people who prefer different amounts of starch. For a classic brothy bowl instead, see our chicken noodle soup, or learn the basics in how to make chicken soup.

For the listed gnocchi version, expect refrigerated leftovers to become thicker. Loosen an individual portion with a little broth while reheating rather than adding a large unmeasured quantity to the entire stored batch. You can always add another spoonful; it is harder to remove excess liquid after the soup has become diluted.

Squeeze thawed frozen spinach before adding it, and break apart compact clumps so they disperse. Fresh spinach can go in near the end until wilted, but its loose raw volume is not equivalent to tightly packed, squeezed spinach. There is no need to invent a precise cup-for-cup conversion to use a handful of fresh leaves.

Keep the tomato pieces small enough to fit comfortably on a spoon. This is also why shredding the chicken after cooking works better than leaving whole breasts in the serving pot. Give the ingredients a final stir before portioning so one bowl does not receive all the gnocchi while another receives mostly broth.

How to store and reheat marry me chicken soup

Follow USDA leftover guidance: refrigerate within two hours, or one hour when the air is above 90°F. Divide soup into shallow containers rather than leaving the whole stockpot on the counter until it feels cold. Hot food can go directly into the refrigerator in appropriately divided portions. Keep refrigerated food at 40°F or below and use leftovers within three to four days.

The gentle dairy finish is a texture instruction for the first cooking, not a lower safety standard for leftovers. USDA says to reheat soups to a rolling boil; stir the reheating portion and ensure the chicken pieces reach 165°F. Dairy may separate somewhat on reheating. Food safety takes priority over preserving a perfectly smooth appearance. Reheat only the amount you plan to serve rather than repeatedly warming and cooling the full batch.

Do not use smell as a reason to extend the storage window. Label the container with the cooking date, and discard portions left out beyond the time limit. A tight lid is useful packaging, not protection against inadequate refrigeration.

Plan a soup night without duplicate groceries

Write broth, gnocchi, spinach and half-and-half together on the Meal Planner & Grocery List so the dairy is not forgotten after buying chicken. Check whether you already have a tomato jar open before buying another. Note how many bowls you actually served and whether you cooked gnocchi in the pot or pasta separately in the Family Recipe Binder.

For a smaller household, divide leftovers into meal-sized portions promptly instead of assuming the six-serving pot must be eaten on the first night. Choose the next soup meal inside the recommended refrigerator window. The practical goal is a complete bowl with predictable storage, not a new claim about exact cost, nutrition or an untested freezer life.

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