Skip the canned stuff—this crock pot broccoli cheese soup is rich, cheesy, and loaded with tender broccoli. Just add fresh or frozen broccoli, a few pantry staples, and let the slow cooker handle the rest.
Perfect for busy nights, this broccoli and cheese soup crock pot recipe delivers big flavor with minimal prep. Use sharp cheddar for bold flavor or Velveeta for extra-smooth comfort—you’ll have a pot of cozy, ready-to-serve soup in just a few hours.
Jump To (scroll for more)
- ❤️ Why I Love This Recipe
- 🥦 Ingredients
- 👨🍳 Quick Overview: Easy Crock Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup
- ⏲️ How Long to Cook in the Crock Pot?
- 🥦 What Broccoli to Use
- 🧀 What Cheese to Use for Creamy Crock Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- 🔄 Variations
- ↕️ Scaling the Recipe (Mini, Small, & Full-Size Crock Pots)
- 🥣 How to Serve
- ♨️ Other Crock Pot Soup Recipes You Will Like
- ❄️ Storage of Leftovers
- ❓ FAQs
- 📖The Recipe Card
- Crock Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup (Fresh or Frozen Broccoli)
Featured Comment by Amy:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"This is awesome! The broccoli and onion was nice and tender-crisp, and the cheese sauce was just right."
❤️ Why I Love This Recipe
- Hands-off cooking – Minimal prep, then the slow cooker does the work.
- Flexible ingredients – Fresh or frozen broccoli, sharp cheddar or Velveeta, even a potato add-in if you want.
- Perfect for busy nights – Start it mid-day and dinner’s ready when you are.
- Family-friendly comfort – Creamy, cheesy soup that everyone will eat without complaint.
- Copycat Panera option – Add matchstick carrots (and celery if you like) for that Panera-style broccoli cheese soup vibe.
🥦 Ingredients
- Broccoli – Frozen or fresh. A 12–16 oz bag of frozen broccoli florets works perfectly; fresh florets should be cut into spoon-size pieces.
- Broth – Chicken or vegetable broth for the base.
- Milk – Or use half & half or cream for a richer soup.
- Pantry ingredients – Onion, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
- Cheddar cheese – Sharp cheddar for bold flavor, or mix in other cheeses you like.
- Cornstarch – Added at the end to thicken the soup (you can skip it if you prefer a thinner texture).
- Optional – Matchstick carrots (for a copycat Panera touch), celery, or cooked crumbled bacon.
👨🍳 Quick Overview: Easy Crock Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup
Prep the vegetables – Chop the onion. If using fresh broccoli, trim into spoon-size florets.
Combine in the crock pot – Add chicken or vegetable broth, onion, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and milk (or half & half/cream). Stir in frozen or fresh broccoli and mix well.
Slow cook – Cook on low for 4–5 hours or high for 2–3 hours, until the broccoli is tender. For a smoother texture, mash some with a potato masher or use an immersion blender.
Thicken the soup – Whisk cornstarch with cold water to make a smooth slurry. Stir it into the hot soup, turn the crock pot to high, and cook for about 30 minutes until thickened.
Add the cheese – Stir in shredded sharp cheddar, cubed Velveeta, or any cheese you like.
✅ Pro Tip: No need to cook after adding the cheese. You will risk curdling some inferior cheese.
Serve – When the cheese is fully melted, serve warm with bread, rolls, or crackers.
👇 Scroll down for the printable recipe card and complete step-by-step photo instructions—or keep reading for tips and variations.
⏲️ How Long to Cook in the Crock Pot?
For most slow cooker broccoli cheese soup recipes, cook until the broccoli is just tender — it will cook for another 30 minutes after adding the cornstarch slurry.
- Low: 4–5 hours
- High: 2–3 hours
Avoid overcooking at this stage, since the broccoli will soften further during the thickening step. All slow cookers run differently, so check tenderness toward the end of the cooking window.
Stovetop Broccoli Cheese Soup
This quick and easy Broccoli Cheese Soup uses fresh or frozen broccoli and cheddar, Velveeta, or other cheeses. Make it a copycat of Panera's Broccoli Cheese Soup or one of the other variations.
🥦 What Broccoli to Use
This recipe works great with fresh or frozen broccoli. You’ll need about 3 cups of florets, but anywhere from 2–4 cups will work.
- Fresh broccoli – One large head usually yields 3–4 cups of florets. Trim stems and cut florets to spoon-size.
- Frozen broccoli – A 12–16 oz bag is perfect. Some pieces may be large, so chop them smaller before adding.
No matter which you choose, make sure the pieces fit easily on a soup spoon for the best texture in every bite.
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🧀 What Cheese to Use for Creamy Crock Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Sharp cheddar is the classic choice for crock pot broccoli cheddar soup or broccoli cheese soup — it adds rich flavor and a familiar, hearty taste. Use a good-quality block cheese and shred it yourself for the smoothest melt.
For a creamier, smoother texture, replace part or all of the cheddar with Velveeta cut into small cubes. You can mix in other cheeses, but keep cheddar as the base for the best balance of flavor and melt.
Quality matters – Pre-shredded cheeses are often coated with anti-caking agents that can make your soup grainy or cause clumping. Poor-quality cheese may also separate instead of melting smoothly. Shredding your own from a block — or using a pre-shredded brand you trust — is the best way to get that silky texture.
🔄 Variations
- Copycat Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup – Replace part or all of the cheddar with Velveeta for that silky texture. Add matchstick carrots (and celery if you like) at the same time as the broccoli.
- Bacon Broccoli Cheese Soup – Stir in cooked, crumbled bacon at the end for a smoky twist.
- Broccoli Potato Soup – Add peeled, diced potatoes in with the broccoli for a heartier version (increase broth slightly).
- Cauliflower Cheese Soup – Swap broccoli for cauliflower in the same volume. Cauliflower may take a bit longer to cook; the endpoint is when it’s tender.
- Extra Cheesy – Use a blend of cheddar and Monterey Jack, or double the cheese for an indulgent, thicker soup.
↕️ Scaling the Recipe (Mini, Small, & Full-Size Crock Pots)
This recipe makes a bit over 6 cups of soup — four servings of about 1½ cups each — and fits nicely in a 2½-quart or larger crock pot.
- Smaller batches – A half recipe works in a 2-quart mini crock pot.
- Standard small crock pot (3–4 quart) – A full recipe fits with no changes needed.
- Full recipe in a 2-quart – Leave out 1 cup of broth until the last hour of cooking.
- Larger batches – A double recipe fits in a 5-quart or larger crock pot.
Cooking times and doneness checks remain the same — the broccoli (or cauliflower) should be just tender before adding the cornstarch slurry.
🥣 How to Serve
Serve with homemade bread, yeast dinner rolls, or crackers like Sesame Crackers. This easy crock pot broccoli cheese soup also goes well with a side salad for a lighter meal.
♨️ Other Crock Pot Soup Recipes You Will Like
For a small crock pot, try:
For a larger crock pot, see the classic Crock Pot Ham Bone and Bean Soup.
This recipe is part of Our Best Soups and 25 Recipes for Small and Mini 2-Quart Crock Pots.
❄️ Storage of Leftovers
Store your soup in the refrigerator for 3–4 days in an airtight container. For longer storage, freeze for 3–4 months in a freezer-safe container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat gently to avoid cheese separation.
❓ FAQs
Texture is a personal preference. Some like it pureed; others prefer a chunkier soup. Use an immersion blender for a smoother finish, or just mash some of the broccoli with a potato masher for more texture.
A few users have seen this. There are two possibilities.
Two common causes:•Low-quality cheese – Some generic cheeses won’t melt well.•Overheating – Cooking cheese too long or at too high a temperature can cause it to break. Some crock pots run hot, so add the cheese at the very end and avoid further cooking.
📖The Recipe Card
Crock Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup (Fresh or Frozen Broccoli)
Ingredients
- 3 cups broccoli (fresh or frozen) - A medium or large head or a bag of frozen.
- 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 cups milk - low fat is fine
- 1 onion - small or ½ medium
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 3 tablespoons corn starch - in a slurry of cold water
- 8 oz cheese (sharp cheddar, Velveeta, or other)
- 1 cup carrots- cut matchstick
- 1 stalk celery chopped
- 3 strips bacon-crumbled
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Chop one small or ½ medium onion.
- In a smaller crock pot (3-4 quarts), mix 1 can (about 2 cups) of chicken broth, the chopped onion, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, and 2 cups of milk.
- Add approximately 3 cups of frozen or fresh broccoli, cut into spoon-sized pieces. Mix well and cook on low for 4-5 hours or high for 2-3 hours. Check that the broccoli is tender. If not, extend the cooking time by 30–60 minutes. All crock pots cook differently.
- Optional: Blend part of the broccoli with a potato masher or immersion blender while still in the crock pot. The exact amount is more to your taste.
- In a small bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with about an equal amount of cold water. Stir until smooth with no lumps.
- Stir the cornstarch mixture slowly into the hot soup. Increase the crockpot to high and cook, covered, for another 20–30 minutes, or until the soup has thickened.
- Turn off the crock pot and add 8 ounces (2 cups) of shredded cheese, such as sharp cheddar, Velveeta, or your preferred cheese. Do not cook further after adding cheese to prevent curdling.Serve when the cheese is melted.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- Sharp cheddar and/or Velveeta are standard, but choose the cheese you like.
- No need to cook after adding the cheese. You will risk curdling some inferior cheese.
- If you want to copycat Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup, add 1 cup of matchstick-cut carrots and 1 stalk of thinly sliced celery at the same time as the broccoli. Then use at least half Velveeta.
- Other variations are in the post.
- The broccoli needs to be small or chopped small enough to fit in a spoon. For frozen, I suggest starting with Bird's Eye Baby Broccoli Florets, which already have smaller florets.
- 4 hours will usually be enough to get the broccoli tender, but check and add more time if needed. Do not proceed until it is tender. Every crock pot is different.
- Great as leftovers. Good refrigerated for 3-4 days. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Using low-sodium broth will decrease the sodium by about 150 mg per serving.
- If you want Keto or Low Carb, then skip the corn starch. The taste is great, but it will be thinner.
- Nutrition is calculated on about 1½ cup servings made with skim milk and using cheese made with 2% milk.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Originally Published September 20, 2019. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Katrina Stirn says
What size crockpot are your recipes made in? 1.5 Qt, 2 Qt?)
JamesAdam says
Yumm, mmmmm, heavy grunt!
Translated from Caveman to English:
"The Broccoli Cheese Soup is pretty good"
April says
Disappointed with this recipe. The cheese didn’t melt, and was just clumpy. I see in the comments now that it was the brand that I must have used, but I’d recommend adding that to the notes. The soup also didn’t thicken, even though I added the cornstarch. There were also too many onions for my liking.
Taylor says
I followed the recipe EXACTLY but somehow my cheese ended up chunky and gross ... any idea what happened? I’m fairly new to cooking so I have no clue!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Taylor,
Welcome to the blog.
That is caused by the type/brand of cheese you are using. Things like generic, store-brand shredded cheese are the most common. They have too much wax and some are coated to keep them from clumping in the bag and can make some of them unpredictable. Also, those cheeses have an experation date and that does matter some. But it can happen with other cheese. I tend to use 50% Velvetta that is made to melt and then a brand name shredded cheddar and never have a problem.
As a side note, the reason I add the cheese at the end is to prevent this sort of thing. Some cheeses don't cook well.
Hope that helps.
Dan
Donna Bowlin says
Absolutely DELICIOUS! We added some cauliflower as we didn't have enough broccoli and it's the perfect balance. Next time I'll use my older smaller crockpot since this big one I used was I think too big & it didn't get hot enough fast enough but still it was SUPER easy and tasty. A WINNER WINNER BROCCOLI DINNER
Asraf abid says
Can i make this recipe without broccoli, as i like to use cauliflower?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Asraf,
Welcome to the blog.
On the stovetop version of this recipe, somebody did if I remember correctly. I have not do it but it should work and cook about the same.
Dan
Amy in MI says
This is awesome! The broccoli and onion was nice and tender-crisp, and the cheese sauce was just right. We added the bacon, too. A great, warm, hearty soup for a cool autumn day.