Stone Soup

This hearty chicken and vegetable Stone Soup is inspired by the classic folk tale. It's made with simple ingredients and is perfect for the whole family! The post Stone Soup appeared first on Budget Bytes.

Mar 16, 2025 - 15:25

Everybody eats. Say it with me! Every. Body. Eats. The thing I love the most about cooking is that I can (if I’m lucky!) bring a little bit of joy and find common ground with anyone, no matter what their background is, how much money is in their bank account, or what their opinions are. Everybody eats, and cooking with (and for) others is a great way to build a bridge and connect. This super hearty, budget-friendly Stone Soup is extra special, because the story behind it really reflects this long held belief of mine.

Overhead view of a bowl of homemade stone soup.

Easy Stone Soup Recipe

This recipe is more than just a chicken and vegetable soup! It’s based on the classic folk tale ‘Stone Soup,’ with versions of this story found in many cultures around the world. The story goes that hungry travelers arrive in a village with nothing but an empty pot. The villagers, weary of the travelers, claim they have no food to share. So, the travelers start a fire and fill the pot with water, adding a stone. When asked, they explain that they’re making ‘stone soup,’ claiming it’s delicious but even better with a few extra ingredients. The curious villagers each contribute their own ingredients, transforming the pot into a rich, nourishing meal for all. Showing that when we come together and each contribute a little, we can create something truly special!

My version of this soup takes inspiration from this story, using affordable pantry staples and simple ingredients. This is a true clear-out-your-fridge recipe, as you can use whatever vegetables you like. It would also be fun to get the kids involved! Have them drop a stone (or a mini potato!) into the pot, and let them help gather the other ingredients to create something nourishing and wonderful!

Stone Soup Recipe

This hearty chicken and vegetable Stone Soup is inspired by the classic folk tale. It's made with simple ingredients and is perfect for the whole family!

Course Soup

Cuisine European

Total Cost ($8.93 recipe / $0.63 serving)

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1 15

Total Time 1 30

Servings servings (1 cup per serving)

Calories 102kcal

Author Jess Rice

Equipment

Stock Pot

Ingredients

1 stone*
1 Tbsp olive oil $0.19
1 yellow onion, diced $0.90
4 carrots, peeled and chopped $0.79
3 stalks celery, diced $0.19
1 tsp sea salt $0.01
½ tsp ground black pepper $0.08
1 tsp dried thyme $0.43
1 tsp Italian seasoning $0.19
2 bay leaves $0.10
4 chicken drumsticks** $2.56
1 zucchini, chopped $0.93
¼ small head of cabbage, chopped (about 4 cups) $0.75
4-5 red potatoes, large diced (about 1 lb)*** $1.12
3 cloves garlic, minced $0.15
6 cups chicken broth**** $0.54

Instructions

If using, wash your stone very well and add it to your stock pot.
Add olive oil to the stock pot and cook onions, carrots, and celery (mirepoix) with salt, ground pepper, thyme, Italian seasoning, and bay leaves over medium heat until glossy and beginning to soften.
Temporarily move the mirepoix out of the way and add chicken drumsticks to the bottom of your pot to brown them on all sides.
Then, add the diced zucchini, cabbage, potatoes, and minced garlic. Pour chicken broth on top and bring everything up to a boil.
Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 1 hour or until vegetables are fully cooked and the internal chicken temps at 165℉. Pull meat off the chicken bones and discard bones (or save them to make chicken stock along with your vegetable peels from this recipe!)
Taste and adjust salt and pepper. If you used a stone in your stone soup, be sure to remove it before serving!

See how we calculate recipe costs here.

Notes

*The stone is completely optional. You can use 1 whole mini potato instead of a stone. For the record, I opted out of cooking with one of our river rocks in the pot but added some for photos later because…cute!

**I went with chicken drumsticks because they’re budget-friendly and cook up perfectly in this soup. Bone-in chicken thighs will also work but will take longer to cook (the internal temperature must reach 165℉ before serving!)

***Yukon gold potatoes also hold up well in this recipe. Russets will dissolve and create a loose mashed potato consistency in this soup, but if you’re ok with that texture, they’ll work, too!

****We like to use bouillon to keep our broth costs low. We prefer Better Than Bouillon brand. When you’re selecting bouillon at the store, make sure the first ingredient isn’t salt, or you’re just spending a lot of money on a more expensive salt!

Nutrition

how to make Stone Soup step-by-step photos

Gather all of your ingredients.

Four hands holding a small river rock over a stock pot.

Wash the stone (optional): If you want to stick with the story and add a stone to your soup, be sure to wash it very, very well to remove any dirt. You can also use one small, whole potato instead of a stone. Add your stone/potato to a stock pot. I personally didn’t cook with the stones, but I did add some at the end for the photos!

If you don’t want to add a stone to your soup but still want to reference the story, you could use the stone as a table decoration instead.

Sauté the carrot, onion, and celery: Pour 1 Tbsp olive oil into your stock pot over medium heat and add 1 chopped onion, 4 peeled and chopped carrots, and 3 stalks chopped celery (known as a mirepoix) and stir to combine.

Sauteed mire poix in a stockpot with seasonings.

Now, add 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp ground pepper, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, and 2 bay leaves and heat over medium heat until the veggies become glossy and start to soften.

Chicken drumsticks added to a stock pot of sauteed carrots, celery, and onion.

Brown the chicken: Push the sautéed vegetables aside to create a gap at the bottom of the stock pot and add 4 chicken drumsticks.

Browned chicken drumsticks in a stock pot with veggies.

Brown the chicken on all sides. We aren’t looking to cook the chicken through just yet (that’ll happen when the soup simmers), but browning the outside will help add flavor.

Cabbage, zucchini, red potatoes and minced garlic added to a stock pot.

Simmer: Add 1 chopped zucchini, chopped cabbage (¼ of a small head, about 4 cups), 4-5 large diced potatoes, and 3 cloves minced garlic to the stockpot. Pour 6 cups chicken broth over top and bring everything to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, or until the veggies are fully cooked and the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.

Kitchen tongs holding a chicken breast in stone soup, with a fork shredding the meat from the chicken.

Shred the chicken: Use a fork to pull the meat off the chicken bones into the soup. Discard the bones or use them to make chicken stock (along with your vegetable peels from this recipe!)

Serve: Adjust to taste with salt and black pepper. If you added a stone to your soup, don’t forget to remove it before serving! Serve and enjoy.

Overhead close up of stone soup in a ladle.

What Else Can I Add?

You honestly cannot go wrong, no matter what you add to this recipe for stone soup! Even Dolly Parton’s family has a version of this soup (she’s my favorite person in the world, and my daughter thinks she’s her Aunt because she gets books via Dolly’s Imagination Library every month