This beer cheese soup recipe was super popular on Pinterest a few years ago, and for good reason! It’s creamy, decadent, packed with flavor, and so incredibly cozy and comforting anytime of the year. I learned this recipe from a sous chef that I worked with in Chicago a few years ago, and it’s easily the best recipe for beer cheese soup that I’ve ever had.
There’s quite a few ingredients in this recipe, but they all blend harmoniously to create the most amazing homemade beer & cheese soup! I add jalapeños to my version, but feel free to omit them if you’d rather not have any heat in your soup.
Ingredients for Creamy Beer Cheese Soup:
- 4 tbsp. Unsalted Butter
- 1/2 cup finely chopped Celery
- 1/3 cup finely chopped Carrot
- 1 cup chopped White Onion
- 1 tbsp. minced Garlic
- 1 tbsp. minced Jalapeño (optional)
- 1/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
- 1 cup Light Beer*
- 1 cup Chicken Stock
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1/2 tbsp. whole Black Peppercorns
- 1/2 tbsp. toasted Caraway Seeds
- small handful fresh Thyme sprigs
- 1/2 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Half and Half
- 2 1/2 cups shredded White Cheddar Cheese**
- Salt & Pepper
- 2 large Bread Bowls
- chopped Chives (for garnish)
*The style of beer you use DOES matter! Read below for my recommendation.
**Grating cheddar from a block of cheese is ideal for this recipe. Packaged shredded cheese contains an anti-caking agent that doesn’t allow it to melt as smoothly into the soup.
Best Beer for Beer Cheese Soup
Use a light lager for this soup. A domestic beer (such as Bud Light, Coors Light, Miller Lite, etc.) is ideal. You could also use a pilsner (such as Stella Artois, Pilsner Urquell, or even Alma Mader Premiant Czech-Style Pilsner if you’re in Kansas City). In my opinion, avoid any heavy beers such as stouts or porters, and avoid any overly hopped beers such as IPAs. The flavors can conflict with the ingredients in the soup if they’re too forward.
I was first introduced to this soup when I was working (and basically living) at a super popular restaurant in the Fulton River District in Chicago. I ran every single event, which put me there at least six days a week. I was lucky enough to order whatever I wanted from the menu for lunch and dinner everyday, but eventually the same menu gets a little old. The sous chef that worked there at the time was super talented, and he loved coming up with various soups to feature every couple of days.
THIS beer cheddar soup was like a godsend when he rolled it out one afternoon, and I begged for the recipe for a few weeks afterwards. He eventually texted the recipe to me, and I kept it on my phone for years! I tweaked it a little and scaled it down to a small batch version, so now you get to experience the same soup I did so many years ago!
How to Make Creamy Cheddar Beer Cheese Soup
- Melt the butter in a deep pot over medium heat. Stir in chopped celery, carrot, onion, garlic, and jalapeño (if using). Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are very tender.
- Sprinkle the flour over the cooked vegetables, and stir continuously to avoid browning. Cook for 3-4 minutes to cook out the “flour” taste. The consistency of the vegetables will begin to resemble a vegetable “paste” at this point.
- Slowly stir in the beer, then stir in the chicken stock. Add the bay leaf, peppercorns, caraway seeds, and thyme.
- Simmer for 30 minutes.
- Stir in the milk and half & half. Bring the soup to q cook boil, then immediately turn it back down to a simmer. Simmer for ten minutes.
- Whisk in the cheese. Check the consistency of the soup, and add more stock if it seems too thick.
- Strain the soup into another large pot, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve hot in bread bowls, and garnish with chopped chives (and bacon if you like!)
The original recipe had the peppercorns, bay leaf, caraway and thyme packed into a sachet rather than tossed freely into the soup. While I was initially testing this recipe, I did not have a cheesecloth on hand to make a sachet, so I just added those ingredients directly into my soup. I feel like it’s easier this way and doesn’t change the end result at all.
Note : a “sachet” is a French term that is used to describe a small cloth sack filled with herbs / potpourri / aromatics. Typically used for recipes, or tea. 🙂
You see, I have priorities, and one of those was to make this soup for myself someday. Talk about finally achieving some life goals you’ve set out for yourself. Feels good to check this one off the list.
Can You Freeze Beer Cheese Soup
No. Unfortunately, creamy soups don’t reheat well. They have a tendency to separate after they’re frozen and reheated, so I recommend not freezing beer cheese soup. This is a small batch recipe that won’t last long, but you could refrigerate it for 3-4 days and slowly reheat it in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
This spicy white cheddar beer cheese soup is rich, it’s decadent, and it leaves you wanting more. Truly. I highly recommend having a bright, crisp salad with this rich and savory soup. It’ll be the perfect combination for any rainy day, or really, just any day. 🙂
Other Soup Recipes for Two People
- Small Batch Chicken and Vegetable Soup
- Small Batch Kale and White Bean Soup
- Southwestern Rotisserie Chicken Soup
- Creamy Roasted Tomato Soup for Two
- Small Batch Loaded Potato Soup for Two
- Simple Spicy Tomato Soup
If you make this cheddar beer soup and love it, I would love a rating and comment below! If you have any questions about the ingredients or recipe, feel free to email me so I can help. And be sure to tag me on Instagram so I can see YOUR beer cheese soup pics!
Creamy White Cheddar Beer Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup celery chopped
- 1/3 cup carrot finely chopped
- 1 cup white onion chopped
- 1 Tbsp. garlic chopped
- 1 Tbsp. jalapeno chopped (remove seeds)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup of light beer a light lager is preferable
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 Tbsp. black peppercorns whole
- 1/2 Tbsp. caraway seeds toasted if possible
- small handful of fresh thyme sprigs
- 1/2 cup milk room temperature
- 1/2 cup half and half room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups of white cheddar cheese shredded (adjust this to your liking!)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 large or 4 (small) bread bowls
- chives and chopped bacon for garnish
Instructions
- In a deep pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add celery, carrot, onion, garlic, and jalapeño. Cook until veggies become very tender, about 20 minutes.
- Add flour, and stir continuously to avoid browning. Let the veggies and flour cook for a few minutes, as this will alleviate the "flour" taste from occurring in the soup. The consistency of the veggies and flour together should feel similar to a vegetable "paste" as you stir it.
- Slowly add the beer, while still stirring continuously. Then, slowly whisk in the chicken stock. Add the bay leaf, black peppercorns, caraway seeds, and fresh thyme.
- Simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add the room temperature milk and half and half, then stir to blend everything together, and bring to a quick boil. As soon as the soup starts to boil, immediately turn the heat back down to a simmer, and allow it to simmer for another ten minutes.
- Whisk in cheese, and check to be sure consistency is to your liking. Add more stock if it seems too thick.
- Strain entire contents into another large pot, and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve in a bread bowls, garnish as you please, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
Make sure to follow on Pinterest @aflavorjournal and on Instagram @aflavorjournal
Comments & Reviews
Thank you for sharing this soup, it looks amazing!
Thank you for stopping by, John! I hope you get to try it soon! 😀
You said the chef puts the herbs into a satchel. If you were to use this method, when does would you remove the satchel? Also I assume going this routes would then remove the straining step from the directions since you wouldn’t need to take them out.
Hi Kaitlyn! Add the satchel right after you add the beer and chicken stock – before you let it simmer for 30 minutes. It is easier to just remove the satchel after it simmers for 30 minutes, but I would still strain the soup when you are finished if you’d like a smooth consistency. However, if you want to leave the chunky vegetables in it, you are welcome to do that, too! I just strain it so it’s got a silky smooth finish. I hope this helps!!
That is perfect! Thanks for getting back to me so quickly 🙂
Of course!! My pleasure!
Your cheddar beer soup looks amazing! I am sure its quite filling with the bread bowl, what a delicious meal.
This is my kind of soup as I love all things with cheese and beer! Thanks for sharing this once secret recipe!
This is the cold-weather comfort haven I’ve been looking for! So decadent, such a treat, and satisfies all my comfort food cravings. Thank you for sharing!
This might be the best soup recipe ever – had to go out immediately and buy the ingredients! I cannot wait to eat it!
This looks sinfully delicious! I’ve always wondered how to make this cheese and beer soup. This is a great recipe.
Oh. My. Word. This soup looks insane!! I mean cheese and beer?! Um that’s all you need to say I’m making this. And I love the idea of serving it in a bread bowl too. Total Fall comfort food!
We love beer cheese soup, and in a bread bowl?! Yes, please! This soup is perfect comfort food!
As if the title and pictures didn’t lure me to this recipe..when you mentioned the clouds parted and angels sang. You had me..I know this is special . Beer cheese soups are one of my favorite soups ..but this one is a must try. And that bread bowl?? You have me drooling here.
This Soup looks so amazing! I love that it’s in a bread bowl and the combo of white cheddar and beer sounds so good! Oh My!
OMG I really need to try this soup. The flavor combination sounds amazing and it’s perfect with Fall weather.
I’ve made this soup before and it was DELICIOUS!!! I want to make it again for a group of people for a football game, but don’t want to miss the game to cook the soup. Could this soup be made ahead of time (couple hours before serving)?
Absolutely!! I would recommend reheating it on the stove top over a low heat, stirring it often to help it heat evenly. (If it heats up too quickly, it could cause it to curdle *just* a little bit.) But you can absolutely make it ahead of time! The flavors would actually have a chance to blend together even more that way, so it could be even tastier than the first time! Also, if it needs a little help loosening up when you are reheating it, just add a splash or two of chicken stock to help it out. Let me know if you have any other questions, and I would be more than happy to help!
Made this last night and OHHHMYGOODNESS. This soup is phenomenal! Husband said 10/10 too! The ultimate comfort soup. Heaven in a bowl. Followed the recipe to a tee. Thank you!!
Oh my gosh I am SO GLAD you loved it, Jessica!!!! Thank you for taking the time to let me know, too!! Happy soup season! <3
Can you make this in a crockpot??
Hi Deb! I honestly haven’t tried it in the crockpot, so I don’t want to steer you wrong on this! If you want to make it ahead of time on the stovetop and reheat it for dinner, you could do that! Just slowly reheat in a large pot over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it becomes smooth and creamy again. Adding a little more broth can help thin it out if is too thick, too.
For the crockpot, you could most likely do steps 1-5 in the crockpot, and then stir in the cheese about five minutes before serving it! I would probably let everything cook on low in the crockpot for a couple of hours before adding the cheese, but check it every now and then to make sure it isn’t separating.
I hope this helps just a little bit!
Hi we’re just looking for some really nice and tasty soup and food ideas for when it’s really cold out side and it’s really dark and you come home from work really cold. And want a cuppa tea or coffee. And want some thing really nice and warm. And hot to eat when you had a really hard day at work. And you just want to get home and have a home cooked meal and then cosy in for the rest of the night. And then have tea and then watch some tv before getting ready for bed.
Hi Diane! I think this soup would be a perfect cozy meal after a long, cold day! It would warm you right up before having some tea and winding down for the night! I have a loaded baked potato soup recipe and a roasted tomato soup recipe that I would also recommend!
What do you do with the veggies? They’re chopped so they need to be blended?
I strain them out, actually! In step 7 I strain everything into a new pot – but if you’d rather keep them in, you can absolutely blend the soup together instead! (Just be sure to remove the bay leaf, peppercorns, and caraway seeds before blending.) I hope this helps!
Can I substitute the beer for something else? I want to try this, but don’t want to use alcohol. Looks amazing.
Hi Nina! You could try using a non-alcoholic beer if you’d still like to have some of the beer flavor in the soup? Otherwise, you can totally just use more chicken stock in place of it. The flavor won’t quite be the same, but it will still be delicious! I hope this helps!
we absolutely love this beer cheese soup recipe! We’ve made it quite a few times – in fact, the last time I made it (although there are only two of us that I cook for), I doubled the recipe to have leftovers. I’ve found that cheese soup can be tricky to reheat, but I stir it in a small saucepan on low heat for a few minutes until it starts to come together and warm through. Thank you truly for such a restaurant quality soup at home! I am such a huge fan!
This is the perfect way to reheat soup – and thank you for sharing that!! So happy to hear that you love this soup so much!!
Made this tonight and it was delish!!!! Only thing I would change is to add more jalapeño than recommended and add some crushed red pepper. I found that the recipe, as is, was not spicy at all, so I wanted a little kick. It was sooooo good!!!
I’m SO glad that you enjoyed it, Cailan! And I’m totally on board with adding more jalapeno to really make it spicy – that’s perfect!!