How Long to Reheat Soup in Crockpot – 5 Safety Tips

So you want to keep warm during a cold night or while battling the flu. Leftover soup to the rescue! 

You know all too well that a nice and fresh, rich-flavored soup takes ages to make. But how long does it take to just reheat your old soup?

Slow cookers are, well, slow. If you need your soup NOW, it’s better to just microwave it.

But if you aren’t exactly a fan of microwaving everything or can afford to plan some hot soup in advance, you can use a crockpot to reheat some. Slow cooking is a great way to prepare batch meals, including soup, giving you an option to store and reheat them later. Here are a few tips on reheating soup in a slow cooker – safely. Because, as you’ll see below, not all ways are safe!

So How Long to Reheat Soup in Crockpot?

It takes about 2-3 hours to reheat thinner soup in a crockpot in medium to high setting. Reheating time may vary depending on the power of the crockpot, how much soup you need to reheat, and the thickness of the soup.

On the other hand, broth soup would take 6-7 hours on slow setting. However, slow setting is dangerous as it provides great environment for the bad guys to start breeding and waltzing around your soup! Slow heating soup in a crockpot will keep it in the ‘danger zone’ for more than two hours, encouraging bacteria growth. The USDA pinpoints this zone at between 40 and 140°F.

Preheat & Reheat: 5 Top Tips on How to Safely Reheat Soup in Crockpot

1. General Tips on Reheating Soup in a Crockpot

Although the USDA does not endorse heating soup in a crockpot, that does not mean you can’t do it safely.

The University of Minnesota Extension notes that a slow cooker can maintain food temperature between 170-280° F, which is higher than the recommended 165° F. The trick is prewarming soup on a stovetop or in a microwave first before reheating it in a crockpot.

The University of Georgia suggests that you keep stirring it in the pan when preheating to prevent burning and evenly spread out the heat. You can add water or milk to lighten the consistency if it’s too thick.

2. Reheating cold or frozen soup

Never place frozen or cold soup into your crockpot, as it could crack the pot. Further, it would take ages before the soup heats up, which could provide a fertile ground for bacteria to develop and multiply.

First, allow the frozen soup to thaw or melt, transfer it to a pan and slowly heat it until it’s steaming. Next, preheat the crockpot and set it to medium. Transfer the soup to the crockpot, which will keep your soup heated for long.

3. Reheating beef stew in a crockpot

As with anything else, to make sure you don’t end up with food poisoning, prewarm both the stew and the crock pot!

Place your beef stew into the crockpot for 2-3 hours on a low setting. Stir the soup occasionally to allow for even heating. Add a little water to ensure the stew has enough moisture to prevent burning.

4. Reheating a cheese-based soup in a slow cooker

You can expect to reheat a cheese-based soup in the crockpot for up to 4 hours. That’s because soups containing cheese are generally thicker in consistency, requiring more heat.

As always, the rule with slow cookers is: preheat to reheat!

5. How to reheat soup made in a crockpot

Treat soup made in a crockpot as you would any other soup!. That said, these handy tips should help you reheat soup made in a crockpot:

• ALWAYS reheat the soup to a boil. Set the crockpot to medium-high heat for 4 hours.
• If the temperature test shows it has not hit the 140°F mark, extend the heating time. It would also help to split larger batches of soup into smaller portions to enable faster and even heating.

By the way, if you’re a fan of ramen soup, here’s how to reheat this crowd-favorite.

FAQs

How many times should you reheat soup?

Never reheat soup more than once. Always bring it to a boil and ensure it’s hotter than 165 F. To prevent refrigerated soup from going bad, only reheat portions you need at the moment. The rest can go back to the fridge or freezer!

Can you reheat canned soup on a slow cooker?

Yes, you can. Take the soup out of the can, place it in the slow cooker, and set it on high. Preheat it if it’s cold or frozen.

Can I use my crockpot to reheat food?

Even though health experts do not recommend using a crockpot to heat foods, you can still do it safely if you preheat it. A crockpot can keep food hot for hours after preheating it using a quick heating method such as a stovetop or microwave.