Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup (EASY)

Name: Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 6 cups chicken broth / chicken bone broth; 1-2 tbsp minced garlic; 1/2 large onion (or 1 small/medium onion); 1 cup celery (sliced); 1 cup carrots (sliced); 2 bay leaves; 2 tsp dill; 2 tbsp lemon juice; 2/3 cup basmati rice; 1 large chicken breast (cut into two pieces); 1/2 tbsp olive oil; salt (to taste); black pepper (to taste); chicken bouillon (optional)

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Let’s talk about a chicken soup recipe for your body, mind and soul…this easy and delicious Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup! It comforts, it satisfies. It has a simple yet absolutely gorgeous flavor, and it makes me want to jump into soup season like WHEEE!

Loaded with fragrant rice, shredded chicken, carrots and celery, this Lemon Chicken Rice Soup is cooked in a rich and flavorful herb lemon chicken broth that is savory with hints of citrus flavors.

Table of Contents

An Easy Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe

One of my favorite soups to order at Greek/Mediterranean restaurants is the Greek Lemon Chicken soup, or also called the Avgolemono soup.

Since discovering it, when I am not ordering Avgolemono soup from restaurants, I make my own version of Lemon Chicken and Rice at home.

This is my take on Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup that is very much inspired by Avgolemono soup. While I cannot promise authenticity, I promise deliciousness!

I have made this for many, many years, and have tweaked and perfected it throughout the years. And I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

For this Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup recipe, chicken bone broth is infused and cooked with garlic, bay leaves and dill, and combined with tender shredded chicken breast, celery, carrots and onions.

And of course, lemon juice. Freshly squeezed lemon juice brings this light citrusy flavor that ties everything together.

This Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup recipe serves approximately 4 people as a main course dish, and 6-8 people as a side, and you can use a dutch oven or a pot to make it.

Besides being delicious, here are all the other reasons why you will love this:

Takes 30 minutes to make! A.k.a. perfect for a quick meal
One pot meal – because who doesn’t love that on a busy day?
Uses fresh and healthy ingredients
It’s the perfect cozy comfort food when the weather cools down!

Ingredients

This Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup calls for simple, pantry-friendly ingredients:

chicken bone broth – the heart of a good soup is a good broth. I like to use chicken bone broth because it gives a deep, hearty chicken flavor to the soup, but feel free to use regular chicken broth as that will work as well
chicken breast – feel free to use chicken thighs or tenders if that’s what you have at hand. I typically use boneless chicken but bone-in, skin-on chicken works as well. The skin and bones will need to be discarded when you shred the chicken.
lemon juice – freshly squeezed is always the best and most flavorful
basmati rice – other types of rice such as long grain, jasmine, brown rice, or even orzo pasta can be used as well
garlic – fresh garlic cloves are preferred. Avoid using garlic powder. The flavors are just not the same with garlic powder.
onion – yellow, white or sweet onion
celery
carrots
bay leaves
dill – fresh or dried works fine…use whatever you have at hand
salt and black pepper – such important spices to truly open up the flavors
chicken bouillon – an optional ingredient to further add more flavor to the broth if you desire

How to make Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup

To start making Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup, I like to first chop and prep all the vegetables.

Ingredients for Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup

Once that is done, heat up pot or dutch oven (here is my favorite dutch oven that I use all the time!) with olive oil, then add minced garlic and onions on the stovetop.

Sauté till you can smell the garlic and onion, but avoid burning them.

The idea is to infuse the oil with flavors from the garlic and onion, and subsequently the soup.

Next add carrots and celery. Saute for a minute or so, then add chicken bone broth, bay leaves, dill and lemon juice.

Bring to a boil, add chicken breast (cut into two pieces for quicker cooking) and basmati rice.

I like the texture of basmati rice, because I think it goes well with soup, but feel free to use another type of rice.

Bring the Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup to a boil again, then cook for 10-12 minutes. Once chicken is cooked, bring it out and shred the chicken.

Shredded chicken for Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup — *Shredded chicken*

Next, add shredded chicken back to the pot of soup.

Add salt and pepper to taste, and to open up the flavors.

If broth is still tasting a bit dull after adding a lot of salt, you can also add a little bit of chicken bouillon to make the broth more flavorful.

Then remove Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup from heat…and serve!

Yummy yummy, come to my tummy!

There is something soothing and comforting about chicken soups. When it is cold or rainy outside, I love to curl up on my coach, pull some blankets over me, and eating a warm bowl of soup.

Now that Fall is officially here (yes, finally!), I’m just going gaga over soups and stews.

And I’m not gonna lie, this Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup has been on my mind more than it’s probably normal! (Yes I think about food all the time!)

Tip and Tricks

A few things to note when making this Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup:

Use good broth! Good soups, especially good clear soups, is made out of good quality broth!
Do not overcook rice! Remove from heat promptly after cooking is done.
Use precook chicken to speed up the process! If you are press for time, add rotisserie chicken or pre cooked chicken at the end.
Add salt at the end to open up the flavors. You will be surprise how much more flavorful it gets with a tiny pinch of salt added! If you want to add even more flavor, add chicken bouillon as desired.

How to Serve It

Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup goes perfectly with some of these:

Warm, crusty bread: you really can’t go wrong with bread and soup!
Salads: want more veggies? add a side salad and make this a light and healthy meal!
By itself: honestly, anything extra is a bonus, not a necessity. Most of the time when I make Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup, I’m looking for an easy one-pot meal to feed the family, and this by itself is both easy and yummy!

Storage and Reheating

When storing Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup, let it cool for 20-30 minutes before storing it in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer.

When reheating, bring soup to defrost completely if it is frozen, then add a few table spoons of water and reheat in the microwave. Water is added because most likely some of the broth would have dried out and absorbed by the rice at that point.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use chicken thighs instead? How about bone-in, skin-on chicken?

Yes and yes! If using bone-in, skin-on chicken, discard bones and skin when shredding chicken.

How do I cook this with pre-cooked chicken?

Instead of shredding and adding shredded chicken back into the soup, go ahead and add your pre-cooked (shredded) chicken instead!

The broth seems to not be very flavorful…what can I do?

First, try adding a bit of salt and black pepper to open up the flavors. You’ll be surprise by how much flavor a little bit of salt can add to a soup. Next, if it’s still not to your liking, add some chicken bouillon to the soup to add more flavor. If you can, using bone broth or a good quality broth from the very beginning will make the soup a lot tastier. If you are really ambitious (and have time), a good homemade broth can make a big difference as well.

Don’t miss this soupy goodness that is Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup! Grab a spoon and dig in!

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