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Warm up your home with this incredible Lemon Orzo Chicken Soup. It’s easy to make, full of flavor, and perfect for busy nights!
Looking for more soup recipes? Check out this Creamy Bacon Corn Chowder and this Mexican Street Corn White Chicken Chili!
Colder temperatures are approaching and my house is in full on soup season! We’re eating ramen at least once a week for lunch and making soup on the reg.
This Lemon Chicken Soup is perfect if you are like me and want a delicious and quick meal in under 30 minutes or something easy that is bound to impress!
Orzo Chicken Soup Recipe
Packed full of incredible flavors and melt in your mouth chicken, this soup is a winner for yourself, for a crowd, or for a holiday. Don’t you just love a recipe that works for every occasion?!
The best part? The refreshing lemony broth!
This lemon chicken soup is the comfort in a bowl you have been searching for as temperatures drop!
Lemon Orzo Chicken Soup Ingredients
Chicken: for this recipe, I shredded a rotisserie chicken I got from my local grocery store! You can cook chicken breasts in the slow cooker if you prefer, but rotisserie chicken is so easy and quick!
Pasta: I used Orzo, however, if you don’t have any handy or can’t find any in the store there are a couple of substitutes I recommend using.
You can use acini de pepe which is similar to orzo, but smaller and works well in soups, couscous or rice works well too.
Wet ingredients: the best part of this soup is the lemony broth and for that, you will need bone broth and the juice of one lemon.
Pro-Tip: If you don’t have bone broth, you can substitute it with stock.
Vegetables: I used onion and baby carrots. You can add celery too if you like!
Spices: spin those spice racks and get ready for some incredible flavors. You will need garlic cloves, oregano, dried basil, dried thyme, bay leaves, parsley, and salt and pepper.
How to Make Lemon Orzo Chicken Soup
1. Sauté the vegetables. Heat a large pot (I love my dutch oven for this) on medium-high heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add the onion, carrots, and dried herbs, and sauté for 5-6 minutes. Add bone broth, water, and bay leaves, simmer on medium heat for 5-10 minutes.
2. Mix in the chicken and orzo. Mix in the shredded chicken and orzo and simmer for 10 minutes, until the orzo is tender. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice, then remove the bay leaves, season with salt and pepper, and serve hot with your favorite toasted bread.
Tips & Tricks for your Orzo Soup
- For this recipe, I used the entire rotisserie chicken. You can use just the meat you prefer like chicken thighs or chicken breasts, etc. If you don’t use all the meat, you might want to consider buying another chicken.
- Bone broth can be substituted for chicken broth or chicken stock if you prefer it.
- If you love lemon and really want a more intense pop of that delicious lemon flavor, grate in some lemon zest.
The Magic of a Dutch Oven
I truly love my dutch oven for this recipe…and soups in general…because this is where it really shines!
If you don’t know much about dutch ovens, they excel when it comes to simmering and braising. Because of how heavy the pot is, it helps retain and distribute heat evenly.
This is why it’s ideal for searing meat at high heat and maintaining low-and-slow temperatures for a long time.
Questions You May Have
What is Orzo?
In short, orzo is a type of pasta shaped like the shape of rice. Orzo is made using semolina flour, which is made from durum wheat.
Is Orzo Gluten Free?
Brands are finally starting to make gluten free orzo! I’ve tried this one and this one.
Make sure you taste before removing it from the heat because sometimes gluten free orzo can take longer to cook.
How long does Orzo Chicken Soup last?
The soup will last about 3-4 days in the fridge.
However, if you store your soup, remember, you may need to add more chicken broth to leftovers before heating since the orzo soaks it up!
Can you freeze Orzo Chicken Soup?
Your soup can be frozen, once you freeze it, the orzo does get a bit puffy. If you want to freeze the whole batch, I recommend adding the orzo in after you thaw it because the pasta really does not freeze well.
More Recipes You Might Enjoy
- Best Ever Seared Scallops
- Perfect Air Fryer Chicken
- BBQ Chicken Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Spinach and Artichoke Dip Wonton Cups
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Lemon Orzo Chicken Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 1/2 cup baby carrots, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
- 1/2 tablespoon dried thyme
- 4 cups bone broth
- 1 cup water
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
- 1 cup orzo
- 1/4 cup parsley
- 1 lemon, juice
- salt and pepper, to taste
- olive oil, for cooking
Instructions
- Heat a large pot (I love my dutch oven for this) on medium-high heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add the onion, carrots, minced garlic, and dried herbs, and sauté for 5-6 minutes. Add bone broth, water, and bay leaves, simmer on medium heat for 5-10 minutes.
- Mix in the shredded chicken and orzo and simmer for 10 minutes, until the orzo is tender. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice, then remove the bay leaves, season with salt and pepper, and serve hot with your favorite toasted bread.
Notes
- You can use 1.5 cups of orzo if you want a thicker, heartier soup.
Yummy! Looks so delicious and tasty! Can’t wait to give this a try!
The combination of flavors in this dish is great! Love it!
This soup was amazing! Love Greek Lemon Soup and all things Rice Soup SOOOO Much!
The lemon really takes this soup to another level! The flavors are so good and I crave this on a cold day! Delicious!
Beautiful flavors and so delicious. I love lemon soup and adding the orzo makes it a complete meal for me. Yum!
Too much Thyme 1/2 Tablespoon and other recipes call for TEASPOON. Had one bowl and had to discard. Luckily I did not add all of the parsley recommended. This was not a good dish at all. Very disappointed.
I’m sorry to hear you don’t like herbs, Lisa.