Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Updated Nov 05, 2025
Dairy-free, chicken wild rice soup with mushrooms, carrots, celery, onions & thyme makes for a delicious meal, great for meal-prep.
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Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is soo Good!
When it’s cold out, I’m all about this chicken and wild rice soup. It’s filling, and also dairy-free, but you’d never know it. The wild rice gives it a nutty, chewy texture I love, and the mushrooms and carrots make it hearty without being heavy. Best part? It’s a one-pot situation, so cleanup’s easy and dinner’s done.
I skip the cream in this chicken and wild rice soup and use blended beans to make it thick and creamy instead. It’s still just as comforting but a little lighter, which means I don’t feel weighed down afterward. Between the chicken, veggies, and wild rice, it’s the kind of meal that hits the spot and feels good to eat.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
Chicken and Wild Rice Soup Ingredients
- Chicken: I use chicken breast for this recipe, but you could also use boneless skinless chicken thighs.
- Wild Rice: You could also use brown rice, but I think wild rice has a better flavor and texture.
- Mushrooms: I like to use sliced button mushrooms, but use whatever type of mushroom you like.
- Carrots, Celery, and Onion: Try to chop the pieces roughly the same size so they all cook evenly and you don’t end up with large chunks of one or the other.
- Beans: You won’t actually see any beans floating around in this soup! Instead, you’ll be making a puree to help thicken the soup. Traditionally, heavy cream is added to chicken and mushroom soup, so feel free to skip the beans and go with any milk or cream.
- Chicken stock or broth: If you break down a whole chicken and use the bones to make chicken stock for your soup, you can save some serious cash! If not, store-bought chicken broth will work just fine.
- Seasonings: Fresh thyme, salt, and pepper.
How to Make Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Chicken Wild Rice Soup Recipe
Chicken wild rice soup with fresh mushrooms, carrots, celery, onions & thyme is easy to make with only 10 minutes of prep.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 2 celery ribs diced
- 16 ounces mushrooms sliced
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper divided
- 1 cup wild rice mix uncooked
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 can white beans rinsed and drained
Instructions
- In a large dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium-high heat and add the onion, carrots, celery, mushrooms and thyme. Season with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to10 minutes, or until the vegetables have softened and the mushrooms are no longer giving off moisture.
- Add rice and toast for 1 to 2 minutes, or until it smells nutty. Add chicken stock and chicken breast and bring to a boil. Season with the remaining salt and pepper. Reduce heat to a simmer, then cover and cook for 30 minutes. Remove chicken from the pot and place on a cutting board. Shred with two forks.
- Continue cooking the soup for 15 minutes more, until the rice is tender. Return the shredded chicken back to the soup and stir to combine.
- Add 1 cup water and white beans to a high-speed blender and process until smooth. Add bean mixture to the pot and cook for 5 minutes, then season to taste and serve.
Notes
- My Top Tip: To get more bang for your buck, try your hand at cutting a whole chicken and using the different parts in varying meals, plus the bones for homemade chicken stock!
- Storage: Make sure to let the soup cool to room temperature before transferring to an air-tight container and storing it in the refrigerator. When stored properly in an airtight container, this soup will last for up to four days in the refrigerator. When reheating, slowly heat the soup on the stove over low heat until warmed through. You may need to add additional liquid if the soup has thickened too much.
- Freezing: Cool the soup to room temperature, then pack into freezer-safe containers, leaving about an inch at the top of each container for expansion in the freezer. Close tightly and freeze for up to 3 months. To use from frozen, defrost the container overnight in the fridge. When ready to serve, place contents in a large pot and bring up to a boil before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 315kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5g, Trans Fat: 0.01g, Cholesterol: 53mg, Sodium: 726mg, Potassium: 907mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 3492IU, Vitamin C: 7mg, Calcium: 34mg, Iron: 2mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Did You Make This Recipe?
Recipe Tips
- Don’t skip toasting the rice. Letting the rice toast for 1-2 minutes before adding the cooking liquid may seem like an insignificant step in this recipe, but it adds a great deal of flavor!
- Keep in mind the soup will thicken the next day. The rice will continue to absorb more broth and make the soup thicker as it sits. Just add some water or broth before heating through, and it will loosen it up a bit.
- Cook your chicken directly in the soup. This helps to keep the chicken moist and juicy and adds additional flavor to the soup.
- Cut your veggies into uniform pieces. When it comes to the carrots, celery, and onions, it’s best to cut them into bite-sized pieces, so they cook evenly.
Serving Ideas
- Veggie Avocado Sandwich
- Grilled Mozzarella Sandwich
- Chicken Caprese Pesto Panini
- Garlic Bread
- Herb Skillet Dinner Rolls
- Garlic Knots
- Homemade Pita Bread
Comments
I liked the recipe because it was dairy free but next time I would omit the beans. The broth tasted better to me before I added the beans.
Thanks for the feedback, Angel! Glad you liked the soup!
Loved it! Can’t wait to make it again
Yay! So happy you loved it! Thank you, Abby!!
Love this soup!
Yay, I’m so glad!! Thank you!
I loved this soup. Personally, would’ve liked more chicken but otherwise perfection
So happy you liked it, Rosie!! You can absolutely add more chicken next time—sounds so good!
Delicious!! I made this just as written, and it is perfect!
Yay!! Thank you so much, Denise!
Do you know if blending a can of black eyed peas would work instead of white beans? I thought I had white beans on hand but it’s a can of black eyed peas. Thanks!
Yes, I think that would work!
I think I have commented on this soup before but it’s just fabulous. So full of veggies and easy to make on a weeknight. I don’t puree the beans because I love them whole. Using chick peas because my market was completely out of white beans.
Aww, so happy you’re a fan of this soup!! Thanks so much, Katie! Love your swap of chickpeas, sounds so good!
I love this recipe. I did not add the creamy beans as the soup was plenty thick without it. Delicious!
Good to know the soup was still thick without the beans. Thanks for sharing, Lori!
I tried the recipe today it was GREAT! However, I didn’t see how much is a serving size. Is it 1 cup of soup? I am on a fitness journey and I need to eat a certain amount of calories per day. Thanks!
Each serving is roughly 1 1/2 cups of soup. So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Please adjust the recipe so it says wild rice mix instead of wild rice.
I made it just with wild rice and it was reddish because of the wild rice. It was very delicious, but it does not look anything like yours.
Thank you for the recipe. Love that it is dairy-free.
Thanks for your feedback, I updated the recipe!
I just made a batch of The Chicken Wild Rice Soup and it is delicious! I had a soup years ago that was similar- except it had cream. I am dairy free and search out recipes without dairy- so glad I found this one! I used Great White Northern Beans and added chicken bone broth before using the Emersion blender and it had a nice creamy texture. I’m excited to try more of your recipes.
So glad to hear!
So flavorful and filling!! This is the perfect comforting soup without the heaviness of dairy. So easy and will be making again soon!
Thank you so much, Marisa!
This soup is easy to make, simply delicious, healthy and filling. I served it with a crusty bread and nothing else. I followed the recipe exactly and the results were better than I expected. This soup is a five-star keeper. My husband is not that fond of soup, but he asked me to leave the left-over soup so he could have it for lunch the next day.
This recipe is a keeper!
Thank you so much, so happy to hear that you and your husband enjoyed the soup!
This soup is so delicious! It tastes like a fancy dish from a cafe or something.
That was my first time ever using white beans, but I just trusted the recipe and I’m so pleased with the results.
I made the following changes to suit my family’s preferences:
– omitted mushrooms since only I appreciate them around here
– added couple tsps minced garlic
– used only 1/2 c wild rice
– added 1/2 c orzo
Can’t wait to enjoy some more tomorrow!
Oo I love the idea of adding orzo, sounds so good! Thanks for sharing!
It’s pretty good. I’ve made it made it twice now. It’s definitely missing something flavor wise, but I’m not sure what.
I was a bit worried about the leftovers (that I froze), because after letting it defrost in the fridge for two days, it had the strangest texture. It was a weird soggy cake-like block. I have never had soup come out like that. Anyways, I added some water and heated it up on the stove and it turned out fine!
I am multiplying this recipe to make a big batch. Should I multiply the beans or just stick with 1 can? (3 cans seems like a lot.)
Thanks!!!
If you’re tripling it, I would do at least 2 cans of beans as it is the creamy element. I don’t think 3 would hurt it, especially with the tripled amount of liquid, but it is up to you. You can always do one can, see if it’s to your liking, and add another if not, adjust as you’re cooking. Hope that helps!
Lazy mum here – but could I use a pouch of microwave wild rice instead of raw rice? If so, would I need to change any liquid quantities etc? X
Yes, that’s totally fine! I would reduce the broth down to 3 cups. Enjoy it!
This looks good.
Thank you so much, Barbara!
I’ve made wild rice soup with several different recipes, and this one is by far the best.
I must confess, however, that rather than using beans to thicken the soup, I used about 12 oz. of whole cream which changed the flavor a little, but was terrific nonetheless.
Also, I used Chicken thighs, rather than breast meat, as they have more flavor. Since we had one small onion, I also added a medium size shallot.
This was without a doubt the best batch in 20 some years, Thanks for such a nice recipe.
Thank you so much, Tom! Those are great substitutions!
This is the best soup ever!! Thank you so much for sharing!!!
I am so glad you enjoyed it, Autumn!
This was the first soup I’ve ever made from scratch and it turned out great! The instructions were super easy to follow and I even added extra of each vegetable (like a whole bunch of celery) and it still worked out. Lots of yummy leftovers for the next few days!
Thank you! I’m happy to hear it was easy to make and that you enjoyed.
This looks amazing! I am planning to meal prep and free this for my cousin who is having a baby. I just have one question she is not a fan of mushroom, do you have any suggestions for substitutes? Or just leave them out and add more carrots and celery?
Thank you so much! I haven’t tried this without mushrooms yet, but I think that could work!
Made this for dinner tonight! Delicious!
I love that! Glad you enjoyed!!
I made this on Tuesday and it was sooo good!
I love the mushrooms in it, and that is dairy free!
That is amazing! Thank you!!
Hello. Looks DELISH. Question: regarding adding greens you note, “…Just add it in with the mushrooms towards the end of cooking.” The mushrooms are added at the start, along with the other veggies. So, should we actually be putting the mushrooms in a bit later in the cooking? Look forward to making this once the weather has turned a bit here in Chicago!
Thank you! The recipe page has been updated. The mushrooms should be sweated out at the start, and greens should be added at the end.