Chicken Lemon Rice Soup Recipe
This Chicken Lemon Rice Soup is recipe full of hearty vegetables, chicken thighs, and rice in a homemade lemony broth!
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 3 large carrots diced
- 3 celery stalks diced
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt divided
- 1 teaspoon black pepper divided
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 8 cups water
- ½ cup short grain rice
- 2 lemons juiced about ⅓ cup
- Parsley for serving
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, 1 teaspoon of salt, and ½ teaspoon of pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and thyme. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the chicken, the bay leaves and the remaining salt and pepper.
- Add the water and rice, and bring everything to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes.
- Transfer the cooked chicken to a cutting board and chop into ½-inch pieces. Return the chopped chicken to the soup and remove the soup from the heat. Stir in the lemon juice and parsley.
Video
Notes
Storage: Let it cool completely before transferring in an airtight container. It will keep well in the fridge for 4 days. Reheat the soup gently on the stovetop or in the microwave for 3 minutes, stirring halfway through. The rice will absorb moisture as it sits, so you may want to stir in a little water or stock when reheating to loosen it back up.
Substitutes: For best results, follow the recipe as is. However here are some common substitutes that would work well in this recipe.
1 onion diced
3 carrots diced
3 celery stalks diced
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
8 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves minced
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ cup short grain or Arborio rice
2 lemons juiced
Parsley for serving
Instructions
Place chicken and scraps from the outer layers and end of the onions, carrots and celery in a large stock pot. Season with salt and pepper, add bay leaves and water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken is fork-tender, about 30 minutes.
Remove chicken and shred; then strain the chicken broth using a fine-mesh sieve and discard the vegetable scraps.
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onions, carrots, celery, garlic and thyme and cook until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Stir in the shredded chicken and rice, then return the broth to the stockpot and bring a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer until the rice is cooked, about 20 minutes.
Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with fresh parsley, if desired.
- Instead of short grain rice, you can use long-grain rice or brown rice. If you're using brown rice, be sure to add an extra 25 minutes to the cooking time though. You can also use potatoes, riced cauliflower, celery root or chopped zucchini for some grain free and/or low carb options.
- If you don't have thyme, feel free to use oregano, parsley, cilantro or other herbs.
1 onion diced
3 carrots diced
3 celery stalks diced
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste
8 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves minced
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ cup short grain or Arborio rice
2 lemons juiced
Parsley for serving
Instructions
Place chicken and scraps from the outer layers and end of the onions, carrots and celery in a large stock pot. Season with salt and pepper, add bay leaves and water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until chicken is fork-tender, about 30 minutes.
Remove chicken and shred; then strain the chicken broth using a fine-mesh sieve and discard the vegetable scraps.
Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onions, carrots, celery, garlic and thyme and cook until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Stir in the shredded chicken and rice, then return the broth to the stockpot and bring a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer until the rice is cooked, about 20 minutes.
Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with fresh parsley, if desired.
Nutrition
Serving: 1.5cups | Calories: 249kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 108mg | Sodium: 723mg | Potassium: 482mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 5150IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 2mg
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