This Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup is so brothy, flavorful, and downright delicious! Its also super simple to make and freezer-friendly. Must I say more? Didn’t think so!
This soup truly hits the spot just like its cousin, chicken noodle soup, or its “heftier” cousin chicken gnocchi soup.
This recipe was originally posted on Jun 24, 2015, we’ve tweaked it a bit since then.
This post has Amazon affiliate links for tools we used to make this recipe.
How to Make Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
- In a large pot, bring olive oil to medium high heat, then cook the diced carrot, onion, and celery until they become translucent. Then add the thyme.
- Now add the cubed chicken breast to the same pot and cook until the chicken is fully cooked through.
- Pour in the chicken broth and water into the pot and bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.
- Now carefully add the cooked orzo into the soup (I use a large slotted spoon) and bring it to a boil again. Then stir in the salt, pepper, and lemon juice.
- Lastly, add fresh spinach to the soup and remove it from the heat.
How to make lemon chicken orzo soup in a slow cooker
- Place the diced onion, carrot, celery, chopped chicken breast, thyme, salt, pepper, lemon juice, chicken broth, and water into the slow cooker or crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- Then add the dry orzo and fresh spinach to the pot and cook on low for 20-30 minutes or until the orzo is al dente.
Can I freeze lemon chicken orzo soup?
Yes! Once the soup is fully cooled down, place a plastic gallon sized zip-lock freezer bag into a large bowl and ladle the soup into the bag. Try to get as much air out, then close well. Now lay the bag flat in the freezer and freeze for up to 1 month.
What is orzo?
Orzo is pasta that has a grain-like shape similar to rice. Although it may look like rice, it is just plain pasta made from wheat semolina flour.
What to serve with Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup?
- Rustic overnight bread or harvest bread
- tomato basil panini
- tuna salad sandwich
- turkey sandwich
- classic grilled cheese sandwich
Chicken Orzo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup onion diced
- 3 celery sticks diced
- 3 medium carrots diced
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp thyme
- 1 cup uncooked orzo
- 2 chicken breasts
- 8 cups low sodium chicken stock
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 3 cups fresh spinach
Instructions
- Dice the carrot, onion, and celery. Then cut the chicken into 1 inch pieces and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add the diced carrot, onion, and celery. Cook until the onion becomes translucent then add the thyme.
- Cook the orzo according to the package. Then drain the water out and set aside.
- Add the cut chicken to the sautéed vegetables and cook until the chicken is fully cooked. (About 6 minutes)
- Pour in the chicken broth and water and bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.
- Then gently add the cooked orzo into the soup and bring it to a boil once more.
- Add the salt, pepper, and lemon juice. The amount of salt can be adjusted to your liking.
- Lastly, add fresh spinach and remove the soup from heat.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on June 24th, 2015, it has been updated since.
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Shelby says
I really enjoyed this recipe. I made just a few tweaks for personal preference adding in fresh ginger, using thighs instead of breasts and adding truffle zest. This will be a new cold weather favorite, thank you.
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Shelby! Thank you for the great feedback 🙂 I love the idea of truffle zest, YUM!
Irene says
Amazing soup! My hubby loves it!:) I found your blog through a pin on Pinterest and have already tried 3 recipes, Im a fan:)
simplyhomecooked says
Irene I’m so happy you came across my blog! I hope you continue to find more recipes that you and your family will enjoy. Thank you so much for leaving feedback, I really appreciate it! 🙂