Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
by Chungah
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Chockfull of hearty veggies and tender chicken in a refreshing lemony broth. It is PURE COMFORT in a bowl!
Featured Comment
No matter what the weather is outside, I can always use a bowl of chicken noodle soup. It doesn’t even matter if I’m sick with the flu or if I have the cleanest bill of health – this soup can be eaten any day of the week, any time of day for an all around feel-good warm hug in a bowl.
reasons to make lemon chicken orzo soup
- Best kind of vibrant, lemon-y broth
- Fun, different twist from traditional chicken noodle soup, maybe even better
- Easy to make and comes together very quickly in one single pot (even the dried orzo)
- Freezes beautifully, perfect for those busy weeknights and lazy weekends
what is orzo
Orzo is a short-cut type pasta, similar in shape to a long grain of rice. Orzo can be added to soup, helping to thicken the soup naturally by releasing starch as it cooks in the broth, yielding a richer, more velvety consistency.
tips and tricks for success
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your soup. Many brands love to pack in the salt so always opt for unsalted or a lower-sodium variety. Homemade stock is even better.
- Add freshly squeezed lemon juice. Lemon juice will elevate your chicken soup, adding a fresh, bright flavor and balancing out all the saltiness and richness of the soup.
- Make it vegetarian. Skip the chicken, use vegetable stock and add 1 can cannellini beans.
- Make it gluten-free. Lemon chicken orzo soup can easily be made gluten-free by using gluten-free orzo or swapping out the orzo for rice.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
pro tip
Make ahead of time and store the orzo separately.
Because the orzo will continue to soak up the broth, cook and store the orzo separately if making this ahead of time.
what to serve with lemon chicken orzo soup
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, chicken breasts can absolutely be used here but chicken thighs have more dark meat and a higher fat content which will yield juicier, more flavorful chicken.
You can use either chicken broth or chicken stock but always season, to taste, as store-bought broth is often saltier than store-bought stock. Broth is made from meat and vegetables while stock is often lower sodium and thicker than broth, and is made from bones and vegetables.
The orzo is cooked directly in the soup, absorbing all the flavorful broth. But if you are planning for leftovers or freezing, the orzo should be cooked and stored separately.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days, adding a splash of water or stock as needed.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the orzo pasta (or else they will get mushy) in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding freshly cooked orzo pasta when serving.
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch chunks
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 5 cups chicken stock
- 2 bay leaves
- ¾ cup orzo pasta
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chicken to the stockpot and cook until golden, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.
- Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the stockpot. Add garlic, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in chicken stock, bay leaves and 1 cup water; bring to a boil.
- Stir in orzo, rosemary and chicken; reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender, about 10-12 minutes.
- Stir in lemon juice and parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
Equipment
Did you make this recipe?
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Beautiful one pot wonder dish! Still haven’t used orzo before but I want to try (:
A local restaurant in san leandro makes this, their Greek Lemon Chicken Rice soup, a few times a week and it is also delicious. I’m gonna try this version. Looks wonderful!!
NOTE: vid went too fast for me, had to replay a bunch of times and go back and look at somethings. ALSO, the font used in the vid was too hard to read (i.e. # cups of chicken broth, and it said “1 lemon” but it’s ‘juice from 1 lemon’ …) Please use a clearer font for easy reading. Thx.
This soup was so good! Perfect thing on a cold day. Only thing I did differently was add a little more orzo.
This soup is my favorite chicken soup ever! The lemon and parsley at the end give it a super fresh taste and it’s pretty easy to put together. Love it!
Can you use rotisserie chicken?
Yes, absolutely.
This was just outstanding! Had leftover rotisserie chicken and homemade chicken broth on hand. I’d saved this recipe on Pinterest and pulled it out today. I made it almost to recipe, just a couple of changes. Rotisserie chicken and homemade broth, basmati rice instead of the orzo, added the zest of the lemon, and 1/2 the juice. I added 1 can of cream of chicken soup just to give it a little more creaminess. Made some rosemary focaccia to serve alongside with some fresh veggies. The lemon makes this recipe! Thanks for the fabulous recipe!
yummm!!!
This recipe has become our family favorite! I use ground chicken instead as I can get it from the farmers market. ..no chopping of chicken makes it even easier! S
What is the exact serving size?
Sorry I don’t see it above. The serving size was noted as 1-2 cups.
No worries at all! There’s a lot of comments to sift through.
I just had the soup it is fantastic and is my new favorite. I didn’t have any lemons so I used a lime instead and it was really good. Also I just measured out 6 servings and it was 1 1/2 cups and if anyone does weight watchers the smart points is 8. Thank you for the recipe. I will be making again!
Excellent recipe! I made it for my husband because he had a cold. He love it so much that he asked me to make it again the following day. Damn delicious!
Everything I make of yours is damn delicious! This recipe is no different. Finally a chicken soup that taste like chicken soup should taste. I made it as written and would not change a thing.
I made this last night, and the two of us finished it. Well, I had one bowl, but he had at least two. Delicious, simple. Thank you for sharing.
I’m guessing the bay leaf and thyme are added when cooking the veggies?
Please refer to steps 2 and 3:
2. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the stockpot. Add garlic, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Whisk in chicken stock, bay leaves and 1 cup water; bring to a boil. Stir in orzo, rosemary and chicken; reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender, about 10-12 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Serve immediately.
Saw this beautiful soup and had to make immediately. Just looked outside at my summer spice garden and it is flourishing. This is the perfect recipe to utilize the fresh herbs!
Soo YUMMY! Being sick I was looking for a new chicken soup to make instead of my old tired recipe and this was a great choice! Thanks!
FIVE STARS! I love chicken soup and this is one of the best had. Thanks!
Thanks for this recipe! This came out so amazingly well. It was my first time cooking a soup and my girlfriend absolutely loved it.
It tasted even better on the second day as the orzo soaked up all of the flavor.
This recipe sounds delicious! I would like to try making it in a pressure cooker. Do you know if I need to reduce the amount of liquid in that case? Thanks in advance!
Unfortunately, I cannot answer with certainty as I have never used a pressure cooker before. As always, please use your best judgment.
I am not typically a commenter, but I had to leave a note this time. This recipe is out of this world- soup-erb.
I always get nervous when it comes to adding lemon to a recipe because it can really over power the flavors, but this was the perfect amount. The lemon, herbs and the orzo really made this soup a winner. I’ve shared your link at least six times with different groups of friends and even some strangers. Five stars all around! Thanks for sharing with all of us!
I woke up sick this morning with a craving for chicken soup. I am, of course, home alone with no one to cook for me, so to Pinterest I went! I saved this recipe a while ago and rediscovered it as I was searching for a recipe this morning. Let me just say that it is delicious and oh so easy to make, especially since I’m sick. I didn’t have carrots, but it was still very tasty. I also added extra herbs as I had some left over. I will defiantly add this recipe to my regular rotation and it will be my go-to for sick days!
This is what chicken soup should be. 🙂 My belly is smiling too!