Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
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Chockfull of hearty veggies and tender chicken in a refreshing lemony broth. It is PURE COMFORT in a bowl!
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.
But let me tell you that this is not your ordinary chicken noodle soup. The traditional noodles are swapped out and orzo pasta is used instead. And my favorite part about this soup is the freshly squeezed lemon juice stirred in at the very end, served with alllll the crusty bread. It makes all of the difference, really.
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.
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
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
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.
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Just made this for dinner. Kids loved it. So simple and easy. Really light and fresh! Thanks!
I I just made this. I roasted a chicken and then made my own stock from the carcass. It was wonderful. Thank you so much for the recipe
I am making this today, I have a whole chicken in the crockpot with rosemary, onion, carrot, and celery, I will use the chicken and broth for this. I searched my stores for orzo but for some reason it isn’t carried around here 🙁 I will use either jasmine rice or some tiny ABC noodles that I have.
I’ve made this for my husband before and he just loved it, requested I make it again tonight which I plan on doing, makes our house smell amazing! He requests one strange substitution though: for some reason the idea of orzo pasta freaks him out (don’t ask, lol) so I’ve subbed it out for the small star shaped pasta. Brings you back to your childhood of eating chicken and stars soup… except for the grown up, damn delicious lemon flavor! Thanks for the yummy recipe!
I just made this soup and it’s absolutely delishes. I didn’t add the rosemary, because I didn’t have it on hand, but otherwise I love it! I was looking for recipes for my picky daughter and I think she will love it, too! Thanks!!
I just made this soup and its delish. Just the right blend of aromatics make this a keeper. Thank you so much for the recipe and the great photos on your website!
Have everything here to make this soup – as soon as the chicken thaws out. 🙂 Also love the comment that someone used their rice cooker to make soup in. I’ll try that but not when feeding my crowd since I have a small pot. Any help here would be appreciated. When I make rice in it I just close the lid and it does it’s own wonderful thing! Thank you for your fantastic recipes and insights.
I made this soup. It was great, but looked different from yours. Your chicken stock is really yellow. Do you buy chance use a bullion cube? Or buy a certain type of chicken stock? I used Swanson and it looked very different than your picture.
No, I did not use a bouillon cube. I used standard chicken stock.
This was absolutely delicious, Chungah! Making again tonight for the fam, thanks for sharing
It says cook chicken 3 min & set aside, then add more oil carrots celery etc. and cook 3-4 min… Is this in the same pot together with the chicken? The “set aside” part confused me, don’t want to overcook the chicken.
The chicken should be set aside so that it is not overcooked with the rest of the vegetables.
My family loved this soup! It was easy to make too 🙂
I know it says “serve immediately”, but I would like to bring it to a friend in a tupperware. Can I make it a day earlier than they will eat it, and refrigerate it? Or should I cook the orzo separately and just tell them to add it right before reheating?
The orzo should be cooked separately and kept separate until serving.
Great, thanks! Thanks for the quick reply, too! Thanks, also, for yet another wonderful, delicious recipe!!
Hi, just wondering whether this could be made freezer friendly once it is cooked? Would the chicken/pasta be OK? I am very keen to try this, but since there is only my husband and myself I like to freeze some left over portions for future easy dinners 🙂
Claire, this can be freezer-friendly if you cook the orzo separately and keep it separate until serving. If not, the orzo will soak up all the liquid over time.
This looks really good! Anyone know the calories per serving?
Kirsten, feel free to use online resources at your discretion to obtain nutritional information.
I made this today. My house smelled divine while I was making it. Thank you for such a great recipe. This one is going to my list of “go to” ones.
So yummy. Made this for lunch today. But I’m a vegetarian, so I made a couple of changes. Left out the chicken ( of course) and used homemade veggie broth. So good , so good.
Really just looking for a good reason to make the house smell like rosemary. 🙂
I made this tonight and it was wonderful! Hubby loved it! I used Basmati rice instead of orzo pasta, but everything else was the same. Thanks for another wonderful recipe!
I just had a big bowl ok two bowls:) while sitting outside in the evening sun. It had just the right amount of lemon in it.
I’ve never made soup before and tonight I made this for my family – it was great! I made it in a huuuge pot and my little family and I devoured it! Soo good for us taste wise and healthwise, it has become a favourite. Thank you!!! 🙂
I just made this and it tastes delicious, simple fast and healthy..