Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
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This cozy lemon chicken orzo soup is packed with feel-good veggies and tender chicken in a soothing lemony broth. Made in 30 min or less!
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Why you’ll love lemon chicken orzo soup
- Comforting and light. Say hello to the best kind of vibrant, light, lemony broth, warming you from the inside out. It’s a fun, cozy cross between traditional chicken noodle soup and chicken and rice soup.
- One pot convenience. Believe it or not, this is incredibly easy to whip up and comes together very quickly in one single pot, even the dried orzo, making cleanup an absolute breeze.
- Freezes beautifully. This soup freezes and reheats like a dream, perfect for those busy weeknights and lazy weekends, especially when you’re feeling under the weather.
Key Ingredients
- Chicken: boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts (or you can substitute shredded rotisserie chicken, adding towards the end of cooking time until warmed through)
- Aromatics: garlic, onion, carrots, celery, thyme, and bay leaves
- Liquid: low-sodium chicken stock or chicken broth and water
- Pasta: uncooked orzo pasta
- Citrus: freshly squeezed lemon juice
how to make Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
- Cook the chicken. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Then cook the chicken in a Dutch oven coated with olive oil over medium heat until golden brown; set aside.
- Sauté the aromatics. Add additional oil, then stir in the garlic, onion, carrots, and celery until tender. Stir in the thyme until fragrant.
- Add the liquids. Stir in the chicken stock, water, and bay leaves.
- Simmer. Stir in the orzo, rosemary, and seared chicken, simmering until the orzo is tender and cooked through.
- Finish. Stir in the freshly squeezed lemon juice, parsley, salt, and pepper.
- Serve. Ladle into bowls and serve warm with crusty bread.
what to serve with lemon chicken orzo soup
Tools For This Recipe
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.
Orzo is a short-cut type pasta, similar in shape to a long grain of rice. Orzo also cooks much faster than traditional rice, making this soup a simple one-pot dinner ready in about 30 minutes.
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.
Store leftovers 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
- 1 cup water
- 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 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, water and bay leaves; bring to a boil.
- Stir in orzo, rosemary and chicken; reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in lemon juice and parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
Equipment
Notes
- Use good-quality stock. The better quality your stock, the better your soup. Since many brands love to pack in the salt, 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. Use gluten-free orzo or swap out the orzo for rice.
- Repurpose leftovers. Save time and add shredded rotisserie chicken towards the end of cooking time.
- Add leafy greens. This is a great soup recipe to sneak in more veggies such as spinach or kale, stirring in just before serving until wilted.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with homemade crusty bread or garlic parmesan knots for dipping, sopping and dunking!
- Store the orzo separately. Cook and store the orzo separately if making this ahead of time as the orzo will continue to soak up the broth.
Did you make this recipe?
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delicious and so easy to make
I’ve been making this recipe for years with some adjustments! I sub the chicken thighs for breasts and add a teaspoon each of oregano and red chili flakes with the thyme in step 2. Then add a bunch of spinach and the zest of half a lemon at the very end.
This soup is DELICIOUS! We make this all the time and everyone always raves about it! We make it all the time.
A couple tips… To save time, I use a store-bought rotisserie chicken and cut it up (chop up skinned breast meat), and add it to the soup toward the end. If you have leftover soup, the orzo tends to soak up the broth. You may need to add more broth, or you can cook the orzo separately before adding it to the soup.
Brought this soup to a work soup potluck and won first place – thanks for sharing such a great recipe!
I can honestly say this is the ONE recipe that I have gone back to over and over again. This will be my third winter making it (this specific recipe). When someone eats it for the first time, they then request the recipe! Such a delicious, healthy, soup recipe!
Time Savings Trick – a tub of Trade Joe’s fresh Mirepoix (chopped carrot, celery & onion) greatly reduces prep. I used a tub, and had a bit of extra chopped onion on hand which I also added. I did not rush sautéing the Mirepoix – i let this get very golden, almost caramelized (adding bit of broth as needed to prevent sticking), before adding the garlic. Also highly recommend Dorot Gardens FROZEN crushed garlic cubes….they are a bit pricey, but greatly reduce prep time and taste fresh (I do NOT care for the jars of minced garlic …much too strong a flavor for me). ONE TIP – add lemon juice incrementally. I happened too gave a very juicy lemon – had I added entire lemon, would have been overpowering. Also added a bit of chopped fresh kale for extra veggie and color. Will def make again!!! Thanks for another super recipe!!!
November 2022 – I’ve made this recipe twice now. I used the juice of 2 lemons and skinless chicken breasts instead of what was specified in recipe. It is incredibly easy to make and is delicious! Thank you.
We made this tonight and it was a hug in a bowl!
I used ground chicken, instead of chicken breasts and I would season them next time, but overall just a wonderful blend of flavors. Since there were only two of us eating, I am excited about leftover tomorrow and I am rarely excited about leftovers. Thank you!
When you use the chicken breast, did you boil them first and then add it to the soup towards the end?
We had a bag of orzo and didn’t know what to do with it. I looked up recipes on-line and saw DD had this one. Made it and it’s immediately become one of our soup favorites.
Absolutely delicious, comfort food at the finest!
Since learning this recipe and following it step by step it has become a family staple. My pickiest kid loves it so much. Thank you for sharing
I’m in love with this soup. But I am wondering how many calories there is in a portion?
I’ve made this many times; usually with Costco rotisserie chicken and broth/stock made from the carcass. I cook the orzo separately and add it per serving as I’m only eating for one person.
Absolutely delicious! What a wonderful soup and now a new favorite for me. Thanks for sharing!
Delicious says it all!
Fabulous! Dipped buttered sourdough in it and wow! Sooo good
This has been a favourite soup for me from the first time I made it a few years ago.
My work friend who is an excellent cook (I aspire to be that good) actually asked me for the recipe after he tasted it. Every time I make it for me, I save a serve for him as well.
Had some friends sick with Winter colds in Australia who have really appreciated me making them a batch as well.
Freezes well also!
This is my fav soup. Nice recipe.
I make this every time I get a Costco rotisserie chicken, which is about once a month. Make delicious stock from the carcass. (It’s on the stove right now) Lots of free citrus in my California neighborhood, which helps keep the cost down! I add spinach, too.
I made this soup exactly as written. My family and I loved it. Another winning recipe from Damn Delicious. Thank you
I have made this probably five times now (lemon trees are prolific in my neighborhood) and have two tips. 1 cook the carrots separately and first. 2: cook the orzo separately and don’t add it until you’ve dished up the bowls, otherwise it will expand and get soggy
I’ve made this four times now and haven’t changed a thing! Simply outstanding! Took to friends that had Covid and they loved it too and now are making for themselves. My husband usually picks carrots out of everything but he gobbled them up too!