Chicken Meatball Noodle Soup
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Tastes just like everyone’s favorite chicken noodle soup but it’s made 1000x better with chicken meatballs!
I know I just experienced -1 degree F weather in Indianapolis during the holidays but I will still say this. It’s still cold at 56 degrees F in Los Angeles.
I thought I could brave the cold a bit better here in Southern California after Indy, but boy was I wrong. So, Butters and I are not leaving the house today.
He’s in a fancy cable knit sweater and I’m already on my second bowl of this chicken noodle soup with extra chicken meatballs in my bowl.
Because let’s be honest, the meatballs are legit the best part of this soup.
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Chicken Meatball Noodle Soup: Frequently Asked Questions
Not at all! Ground beef, ground pork or ground turkey can be used instead of ground 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 (or else they will get mushy) in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding freshly cooked orzo when serving.
Chicken Meatball Noodle Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cup orzo pasta
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
For the chicken meatballs
- 1 pound ground chicken
- ⅓ cup Panko
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, Panko, Parmesan, oregano, basil, parsley, garlic powder and red pepper flakes, if using; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Using a wooden spoon or clean hands, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 3/4-to-1-inch meatballs, forming about 25-30 meatballs.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add meatballs, in batches, and cook until all sides are browned, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; 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 and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Stir in orzo, rosemary and meatballs; reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender and meatballs are cooked through, about 10-12 minutes.
- Stir in lemon juice and parsley; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
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Love getting your recipes. I have made a few. The only girl in the house besides me is my Corgi Melody. Love her to bits.
Sincerely ,
Beth Howell
Thank you, Beth!
I made this tonight and it was so good! I used ground turkey and added a few handfuls of kale. My husband and children all loved it. The meatballs are extremely flavorful.
Thanks so much for sharing Carolina!
I love it that the meatballs are egg free! I cannot eat egg because of a severe allergy and it is always very hard to find meatballs recipes without eff in them
this soup sounds great!
Great!
Damn delicious!!! I used tortellini rather than orzo. And for a little extra nutrution – ladeled the soup over fresh spinach (which quickly wilted to a prefect consistency). And don’t forger the lemon juice!!! Really tasty soup!
Great modifications!
I realized I’ve made this several times and not given my feedback yet. This is the best soup ever! I dislike chicken noodle soup but this has the perfect ingredients that make me love it. The meatballs and orzo.. Oh my so heavenly. Making it again today because I’m obsessed. Thanks for this awesome recipe. I love everything you make
Thanks, Lisa!
I made this last evening & it was a very nice soup. I think the main takeaway for me would be the chicken meatballs. They were very good & I’ll make them again with this soup & independent of it. Thank you for posting the recipe.
Thanks, Amy!
Looks delish!! Can I make this soup in a slow cooker?
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without having tried this myself, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment when making substitutions and modifications.
I’ve been looking for a new ground chicken recipe and I will make this and let you know.
I am a chicken soup lover and this did not disappoint! So yummy and delicious. I used chicken bone broth for extra flavor and it was fantastic. Thanks so much for all you’re great recipes!
We love that!
Enjoyed soup. Added a handful of spinach and used dried parsley and thyme. Baked the meatballs and used turkey not chicken. Overall it was different and loved the spicy kick (did add hot pepper flakes). Next time I would double orzo and veggies. Very good and easy to prepare.
Meatballs fell apart and stuck to bottom of pot, even with oil in it. Gave up and had to find something else to eat. Disappointing because I love most of the recipes on this site.
Oh no – I am so sorry to hear that, Katie! Did you follow the recipe exactly as written without any substitutions? I have made this numerous times without any issues with the meatballs! What kind of pot did you use?
Delicious!
The meat stays together without a egg?
Yes.
Tried this soup yesterday and it was so damn delicious 😉
Thank you!!!
How come you never show calories count on your recipes ?
Nutritional information is provided only for select and some new recipes at this time. However, if it is not available for a specific recipe, we recommend using free online resources at your discretion (you can Google “nutritional calculator”) to obtain such information. Hope that helps!
We made this soup and loved it, though we used ground turkey breast and homemade stock from a smoked chicken. One question, though… We’d never heard Orzo referred to as noodles. Yes, it’s pasta, but not really noodles is it? That would bekind of like calling couscous “tiny noodles.” LOL! Whatever you call it, we call it delicious!
Glad you liked it!
This soup is wonderful!! I made one change and that was baking the meatballs in the oven on 400 F for 20 mintes. It worker out great, rotating half way through. Everything else I kept the same. Thank you for this deliciouly easy soup.
Awesome! So glad you liked it!
This soup was absolutely delicious!!!!! I have tried a couple of your recipes and I have not been disappointed. Thank you so much. I don’t cook that often because it’s hard to cook a meal for one person, but trying your recipes has made me want to get back in the kitchen.
Thank you, Alice!
Just made this for dinner (I skipped the thyme as my family is not a big fan). It was so delicious and light but still filled us up. Loved it!
So happy to hear you loved it!
Hi Chungah,
The recipe looks delicious and healthy at the same time. I am allergic to gluten so can I use the gluten free pasta instead of the orzo pasta you mentioned?
Yes, of course!