Hearty Brown Rice Chicken Soup – Wholesome and Delicious! 🍲

Name: Chicken Rice Soup
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 3 pound whole chicken (or see notes); 2 tsp kohser salt (or half as much if using fine table salt); 1 onion, roughly chopped; 1 carrot, peeled and roughly chopped; 2 stalks of celery, roughly chopped; 2 bay leaves; 1 cup brown rice; 2 cups chicken stock (or the amount as per your rice package); 2 celery stalks; 1 carrot; ½ medium onion; 1 cup frozen peas, optional; kosher salt, to taste; pepper, to taste; fresh herbs such as green onions, dill, basil, parsley or combination, for serving; 3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more to taste plus lemon slices for serving

Written by Ellen Published on June 12, 2019 in Soup and Salad

This brown rice chicken soup is the perfect comfort dish—hearty, filling, and packed with goodness! You can easily prepare portions of this soup the day before, so when it’s time to cook, everything comes together in just 30 minutes. It’s similar to the classic chicken noodle soup we all know and love, but with a healthier twist—nutrient-rich brown rice replaces the pasta for extra fiber and wholesome flavor. Plus, a splash of lemon juice adds a fresh, zesty kick!

I love making this soup for dinner and enjoying it again the next day for lunch. The consistency can be customized to your liking—make it as thick or as thin as you prefer! For a vibrant finish, I like to garnish mine with dill, green onions, and basil, but feel free to use any herbs you love or skip them altogether.

If you’re a fan of Greek Avgolemono soup, you’ll notice some similarities in flavor. But while Avgolemono uses a lemon-egg mixture to thicken the broth, this version sticks to a classic chicken and rice base.

I love herbs, so I garnish my soup with dill, green onions and basil. Use all or some of these herbs or omit entirely if it’s not up to your taste.

This soup is actually very similar in flavour and preparation to the Greek Avgolemono soup, except that in Avgolemono soup, the broth is thickened with lemon-egg combination. I contemplated making avgolemono soup, but decided to make chicken rice instead. Both are delicious!

Hope you guys make it soon. Let me know how you like it!

DifficultyBeginner

Yields6 Servings

For the homemade chicken stock:

1 3 pound whole chicken (or see notes)

2 tsp kohser salt (or half as much if using fine table salt)

1 onion, roughly chopped

1 carrot, peeled and roughly chopped

2 stalks of celery, roughly chopped

2 bay leaves

For the soup:

1 cup brown rice

2 cups chicken stock (or the amount as per your rice package)

2 celery stalks

1 carrot

½ medium onion

1 cup frozen peas, optional

kosher salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

fresh herbs such as green onions, dill, basil, parsley or combination, for serving

3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more to taste plus lemon slices for serving

Combine all of the stock ingredients in a large stock pot. The liquid should just barely cover the chicken, add a bit more stock if needed. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer for 60-75 minutes until the chicken is cooked through, tender, falling off the bone. If you are using chicken pieces (instead of the full chicken), you may only need 35-45 minutes.
Strain the stock into a heat resistant container. Cool the chicken and shred it once it's cool enough to touch. Use stock and chicken right away or store in the fridge. if you are planning to make your chicken pot pie at a later time.
Discard the bones, bay leaf and cooked vegetables (or snack on the boiled carrots and celery like I do!)

Cook rice as per the package instructions (typically, 1 cup of brown rice will need 2 cups of liquid and about half an hour of cooking,) however, use chicken stock instead of water.

Heat oil in a heavy-bottom stock pot. Add onions, carrots and celery and cook for 7-10 minutes until soft and just starting to turn golden.

Add chicken stock and bring everything to a simmer and simmer for about 5 minutes. Stir in rice, chicken and peas. Simmer until they are just heated through. Somewhere around 5 minutes or so. Taste your soup and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper.

Add some fresh lemon juice to the soup. We are adding only a little bit of lemon juice just to brighten up the flavours; then we serve the soup with extra lemon wedges so each diner can adjust the amount of lemon juice according to their own taste. I personally add a lot of lemon juice to my bowls of this delicious chicken rice soup.

Ladle the soup into your serving bowls. Garnish with the herbs of choice. Serve with extra lemon wedges.

Ingredients