Chicken and Rice Soup

A quick and easy, light and healthy homemade chicken and rice soup!

One of my favourite comfort foods is chicken soup and this chicken and rice soup is the perfect pick me up food for any occasion! Chicken soup is so easy to make at home! It starts with veggies; onions, carrots and celery and it’s seasoned with garlic, thyme parsley and lemon. The main components are the chicken, rice, and chicken broth. This is the pretty basic chicken soup recipe and you can modify it to taste, by changing up the herbs, adding spices, veggies, etc., (I have added some options below the recipe.) No matter how you make this chicken and rice soup, it’s bound to please! (I like to make a double batch and store it in containers in the fridge and freezer for quick meals later!)

Chicken and Rice Soup

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Total Time: 45 minutes Servings: 6

A quick and easy, light and healthy homemade chicken and rice soup!

ingredients

1 tablespoon oil
1 cup onion, diced
1 cup carrot, diced
1 cup celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons thyme, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
8 cups chicken broth or chicken stock
1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts or thighs*
2 bay leaves (optional)
1 cup jasmine rice (or other long grained rice)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

directions

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, add the onions, carrot, and celery, and cook until tender, about 7-10 minutes.
Add the garlic and thyme and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
Add the broth, chicken, bay leaves and rice, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender, about 20 minutes.
Remove the chicken and bay leaf from the soup, slice or shred the chicken, and return it to the pot.
Add the lemon juice and parsley before seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: You want the chicken to cook in about the same amount of time as it takes to cook the rice, about 20 minutes, so slice the chicken to a maximum of 1 inch thick.
Option: Brown the chicken in oil in the saucepan before step 1.
Option: Used cooked and sliced or shredded chicken!
Option: Use bone in, skin on, chicken for more flavour! Leave out the rice in step 3 and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, before removing it and adding the rice to cook until tender. While the rice is cooking remove the chicken meat from the bones and slice or shred before placing the meat back into the soup.
Option: Add 2 cups of diced potatoes along with the chicken and rice.
Option: Add 1 cup corn near the end.
Option: Add 1 cup peas near the end.
Option: Add 1/2 teaspoon turmeric.
Option: Add a pinch of cayenne.
Option: Add a pinch of nutmeg.
Option: Add 1/4 cup grated parmesan, asiago, or pecorino cheese near the end.
Option: Replace the thyme with rosemary, or sage, oregano, dill, poultry seasoning, ranch seasoning, Italian seasoning, etc.
Option: Add 1/2 cup heavy/whipping cream.
Option: Add 4 ounces cream cheese.
Option: Add 4 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled!
Option: Add 1 tablespoon white miso paste at the end. (Mix it into 1/4 cup of broth from the soup before mixing it back into the soup.)

Nutrition Facts: Calories 314, Fat 8g (Saturated 1g, Trans 0), Cholesterol 64mg, Sodium 522mg, Carbs 41g (Fiber 1g, Sugars 7g), Protein 28g

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Chicken and Rice Soup

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