This cozy Chicken Soup recipe is made with bone-in chicken thighs, orzo and lemon juice. Extra vegetables and a little ginger make it super flavorful, warming and great for a chilly day!
Sometimes there is just nothing better than a bowl of warm chicken soup on a chilly day. Especially when it requires minimal prep and is full of flavor.
If you love soup, you'll also love my Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup, Stuffed Pepper Soup and Slow Cooker Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Soup.
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🌟Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Healthy. This chicken soup is filled with vegetables, anti-inflammatory turmeric and ginger.
- Filling. The soup is hearty and will keep you full for hours. If you are in the mood for potato soup, check out my Chicken Potato Soup.
- Flavorful. Juicy bone-in chicken thighs make this soup extra flavorful.
🥘Ingredients and Substitutions
- Chicken thighs- this recipe calls for bone-in chicken thighs. They add so much additional flavor to the chicken soup and are juicy, unlike chicken breasts. I highly recommend not substituting them. However, you can use boneless chicken thighs if you prefer.
- Vegetables- you will need a yellow or white onion, carrots, celery and zucchini. If you prefer, you can add any of your favorite vegetables such as spinach or corn.
- Orzo- use ¾ cup of orzo. You can also use another small pasta such as ditalini.
- Lemon juice- the juice from ½ of a lemon squeezed in at the end elevates this soup.
See the recipe card below for quantities and remaining ingredients.
🔪Instructions
This delicious lemon and orzo chicken soup recipe comes together easily in one pot. Dinner will be done in less than an hour.
- Brown the chicken thighs. In a large pot, add olive oil and brown the chicken on both sides. Take the chicken thighs out of the pot, remove the skin and set aside.
- Sauté the veggies. Add the vegetables to the pot and cook until softened.
- Stir in the spices. Combine the vegetables with the spices, add the chicken back in and pour in the broth. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Shred the chicken. Remove the chicken from the pot, get rid of the bones and shred. Add it back to the pot with the orzo.
- Serve. Once the orzo is cooked, turn off the heat and squeeze in lemon juice. Serve and enjoy!
💭Recipe FAQs
Yes! This recipe is perfect for making a big batch of soup to enjoy as lunches or dinners throughout the week. The soup will stay good in the fridge for about 2 days before the orzo becomes too mushy. If storing for longer you may want to cook and store the orzo separately from the soup. This will allow you to keep leftovers for about 5 days.
I recommend browning chicken before adding it to the soup. It helps to improve the flavor of the soup and tends to be safer.
You can use any type of herb in your chicken soup but I always love thyme, rosemary and bay leaves. Parsley and oregano are also great options.
👩🏻🍳Chef Tips
- Use low-sodium chicken broth and season with additional salt at the end. This allows you to control the amount of salt in the soup and not add too much.
- You can freeze the soup for up to 3 months but it may be best to add orzo when reheating. Reheat in the microwave for about 2 minutes.
- The bone will easily fall out after cooking when you go to shred the chicken.
🥗Serving
I recommend serving the chicken soup on its own as it is filling as is. However, you can serve it with crackers, crusty bread and butter or your favorite sandwich. Serve my Chai Sugar Cookies or Strawberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies for dessert!
More Chicken Recipes
- One-Pot Coconut Curry Chicken Thighs50 Minutes
- Dairy-Free White Chicken Chili42 Minutes
- Oven Roasted Whole Chicken and Potatoes1 Hours 45 Minutes
- Instant Pot Chicken Osso Buco30 Minutes
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating & comment below to let me know how it came out. Thanks for visiting!
🍳Recipe
Lemon Orzo Chicken Soup with Chicken Thighs
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 pounds bone in chicken thighs
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary or 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
- 4 cups chicken broth
- ¾ cup orzo
- ½ lemon juiced
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken thighs for 2-3 minutes per side.
- Remove the chicken from the pan, let cool for a few minutes and remove the skin.
- Add the onion, carrots, celery and zucchini to the pot and cook until softened, about 4 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic, salt, pepper, turmeric and ginger.
- Add chicken back to the pot with the bay leaf, thyme and rosemary.
- Pour in the chicken broth, cover the pot and bring the soup to a boil.
- Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes
- Take the chicken out of the pot, remove the bones and shred with two forks.
- Add the chicken back to the pot with the orzo and simmer for another 10-15 minutes until the orzo is cooked.
- Turn off the heat and squeeze in the lemon juice. Taste and season with more salt if necessary. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Use low-sodium chicken broth and season with additional salt at the end. This allows you to control the amount of salt in the soup and not add too much.
- You can freeze the soup for up to 3 months but it may be best to add orzo when reheating. Reheat in the microwave for about 2 minutes.
- The bone will easily fall out after cooking when you go to shred the chicken.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Pamela Walden says
I think this soup is going to taste fabulous, but the prep time is off by about an hour and a half! Just make sure you leave plenty of time for all the veggie chopping 😁
Sarah Holt says
Hi Pamela, thanks for the feedback. I will adjust the prep time. Let me know how the recipe comes out!