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Plus, I have a tip for you. If you make the chicken in your slow cooker the day before, you can also make Overnight Chicken Stock in there to use in the soup as well. Not only will it taste SO much better than store-bought broth, but it will save you money and be better for you. What more could you ask for this holiday season? Haha! Well, probably more than just that, but STILL. Not bad, right? I think I'll double this recipe next time I make it so that I can stash some away in the freezer.
I've been wanting a new soup recipe to add to my repertoire for some time now and this one exceeded my expectations! Enjoy.
Quick Chicken & Orzo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ onion (minced)
- 5 carrots (peeled, trimmed, and diced)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper (double if you like a little kick)
- 6 cups chicken stock/broth
- ¾ cup whole-wheat orzo pasta (uncooked)
- 3 cups shredded/chopped cooked chicken (I used The Best Whole Chicken in a Crockpot, but you could also sub rotisserie)
- 3 cups fresh spinach leaves (chopped)
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 lemon (juiced)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill (chopped)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the onion and the carrots (while stirring) until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and the red pepper, and cook for another minute.
- Pour in the stock and bring to a boil. Add the orzo and cook until al dente, about 6 minutes.
- Stir in the chicken, spinach, cream, lemon juice, salt, and dill, and simmer until heated all the way through. Ladle into bowls and serve.
B says
Could I add uncooked, chopped chicken breast to the soup and cook with the orzo? Or cook with the veggies at the beginning?
100 Days Admin says
Hi. For this quick, 20-minute soup recipe, we would recommend sticking with cooked chicken. - Nicole
Kelly says
We are a dairy free family. What do you use in place of heavy cream? Not everyone is a fan of the coconut milk flavor.
100 Days Admin says
You can leave the heavy cream out in this recipe and it will still be good. We don't specialize in dairy-free recipes but others have mentioned they've used non-dairy creamers before. - Nicole
Ofelia says
Can you substitute with the whole-wheat orzo pasta with organic egg noodles?
100 Days Admin says
That should work, but we use the whole-wheat orzo in order to keep it within our Real Food Rules. - Nicole
june says
where do you get ww orzo? your link is to a broken amazon page
100 Days Admin says
Thank you for letting us know. We've updated the link: https://amzn.to/3DpzLMO
-Nicole
Natalie McCurdy says
Absolutely yummy!! Our whole family liked it. Even added an extra cup of spinach. Will be making another batch to freeze.
Beth says
This soup is delicious! I also wanted to comment on your Rice pilaf with orzo from your cookbook. I made it last night and oh my!! I felt as though I was eating orzo from a fancy restaurant, it was absolutely delicious! My family loved it and between the four of us we ate the whole batch. Thank you for all of your incredible recipes, we have all three cookbooks and we are making our way through making everything. Today I am making your slow cooker flank steak fajitas- cant wait to try them, they already smell
Delicious!
Liz says
Just made this tonight and my 4 littles devoured it!! Asked for seconds and thirds! Omitted the fresh dill but left everything else as is!! Yum!
Lauren Wood says
My whole family really liked it! I had to add a few more cups of broth to make it “soupy”.
Rosa Lamb says
This was delicious!! I didn’t have dill but had everything else and it was perfect for the freezing weather today in Chicago!
[email protected] says
My family loved this soup! I’m glad I doubled the recipe! ;)
Jennifer Wilson says
Does this soup freeze well?
100 Days Admin says
Jennifer, yes it does. -Nicole
Rachael says
Wow! You did an incredible job with this recipe! It’s delicious! My entire family loved it. Thanks so much for sharing!
Nicole says
My husband was recently under the weather + it's cold out = this soup is absolute perfection. We also made enough to have leftovers for lunch at school the next day (we are teachers)! So good. #nomnom
Nicol says
I also needed to add another 4 cups of broth on top of the 6 cups, but I also omitted the spinach. This is a great recipe!
Nicol Hebein says
I also needed to add another 4 cups of broth on top of the 6 cups, but I also omitted the spinach. This is a great recipe!
MelissaB says
Really yummy. I did need to add more chicken broth (8-9 cups instead of 6). Will make again!
Lisa says
Glad you enjoyed it!
Julie says
I wonder how long this would take in the instant pot.. Has anyone given that a shot?
This is so happening either way! <3
[email protected] says
The soup was good, but I would leave out the lemon juice. I didn't care for that flavor in a chicken soup.
Lisa says
We actually really liked that flavor in there, but easy enough to leave it out!
Elcy Wang says
Excellent recipe, although this took me 1 hr and 10 minutes start to finish, so not exactly a 20 minute soup! All family members enjoyed this recipe immensely. The only thing I may do differently is skip the 1/4 cup of heavy cream as I prefer a clear broth.
Lisa says
Was your chicken not already cooked when you started? Glad you still enjoyed it.
Leora Valdez says
Hi, my husband is lactose intolerant and for these types of recipes I use a non-dairy creamer. Publix has a wonderful product and it works well in soups, gravies, etc and coffee!
Pattia says
I made this soup over the weekend. It is fantastic! And I love how easy it is.
Lisa says
I'm so glad!
Julie Scott says
Hi Lisa, can you leave out the heavy cream?
Megan Hartten says
This was delicious! I left out the heavy cream, but totally by accident!! (I even bought some at the store specifically for this recipe lol.) It still turned out great!
Lisa says
Absolutely!
Steph says
Quick question: the kid is lactose intolerant but loves chicken noodle soup. What can be substituted for the heavy cream?
Laura says
I was thinking the same and wondering how coconut milk would be?
Cami Singh says
I am not a chef at all, but one of my children and I can’t do dairy. We have experimented over the years. We have found that for such a small amount in a recipe that most times we can leave it out and be ok. We have used a little bit of corn starch to thicken it up a little and have also used coconut milk coffee creamer. I know it sounds weird, but as long as it’s not flavored it has worked well for us since it’s thicker. Again, this has been our personal experience.
Melissa says
I agree with the other post. You can probably leave out the heavy cream and it will still be amazing. Sometimes to thicken up a soup I add some mashed cannelloni beans though.
Lisa says
You can just leave it out!
Marni says
Barring nut allergies, 1/2 cup unsalted cashews-ground into a flour, makes for a nice thickener. It gives that creamy texture, without adding cream. Solves the dairy issue, and adds protein, too!