This creamy chicken lemon rice soup tastes like it came straight from your favorite Greek restaurant. It's a staple recipe for my family when soup season rolls around and is a hearty, creamy soup with lots of lemon flavor. If you have leftover rice or leftover chicken, consider this your fast and easy 30 minute dinner tonight!
This year's cold and flu season has been kicking my entire family's butt, so you know the drill: hot cinnamon ginger tea and lots of our favorite soups like classic chicken noodle soup...ooh, or tomato soup (especially for that vitamin C!) on tap.
Speaking of Vitamin C, this lemon chicken rice soup is packed with it. It's avgolemono: Greek lemon soup thickened with eggs and served with rice and bits of tender chicken.
She's the epitome of easy comfort food wrapped up in a warm bowl of soup, with loads of lemon to brighten up and cut through all the salty, rich flavors of chicken soup. Serve up your avgolemono soup with some sunny lemon slices and fresh herbs for a photo-worthy dish.
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What is avgolemono?
Avgolemono (greek for 'egg-lemon') is a creamy lemon-egg sauce family made with homemade chicken stock, lemon juice, and thickened with egg yolks.
So avgolemono soup is the Greek version of creamy chicken soup, a hearty soup made with rice, chicken, and a lemony broth.
And different versions of avgolemono sauces and soups are made all throughout the Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Iberian areas, so we can say it's a pretty popular dish.
What's interesting is that this is actually not originally a classic Greek soup...it's Sephardic Jewish cuisine. They used bitter orange juice, pomegranate juice, or unripened grape juice called verjuice before lemons became the acid of choice.
You may ask, "Does it taste like eggs?" and the answer is nope! The eggs lend no flavor, but they make the sauce or soup thicker and creamy in texture without a drop of dairy.
Equipment
You'll need a dutch oven or other large pot to hold your soup! I use my trusty 5 qt dutch oven every time I need a soup whipped up. It holds heat well and is large enough to make a double batch if I want!
Rice cooker - a good rice cooker will change your life! No more worrying about ruined rice ever again and no eyeballing a pot on the stove!
Ingredients
Bite-sized pieces of cooked chicken - this is the perfect time to use leftover cooked chicken. Unlike when making a chicken soup where the chicken has to braise or cook for a long period of time, we are just rewarming the chicken here. Chicken breasts, chicken thighs, or whole chicken that's been diced up or shredded is welcome here.
Kosher salt and black pepper.
Onions and celery -
Olive oil - yes y'all, I'm saying no butter here! Crazy! But does that mean this soup is also healthy? Hmm...
Cooked white rice - you'll need the rice cooked before starting this recipe. Leftover rice works great but like I said earlier, a rice cooker is your best friend here if you don't have any! I used long grain rice for this recipe, it's easy to find and doesn't change the flavor of your lemon rice soup.
Bay leaves - people just don't understand: bay leaves cut through rich, salty flavors in a subtle (but much needed way).
Fresh herbs - serve your lemon rice soup with some fresh, bright herbs. They bring good flavor! Fresh parsley, fresh dill, or scallions like I used, are perfect to give a little *fancy* and some flavor.
Egg yolks - you can use whole eggs but you run the risk of shreds of egg white running through the soup and easily scramble while tempering. Egg yolks are the easiest way to go.
Fresh lemons - it's not avgolemono without them! We use the lemon zest and fresh lemon juice in this recipe, so don't even think about the bottled stuff. Fresh is a million time better, anyway!
Chicken stock - Homemade chicken stock is always in my freezer, but if you don't have any don't grab a box from the grocery stores, get some bouillon base instead!
Instructions
Step 1 | sauté the onion and celery with the lemon zest over medium-high heat until the onion turns golden brown. Add the garlic and stir it in, letting cooking for about 1 minute.
Step 2 | Add the chicken broth, rice, bay leaf, and cooked chicken. Bring to a lively simmer over medium heat.
Step 3 | Mix the egg yolks and lemon juice together in a small bowl with enough room to add broth to.
Then temper the lemon-egg mixture with some little ladle of the hot broth. Tempering means adding a spoonful at a time of that hot broth to the eggs and whisking so the egg doesn't scramble when it's added to the soup.
Step 4 | Turn off the heat (very, very important!) and add the tempered eggs/ lemony broth mixture to the soup. Become mesmerized at how the soup becomes a rich and creamy texture. And that's it!
Variations and Substitutions
A popular variation for avgolemono soup is to swap the rice for orzo pasta! Orzo is rice shaped so I can see why.
Serve with warm pita bread, focaccia, or a slice of crusty bread!
Want a more brothy soup? Use only one egg yolk instead.
Pro Tips
Using a rotisserie chicken from the store makes this recipe an easy 'dinner tonight' kind of dish.
Vegetable broth can be used in lieu of chicken broth.
Do not boil this soup after adding the eggs. It will not be pleasant, trust me.
Storage, Freezing, and Reheating Instructions
Storage: Cool the soup to room temperature. Store the leftover soup in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Freeze: Pour the cooled soup into freezer-safe containers with enough room for the soup to expand. Freeze for up to 6 months!
Thaw: safely thaw in the fridge overnight before, do not defrost on your counter, y'all!
Reheat: on the stove in a saucepan over medium heat with a hearty splash of broth. Stir well so the bottom doesn't burn and remember: don't let it boil!
FAQs
Really, any kind of rice is great in this soup. Jasmine rice, basmati rice, wild rice, brown rice, even arborio rice works!
Yes you can freeze this soup since it's dairy free. Freeze portions in freezer-safe containers for up to 6 months.
More Cozy Chicken Soup Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Avgolemono Soup
This creamy chicken lemon rice soup tastes like it came straight from your favorite Greek restaurant. It's a staple recipe for my family when soup season rolls around and is a hearty, creamy soup with lots of lemon flavor. If you have leftover rice or leftover chicken, consider this your fast and easy 30 minute dinner tonight!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced finely
- 1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Zest of 2 lemons
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 cups cooked chicken thighs, shredded or cut into bite-sized cubes
- 2 cups cooked long grain rice
- 3 large egg yolks
- Juice of 2 lemons
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Slices of lemon, for garnish
- Chopped fresh parsley, dill, or scallions, for garnish
Instructions
- Heat a large pot or dutch oven with olive oil over medium high heat, diced onions, and celery, seasoned with about ½ teaspoon salt and pepper. Saute for 3-5 minutes until translucent, then turn the heat to medium and add the garlic and lemon zest. Let cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Add chicken stock, shredded chicken, bay leaf, and cooked rice to the pot. Bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolks and lemon juice. Gradually ladle in about ½ cup of the hot broth from the pot, whisking constantly to temper the eggs so they don't scramble when added to the soup.
- Turn heat off the heat on the stove then add the tempered egg mixture to the pot, stirring in well. Taste, then season with salt and pepper as needed.
- Serve hot with lemon slices and chopped fresh herbs.
- Serve while hot.
Notes
Chef Tips
Take an immersion blender to the soup to blend into a smoother texture.
Never let this soup boil! The egg will curdle.
Any kind of rice is great in this soup. Jasmine rice, basmati rice, wild rice, brown rice, even arborio rice works!
Storage, Freezing, and Reheating Instructions
Storage: Cool the soup to room temperature. Store the leftover soup in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Freeze: Pour the cooled soup into freezer-safe containers with enough room for the soup to expand. Freeze for up to 6 months!
Thaw: Safely thaw in the fridge overnight before, do not defrost on your counter, y'all!
Reheat: On the stove in a saucepan over medium heat with a hearty splash of broth. Stir well so the bottom doesn't burn and remember: don't let it boil!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 311Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 161mgSodium: 648mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 23g
All nutrition facts are estimations. Please see a physician for any health-related inquiries.
Eden Westbrook is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind Sweet Tea and Thyme. A classically trained chef, Eden has inspired home cooks into the kitchen with cultural comfort foods, easy family-friendly eats and sweets, and glorious spreads for date night and entertaining since 2015.
[…] Avgolemono Soup by Sweet Tea & Thyme is a classic Greek rendition of chicken soup. This rich and creamy chicken […]