Go Back
Bowl of lemon chicken orzo soup with shredded chicken, carrots and fresh herbs
Michaelangelo Larive, OurCheff

Lemony Chicken Orzo Soup

A big, bright bowl of chicken, vegetables and orzo with lots of lemon and dill. About 2½ cups per serving for about 390 calories and 43 g of protein (estimated).
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Main Course, Soup
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Calories: 390
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion diced
  • 2 medium carrots diced
  • 2 celery ribs diced
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 1/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt plus more to taste
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 3/4 cup orzo uncooked
  • 4 cups baby spinach
  • 1 large lemon zest + ¼ cup juice
  • 2 tbsp fresh dill chopped, or parsley

Equipment

  • Large Dutch oven or soup pot (6 qt)
  • Two forks (for shredding)
  • Microplane

Method
 

  1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook 6–8 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute.
    Diced onion, carrot and celery softening in olive oil in a soup pot
  2. Add the broth, water, whole chicken breasts, bay leaf, thyme, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook 15–18 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F.
  3. Move the chicken to a cutting board and shred it with two forks.
    Cooked chicken breasts pulled into pieces on a wooden cutting board
  4. Bring the soup back to a boil, stir in the orzo and simmer 8–10 minutes, stirring now and then so it doesn't stick, until tender.
    Pot of chicken broth with orzo and vegetables simmering on the counter
  5. Lower the heat. Stir in the shredded chicken, spinach, lemon zest and juice, and cook 1 minute, until the spinach wilts. Remove the bay leaf.
    Shredded chicken and greens stirred into lemony orzo soup, with lemon halves beside the pot
  6. Stir in the dill, taste, and add salt or more lemon. Serve hot.

Notes

Chef tips
  • Orzo keeps drinking broth. For meal prep, cook it separately and add it to each bowl.
  • Add the lemon at the end. Boiled lemon juice goes flat and slightly bitter.
  • Simmer the chicken gently. A hard boil makes it stringy.
Substitutions
  • Gluten-free: Use gluten-free orzo, or ½ cup uncooked white rice simmered 15 minutes.
  • Lower carb: Skip the orzo and add 2 cups chopped zucchini (cuts about 110 kcal and 22 g carbs per serving).
  • Rotisserie chicken: Use 4 cups shredded rotisserie chicken (about 1 lb) and add it in step 5. Nutrition will change slightly.
Storage & reheating
Refrigerate up to 4 days. The orzo absorbs broth, so add ½–1 cup broth or water when reheating. Freezes up to 3 months, but for the best texture freeze it without orzo and add fresh orzo when reheating.
Nutrition is estimated per serving (1 of 4) from USDA FoodData Central data; values vary by brand and portion.