Creamy Chicken Orzo Soup
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This Creamy Chicken Orzo Soup is an easy and filling weeknight dinner that comes together in about 40 minutes. It’s creamy, cozy, hearty, and delicious you’ll be craving seconds. We sear chicken breasts in a large pot, add the veggies, pasta, and chicken broth, and let everything simmer until tender. It’s the perfect winter dinner with fresh herbs for the whole family.
What is Orzo?
Orzo, also known as risoni in Italy, is a tiny pasta shaped like rice grains. It can be served in various ways, and it cooks very quickly. It’s often used in Mediterranean or Greek recipes, but in this recipe, we are making a delicious and hearty Italian-inspired soup! It’s a spin on the classic chicken noodle soup and it’s packed with a ton of flavor.
🥕 Ingredients
To make this creamy chicken noodle soup, you will need some main ingredients, like a mirepoix, a combination of onion, carrot, and celery, cut into the same size. All other ingredients can also be easily found at your local grocery store, so let’s dive into what you need to make this delicious soup.
- Orzo Pasta. Regular orzo or whole wheat orzo works well. Another great kind of noodle similar to orzo but great in soup recipes is Ditalini pasta.
- Yellow Onion. Or substitute with sweet onion.
- Carrots.
- Celery.
- Garlic Cloves.
- Chicken Breasts. For a quicker option, substitute with leftover chicken or store-bought rotisserie chicken. The only key is to add the chicken at least 10 minutes before the soup is finished cooking.
- Chicken Broth. Or substitute with a bouillon cube, following the instructions on the packaging for how many to use and how much water.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
- Spices. We use Thyme, Rosemary, Celery Seeds, Sweet Paprika, Bay Leaf, Salt, and Black Pepper in this soup.
- Flat Leaf Parsley. We add fresh parsley leaves to this soup while it’s cooking, and we add more on top before serving.
- Fresh Parmesan Cheese. We like to add some fresh cheese on top before serving.
- Fresh Lemon Juice. Optional, but it adds a nice acidity and lemony flavor.
🍲 Instructions
This new family-favorite creamy soup is quick, easy, and perfect for busy weeknights. Of course, the longest part is waiting for the soup to cook, but it’s all minimal effort for something filling and delicious.
- Sear Chicken. Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot or a dutch oven over medium. Once the oil is glistening, add the chicken breasts and sear on each side for about 5 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate.
- Saute Veggies. Add the diced onion, celery, and carrots to the same pot, along with the spices except for the bay leaves, and cook until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes longer.
- Add Orzo and Broth. Add orzo to the pot and give it a quick stir. Next, add the chicken breast, broth, bay leaves, and fresh flat parsley leaves. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer over medium heat for about 15 minutes.
- Shred Chicken. Once the chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the pot to shred it with two forks. Add to the pot and continue simmering until the veggies are tender and the orzo is creamy, about 10-15 minutes. Then, taste the soup to see if you need to add more salt and pepper to your liking.
- Serve & Enjoy. Scoop out soup and divide into bowls; add fresh parsley, black pepper, and freshly shaved parmesan cheese, and enjoy.
FAQs
This orzo soup will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
The orzo will soak up the broth more in the fridge, so it’s best to reheat it on the stove with extra broth to add more moisture.
Yes, but it will be less flavorful. We recommend chicken broth or chicken bouillon cubes in this recipe.
This Creamy Chicken Orzo Soup is creamy, hearty, cozy, delicious, quick, and easy to make! We hope you all love our soup recipe. Enjoy! ♡
Creamy Chicken Orzo Soup
- ¾ lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3-4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup yellow onion diced
- 1 cup celery diced
- 1 ½ cup carrots diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- ¾ cup orzo pasta uncooked
- 6 cups chicken broth
- ½ tsp sweet paprika
- 2 tsp thyme
- ½ tsp celery seeds
- ½ tsp rosemary
- ¼ cup flat-leaf parsley minced, plus more to serve
- 2-3 bay leaf
- 1 tsp salt plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper plus more to taste and serve
- freshly shaved parmesan cheese to serve
- fresh lemon juice to serve
- Sear Chicken. Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot or a dutch oven over medium. Once the oil is glistening, add the chicken breasts and sear on each side for about 5 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate.3-4 tbsp olive oil, 3/4 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Saute Veggies. Add the diced onion, celery, and carrots to the same pot, along with the spices except for the bay leaves, and cook until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes longer.1 cup yellow onion, 1 cup celery, 1 1/2 cup carrots, 4 garlic cloves, 1/2 tsp sweet paprika, 2 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp celery seeds, 1/2 tsp rosemary, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper
- Add Orzo and Broth. Add orzo to the pot and give it a quick stir. Next, add the chicken breast, broth, bay leaves, and fresh flat parsley leaves. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer over medium heat for about 15 minutes.3/4 cup orzo pasta, 6 cups chicken broth, 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, 2-3 bay leaf
- Shred Chicken. Once the chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the pot to shred it with two forks. Add to the pot and continue simmering until the veggies are tender and the orzo is creamy, about 10-15 minutes. Then, taste the soup to see if you need to add more salt and pepper to your liking.
- Serve & Enjoy. Scoop out soup and divide into bowls; add fresh parsley, black pepper, and freshly shaved parmesan cheese, and enjoy.freshly shaved parmesan cheese, fresh lemon juice
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