Chicken and orzo soup is the most comforting bowl and the best part is it’s totally guilt free. The lemon and fresh herbs really brightens it up, even on the gloomiest of winter days. I like to cook the chicken and the orzo in advance, which helps speed up the cook time, but I also make a double batch and reinvent the leftovers into this delicious pasta salad bowl for dinner the next night.
Lemony Chicken and Orzo Soup
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 4 cups homemade or low-sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 cup uncooked or 1 1/2 cup cooked orzo pasta
- 2 chicken breasts (can sub cooked rotisserie chicken breasts)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 leek
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 celery stalks
- 1 zucchini
- 2 tbsp fresh chopped dill
- 2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
- Juice from 1 lemon
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Quarter the leek, wash very well to remove any dirt and slice into very thin strips.
- Mince the garlic, dice the celery and the zucchini, and set aside. In a large stockpot set to medium low heat, add the olive oil, leek, garlic and celery and cook for a couple minutes until the vegetables soften. Add the broth and orzo. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer, add the chicken breasts and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts, shred using a fork and place the chicken back in the pot.
- Add the zucchini and simmer for another 5 minutes, then turn off the heat, stir in the dill, parsley and lemon. Taste and add salt and pepper accordingly. Serve immediately
Note: if using cooked orzo and rotisserie chicken, add them to the pot just before the zucchini and continue with the rest of the recipe.
