Chicken and Rice Soup with vegetables, herbs, and spices are simmered together for pure comfort. This is a classic that you will return to again and again.

Scrumptious, wholesome chicken rice soup

Simple chicken rice soup consists of chicken cuts, vegetables, and rice soaked deeply in a flavorful broth. It is a nutrient-dense, delicious, and comforting one-pot meal you will love.

This easy chicken rice soup is a comforting well-balanced bowl of protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates. This one-pot meal features tender chicken simmered in broth with aromatics, herbs, and veggies. It is suitable for warming up on cold nights.

On busy weeknights, this recipe is convenient when you have hungry mouths to feed but don’t have much time to prepare. The most appealing part about homemade chicken rice soup is that it is easy to cook and ready in less than an hour. It is gluten-free, requires a few pantry staples, and makes a tasty make-ahead meal.

I’m sure you’ll enjoy my other rice recipes like instant pot brown rice, rice and beans, jollof rice, Chicken fried rice, mushroom rice, and coconut fried rice.

Ingredients

Oil: Use coconut or olive oil to sauté the vegetables.
Garlic cloves and onions: Give the recipe a rich aromatic flavor.
Carrots and celery ribs: I used these two vegetables in this recipe. Feel free to add more veggies as desired.
Chicken stock powder or bouillon cubes: add the stock powder to amplify the chicken taste and flavor.
Herbs: add dried parsley, dried thyme, and bay leaf for an earthy flavor.
Black pepper: add to taste
Chicken broth: add low sodium for deep chicken flavor.
Chicken: I used bone-in and skinless chicken thighs. I prefer skinless chicken for this recipe, not to make it too greasy. The thigh has enough fat to soak in the broth for deep flavor.
Rice: You can use any uncooked rice, from long grain to medium and short grain white rice. Basmati, jasmine, brown, and sushi rice all work well. If you are using brown rice, ensure that you add it 5 minutes after the chicken because it takes longer to cook.
Salt: add to taste

Fresh Parsley: Garnish the soup with fresh parsley.

Ingredients for making rice and chicken soup

How to Make Chicken Rice Soup

Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 3 minutes until the onion is translucent. Stir in the carrots and celery and cook for 1 minute.
chicken stock powder, dried parsley, thyme, bay leaf, black pepper, chicken broth, and water. Stir, then add chicken.
with a fitting lid, and simmer on medium-low heat for 30 minutes. Once or twice, remove excess foam buildup from broth (not necessary, just makes the soup clearer).
the lid and add the rice. Stir, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.
off the heat, then remove the chicken to a large plate. Shred with 2 forks, discard bones, then stir the shredded chicken into soup.
salt if necessary. Serve, then garnish with parsley.

Storing Leftovers

The most effective way to store this recipe is to keep the rice and the broth separately. If you leave the rice in the broth, you won’t like the jelly-like sludge it turns into when the rice absorbs the broth.

Separate the broth from the rice with a colander or slotted spoon. After separating, freeze the broth separately. Freeze the chicken, rice, and vegetable together. Alternatively, if you plan to make it ahead, you can make the broth and rice separately and store them separately in the fridge or freezer.

It will last up to 3 days in the refrigerator and up to 3 months in the freezer if you store it separately. You can reheat it in the microwave or stovetop over medium heat.

Tips for Flavourful Chicken Rice Soup

This soup is best served hot and fresh because the rice will continue to absorb the liquid. You can scale down the recipe to a smaller proportion if this recipe is too much for your household.
You can save more time with this recipe if you buy rotisserie chicken from the store or use leftover chicken.
Don’t overcook the veggies. Sauteing them for too long can make them mushy as they continue to cook in the soup.
Don’t overcook the rice because it gets softer as it sits in the soup.

Other Chicken Recipes to try

Chicken Rice Soup

Simple chicken rice soup consists of chicken cuts, vegetables, and rice soaked deeply in a flavourful broth. It is a nutrient-dense, delicious, and comforting one-pot meal you will love.

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Lunch/Dinner, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken rice soup, Chicken soup

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 50

Total Time: 1 5

Servings: people

Calories: 294.4kcal

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
1 onion chopped
3 carrots medium size [diced]
3 celery ribs diced
1 tbsp chicken stock powder or 2 chicken bouillon cubes
1/2 tsp parsley dried
1/2 tsp thyme dried
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp black pepper finely ground
8 cups chicken broth 2 liters (low sodium)
1 to 1.5 lb skinless chicken thighs bone-in
1 cup rice uncooked
Salt to taste
1 tbsp finely chopped parsley optional

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 3 minutes until the onion is translucent. Stir in the carrots and celery and cook for 1 minute.
Add chicken stock powder, dried parsley, thyme, bay leaf, black pepper, chicken broth, and water. Stir, then add chicken.
Cover with a fitting lid, and simmer on medium-low heat for 30 minutes. Once or twice, remove excess foam buildup from broth (not necessary, just makes the soup clearer).
Remove the lid and add the rice. Stir, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.
Turn off the heat, then remove the chicken to a large plate. Shred with 2 forks, discard bones, then stir the shredded chicken into soup.
Add salt if necessary. Serve, then garnish with parsley.

Notes

Don’t overcook the veggies. Sauteing them for too long can make them mushy as they continue to cook in the soup.
Don’t overcook the rice because it gets softer as it sits in the soup.