Easy Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe
This easy flavor-packed Chicken and Rice soup is made with simple ingredients in about thirty minutes. It is a full meal in and of itself or enjoy it with fresh bread or a garden salad.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings
- Category: soup
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 3 medium carrots peeled and sliced
- 2 ribs celery chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 1/2 cups cooked chicken breast shredded
- 1 1/2 cups Minute Rice
- kosher salt and black pepper to taste
- fresh parsley or thyme (garnish)
Instructions
- Melt butter in a Dutch oven or heavy stockpot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery; cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring several times. Reduce heat to low. Add garlic, thyme, and poultry seasoning. Cook for one minute, stirring constantly.
- Add chicken broth and bay leaves. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
- Add the cooked chicken and minute rice. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the rice is tender. Season with kosher salt and black pepper to taste, and remove bay leaves.
Notes
- Cut your veggies in small uniform bites so they cook evenly and so that there is a variety of vegetables in your soup spoon when you eat it.
- I love to use already-cooked rotisserie chicken. They are delicious and available at almost all grocery retailers and warehouse stores like Sam’s and Costco. Or you can poach boneless skinless chicken breasts.
- If you want to kick the seasonings up a notch or two, consider adding 1/8 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper or 1/4 teaspoon Cajun seasoning. Or try adding dried herbs like oregano and bail.
- Add the spices at the same time as the garlic. It helps to cook them with a little bit of the fat from the butter to keep them from simply floating to the top.
- Minced garlic burns easily, so reduce your heat, cook for about one minute, and stir constantly. Burnt garlic is bitter and does not taste good.
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs work well with this recipe too.
- Other veggies to consider adding are broccoli, mushrooms, and cabbage.
- Remove your bay leaves before serving, as they are stiff and have sharp edges.
- This recipe works well with jasmine rice, basmati rice, brown rice, white rice, or wild rice, but the times for adding and cooking the rice need to be adjusted.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave at reduced power.
- Keep in mind that rice absorbs liquid. If you know you will be saving some for leftovers, then remove that amount before adding the rice. Then reheat on the stovetop, adding the uncooked minute rice.
- To freeze this soup, I suggest that you cook the soup without adding the rice. Ladle the cooled soup into quart or gallon-sized heavy-duty freezer zipper bags. Freeze for up to 3 months. Bring the soup to a simmer on the stovetop, add the minute rice, and simmer for 5 minutes or until the rice is tender.
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Find it online: https://www.smalltownwoman.com/chicken-and-rice-soup/