Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe

This hearty chicken and rice soup is packed with healthy ingredients like vegetables, rice and chicken in a flavorful chicken broth. It’ll be in your regular rotation in no time.
We love homemade chicken soups, from classic chicken noodle soup to chicken tortilla soup. If you like hearty chicken soups, this chicken and rice soup recipe is for you.
What is chicken and rice soup?Chicken and rice soup is a healthy soup with an aromatic vegetable base made from onions, carrots and celery. It is very similar to chicken noodle soup, but uses rice instead of noodles. The chicken breast is added to the broth and cooked until the chicken is tender and easy to shred (see pro tip below to get juicy chicken in your soup every time). This soup is ready in under an hour, with 15 minutes to prepare and just over 30 minutes to cook.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil or avocado oil
1 large onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
1 celery stick, diced
1 pound chicken breast (3 small ones) or chicken thighs
1/3 cup long grain rice (raw) such as basmati or jasmine
8 cups chicken stock or broth
1 cup water
1 teaspoon salt, to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, to taste
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons fresh herbs, dill or parsley, or a combination of

Instructions

One Preheat pot or stockpot with oil over medium-high heat, add onions, carrots, and celery and sauté until slightly tender and golden brown, about 6 to 7 minutes.Add chicken, rice, bay leaves, chicken broth, water, salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and skim off any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 25 to 30 minutes, or until rice is tender and chicken is cooked through.*
Remove chicken from soup, chop into small pieces, and add back. Then take the soup out of the pot and take it off the heat.
Add herbs, season to taste if necessary and serve.Recipe Notes
*Cooking time may depend on the thickness of the chicken breast. Cook until the chicken is cooked through and reaches 165˚F on an instant-read thermometer