This chicken and rice soup recipe is the perfect recipe for a chilly day. Chicken, vegetables, and brown rice are simmered in a flavorful broth and finished with a touch of creaminess.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Classic and savory, this homemade soup is packed with fresh and flavorful goodness.
- Skill Level: Made in just one pot, it’s easy to prep, and cleanup is a breeze.
- Budget Tip: It’s budget-friendly; stretch it even further with extra veggies, rice, or broth.
- Swaps: It’s versatile, feel free to add in your favorite veggies or even leftovers.
- Serving Suggestions: Serve it with a salad and some crusty bread for a perfect meal.
What You’ll Need For Chicken and Rice Soup
- Chicken Broth: I prefer low-sodium chicken broth as the base of this soup, so it isn’t too salty. You can also make a homemade chicken broth. While it’s optional, heavy cream or evaporated milk adds a touch of creaminess.
- Seasoning: The seasonings are simple with parsley and thyme, but feel free to add other dried or fresh herbs or bay leaves. Garnish with fresh parsley.
- Vegetables: Celery, onion, and carrot add both flavor and nutrition to this soup.
- Chicken: Use raw boneless skinless chicken breasts; simmering them in the soup adds flavor to the broth. Bone-in or boneless chicken thighs can be used. Or add bacon for a chicken bacon soup!
- Rice: Brown rice is a hearty boost of fiber and holds its texture well. You can replace it with long-grain white rice, wild rice, or basmati. Adjust the cooking time as needed.
Shortcuts
- Use leftover cooked rice; it can be added about 5 minutes before serving.
- Use rotisserie chicken, leftovers, or cooked chicken in place of chicken breasts. Add it once the rice is cooked.
- Avoid standing at the stove and make this soup in the crockpot.
How to Make Chicken and Rice Soup
- In a pot or Dutch oven, sauté the vegetables in oil (full recipe below).
- Add broth, uncooked chicken breasts, and rice, then simmer until the rice is tender.
- Shred cooked chicken, stir it back into the pot, and finish with cream or evaporated milk.
Serve with dinner rolls or a chunk of crusty bread for dipping.
Storing Leftovers
- This chicken rice soup is perfect for meal prep because it freezes well. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- To freeze leftovers, cool the soup to room temperature, then place it in freezer bags. Seal completely and lay flat to freeze in a thin layer. This will help the soup thaw quickly when you need it for dinner.
- The rice can absorb liquid as the soup sits; if needed, add additional broth or water to reach the desired consistency.
More Cozy Chicken Soup Recipes
Did you enjoy this Chicken Rice Soup? Leave a comment and rating below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 3 large carrots peeled and diced
- 1 rib celery diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 5 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts uncooked
- 1 cup brown rice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup evaporated milk or cream, optional
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery and cook for 3-4 minutes, until onion is translucent.
- Add garlic, parsley, and thyme, and cook 1 minute.
- Add broth, chicken, rice, salt, and pepper. Stir and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables and rice are tender and chicken has reached 165℉.
- Remove chicken from pot and shred. Add back to the pot with evaporated milk or cream if using.
Video
Notes
Store soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Chicken breasts can be replaced with chicken thighs. Add it to the soup 10 minutes later.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1.5cups | Calories: 332 | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 607mg | Potassium: 803mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 5250IU | Vitamin C: 5.2mg | Calcium: 150mg | Iron: 1.6mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Chicken, Lunch, Soup
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I used 2 quarts of stock which is a little more than the recipe, and 1/2 cup of brown rice instead of 1 cup. This is a perfect recipe as is, but also a super base recipe if you want to mod for your needs! Reasoning: I am a single and wanted to have some for me, a bit to freeze, and some to take to my Mom. I always make fresh rice thru the week so I let it have more liquid so I can add my own extra rice later. I also wanted to add spinach after the fact for myself so I portioned Mom’s out with extra veg and rice, then reheated to wilt spinach. Thank you for posting this, it’s a keeper. :)
I should’ve listened to the other commenters and cooked the rice separately. By the time I was finished shredding the chicken, the rice had soaked up all the broth, and I had used 3 extra cups to begin with. I also agree with other commenters about the chicken being tough, and I used pretty thick breasts.
My hubby just made this for dinner and we thought it was delicious! I thought it needed more salt, but I like things salty. It’s definitely a keeper! Thank you!
Could you add the weight of the chicken portion? Chicken breast size can vary so much.
I have a pack of boneless, skinless chicken thighs I’d like to use but it’s 4.5 lbs. Is that too much chicken for 1x or is it okay to have some extra chicken? I don’t know if it would change cook time or if I would need to add more of anything or maybe make the 2x portion with that much chicken?
I’d like to use the whole portion in the package (it’s one of the large ones from Costco). Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you!
Chicken breasts are estimated to be 6 to 7oz each (however if they’re a little smaller/larger, they’ll still work in this recipe). You could certainly increase it to 1 ½ lbs in a single recipe or double the recipe and use the whole package.
This soup is delicious. I threw in potatoes on top of the rice. I needed more liquid for the potatoes and had ran out of chicken broth, so I threw in two more cups of water and two chicken bouillon cubes. It was one of the most delicious chicken soups I’ve had. I did find the chicken to be tough though, so the second time I made it I threw the chicken in at about 25 minutes left of the 30-minute simmer time, and the chicken was still tough (my breasts were thin though), so next time I think I will back that up another 5 minutes unless I get thicker breasts. Thanks for the recipe; my boyfriend and I loved it!
Made this soup. Had to use 8 cups of chicken broth. I also increased the amount of seasoning. I used cooked chicken that I already had and added when the rice was tender. It worked very well. Next time I think that I would decrease the amount of rice to make a thinner soup. Original recipe made the soup too thick for my liking.
I will keep the recipe and make it again with my tweaks.
this soup looks delicious, must try it out
Could this be done in the crock pot and if so how would you do it? Thanks.
I have only made this recipe as listed but other readers have made it in the crockpot with great results. You can try following the cooking instructions for our crockpot chicken noodle soup for an idea on how to convert it! Hope that helps.
Made this tonight. Memories in a bowl!!! So good!
I didn’t have any brown rice but did have jasmine. Took advice and adjusted the cook time. Also, the rice soaked up all the juice so I added 8 cups broth and adjusted spices to reflect. Will keep this in rotation as I freeze single serve containers for the family. Thank you!
Delicious! I added dill and it was incredible, thank you
This soup is a hit with everyone! I add kale or spinach. Just delicious!
quick question, Which Chicken broth/stock do you prefer? I’ve always used College Inn, but I’m thinking of switching to Swanson. Just looking for another opinion..
Thanks!
Either of those brands would work well in this recipe.
I’ve fallen in love with Bonafide chicken broth. It’s ‘pricey’ but well worth it. My second go-to is Swanson. And I’ve tried ALL of broths. :-)
Thank you for this delicious recipe. My husband and I enjoyed it very much! I will certainly be making this again.
will this soup freeze well?
Hi Angela, it should freeze well.
Came out delicious! Made some alterations of course: added 1 extra cup of broth, skipped the evaporated milk, seasoned my veggies/chicken with paprika, garlic/onion powder, paprika, and Italian seasoning. Used jasmine white rice, and allowed that to simmer on low for 25 mins— then set it out for 3 minutes; there was still a soupy consistency afterwards and the rice was thoroughly cooked & soft!
Can you use regular chicken broth instead of low sodium?
You sure can. You might like to reduce the salt in the recipe and salt to taste when serving.
I would love to make this but as a new to cooking mom I need advice on when to add long grain rice. My kids hate brown and your recipe said I’d need to adjust the cooking time if I change rice. What do you instruct if I use uncooked long grain rice! I’m sorry for my stupidity!!
Great question Amy! If you look at the back of the package, it will often tell you how long the rice needs to cook – usually about 20 minutes (I sometimes add a couple of extra minutes). Enjoy the recipe!
This isn’t my recipe but it’s so easy to use the “Success” boil in the bag rice and then add it after it’s cooked. Just an idea!
Do I have to use brown rice. I have basmati rice.
You can use basmati rice, you will need to adjust the cooking time slightly.
this soup is outstanding. I am on a low fiber diet so skipped the celery and added a sprig of Rosemary.
Perfect. Delicious. Just what I wanted it to be!