Chicken and Rice Soup is a cozy, homemade meal that’s easy to make and always hits the spot. Tender chicken, hearty brown rice, and vegetables simmer together in one pot for a flavorful, comforting soup. Keep it brothy or stir in a little cream for a rich finish.
Serve it with crusty no-knead bread or fluffy dinner rolls and a simple green salad.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights: Chicken and Rice Soup
- Flavor: Savory, comforting flavor with tender chicken, brown rice, sweet carrots, and subtle notes of garlic, parsley, and thyme.
- Why Make It: Cooking the chicken and rice directly in the broth builds rich flavor while keeping cleanup easy.
- Budget Friendly: Rice and vegetables help stretch two chicken breasts into six hearty servings.
Total Time: 45 Mins Servings: 6 Cooking Method: Stovetop
- Total Time:
- 45 mins
- Serves:
- 6 servings
- Rating:
- 4.9/5
Ingredient Notes
- Vegetables: Cut the carrots and celery into small, even pieces so they cook evenly and you get tender vegetables in every spoonful. Use prechopped vegetables to save prep time, or stir in frozen mixed vegetables towards the end.
- Chicken Broth: Reduced-sodium broth or homemade chicken stock gives you more control over the salt level. Keep extra on hand at the end to add if the soup is too thick.
- Chicken Breasts: Use raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts so they can cook directly in the broth and shred easily. Boneless chicken thighs are another option; just check that they are cooked through before shredding.
- For an easy shortcut, add shredded rotisserie chicken or leftover baked chicken breasts once the rice is tender.
- Brown Rice: Use uncooked long-grain brown rice. Different varieties can have different cooking times. Instant rice is not a direct substitute.
- Evaporated Milk or Cream (Optional): Add evaporated milk for a lighter soup, or heavy cream for a richer, creamier soup. Be sure to use evaporated milk, not sweetened condensed milk.
How to Make Chicken and Rice Soup
- Sauté the vegetables and add the seasonings.
- Add broth, chicken, and rice (full recipe below). Simmer.
- Shred the chicken and return it to the pot.
Prefer to use your slow cooker? Try my Crockpot chicken and rice soup.
Save It for Later
- Refrigerate: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Store it in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 4 months. Leave out the dairy when possible and add it after reheating.
- Thaw: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Reheat: Warm on the stovetop or in the microwave, stirring and adding broth as needed.
More Chicken Soup Favorites
Did you enjoy this Chicken and Rice Soup? Leave a comment and rating below.
Chicken and Rice Soup
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 to 4 minutes, until the 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
Nutrition Information
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’m seven months pregnant and fighting a nasty cold. I made this last night with leftover roasted chicken and almost cried because it was so good. Didn’t need any alterations or substitutions. Just perfect.
So happy soup this was perfect for you Alex!
It’s delicious, but my soup looks nothing like the photo. It’s all white from the evaporated milk. I can’t even see the vegetables and chicken. I’ll definitely use less next time, if at all. But again, it’s REALLY good.
Can I get away with not using the evaporated milk?
Hi Crystal, the evaporated milk adds creaminess to the recipe, if you leave it out it will change the texture of the soup, but should still be delicious. You could also add whole milk or cream to achieve the same results!
Just what I was looking for! Quick and crazy good. I think I’ll make it again later this week. I let mine sit for an extra while on the stove before serving and a lot of the liquid got soaked up so it was more like a chicken and rice dish than a “soup” but I think I really like it like that. So yummy!
Yum, that sounds delicious Cassie!
I know this recipe says it has 6 servings, but what is considered a serving size?
Hi Lindsay, a serving would be approximately 1½ – 2 cups in size.
Just send me the recipes already
Hi Maria, at the top of each post, you can hit the little button that says “Jump to the recipe” I hope this helps!
This is a good recipe for Chicken and Rice Soup! I only changed 3 things…instead of chicken, I used pheasant breast that my hubs brought home fresh from the hunt yesterday! Also since I didn’t have any thyme, I used a little rosemary and then finished it off with a squeeze of lemon for some brightness. Thanks for a good recipe!
Yum, that sounds amazing Sue!
This is the best chicken with rice soup I’ve ever eaten!
That is awesome Anne! So happy you enjoyed it.
Great ideas and very scrumtious
So happy you enjoyed it Michelle!
Can I leave out the evaporated milk in this soup recipe?
Hi Liz, while I have only made this as written, several readers have commented that they have left the milk out and loved the results!
Do we add the 1 cup of rice cooked or uncooked?
Hi Tierra, we added the rice in uncooked.
Wow looks great, I will try the rice soup!
It is such a good soup Delores, Enjoy!
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was the chicken frozen before hand or not?
Hi Joey, you can use leftover chicken in this recipe or 2 chicken breasts. If using frozen, be sure to defrost properly first.
Is there a substitution for the evaporated milk? My daughter has dairy allergies and cannot have milk?
Several people have mentioned that they have omitted the milk altogether and enjoyed the results.
What’s the effect of the evaporated milk? Creaminess? A flavor? Wondering if I could put a dash of heavy cream since it’s a more common ingredient in my fridge, or if that will make it too creamy?
Hi Lindsey, evaporated milk adds a bit of creamy texture and richness to the soup. You could definitely try it with a dash of heavy cream if you prefer.
How many grams is a cup of brown rice? I live in the UK.
Hi Aimee, it would be between 190-200 grams of brown rice.
Delicious! Just made this and it was yummy! I did change it up a bit though. I did double it because I was making this for my family and another family. I cooked the onions, carrots and celery on the stove as stated in the recipe but then I put everything but the rice in a slow cooker. I had it cook on high for about 3hrs. I was using white rice so I cooked it in my Instant Pot and added it when I shredded the chicken. I didn’t add the evaporated milk because the family I was bringing it to was just getting over the stomach flu and I figured milk products would not be good. Thank you sharing your recipe! It’s exactly what I was looking for! And it was yummy!!
These sound like delicious alterations to the soup Carlie. I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe and were able to adapt it to your needs!
I’m going to attempt to make this for my family tonight, which type of rice would you prefer to use to make it. I want it to be really soupy and not so porridgy but I need to double the recipe, so should I just stick with the 1cup of rice and double everything else?
Hi Melissa, for this recipe we recommend brown rice since it will hold up better in the soup. We haven’t tried doubling the recipe but I would imagine you could double the rice as well. Enjoy!
This is a very tasty soup, but mine came out very thick, so thick that it wasn’t like soup at all, more like a casserole. I added another cup of stock, and it was still thick. Because I substituted basmati rice for the brown rice, I wondered if that was the problem. Has anyone else had this happen? I shortened the cooking time accordingly.
Hi Laura, that is most likely the issue. Even with the shorter cook time, white rice still tends to break down in this recipe giving it a thicker texture.
It is on the stove and smells great! One question. May I use almond milk instead of evaporated milk due to lactose intolerance?
While I haven’t tried using almond milk in this soup, I should think it would be a fine substitution. Please let us know how it turned out for you Jan!
It would to leave there almond milk out altogether. Using the creamy milk is what provides the body of the soup
Can I use a slow cooker for this recipe?
Hi Erika, I have only made the recipe as written. But you may enjoy Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup, Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Pie Soup, or Crockpot Chicken and Rice.