Name: Chicken and Rice Soup
Yield: 6

This Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe is simple, hearty, and so good. It’s packed with tender veggies, chicken, rice, and a seriously flavorful broth.

Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe in a bowl with a spoon, ready to enjoy.

author’s note

A Little Chicken Soup Switch-Up

Anyone who knows me knows how much It is satisfying to a good chicken noodle soup, haha! I really don’t know if there’s anything better on an especially cold night or when I’m feeling under the weather. I also love changing up the noodles, like using tortellini or spaghetti instead of the usual egg noodles.

So naturally, I had to try another swap: rice instead of pasta. And WOW, it is so good! It’s definitely different from a traditional chicken noodle soup, but it has that same feel-good, comforting quality while being hearty in its own way.

This chicken and rice soup recipe is not creamy or heavy, but it still feels like a complete meal. And honestly, few things beat dunking a crusty slice of buttered bread into a hot bowl of this soup with plenty of finely grated Parmesan on top. Yum!

All the ingredients in this recipe prepped out for straightforward assembly including the chicken, veggies, garlic, seasonings, butter, oil, stock, parsley, and rice.

Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe Ingredients

Ingredient	Let’s Chat About It
Butter & Olive Oil	Using both gives the veggies plenty of flavor without the butter browning too quickly.
Onion, Carrots, Celery & Garlic	Dice the veggies small and evenly so they soften at the same rate.
Seasonings & Bouillon	Italian seasoning, thyme, basil, oregano, parsley, bouillon, salt & pepper build the broth’s flavor.
Chicken Stock, Rice & Bay Leaf	Use a good-quality chicken stock since it makes up most of the soup. Basmati rice works SO well in this soup.
Chicken, Peas & Toppings	Rotisserie chicken keeps this recipe nice and straightforward. Finish with fresh herbs & plenty of freshly grated Parmesan.

Vegetables sautéed in butter, then cooked with chicken stock and rice for this Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe.

How To Make Chicken And Rice Soup Recipe

Sauté Veggies: Melt butter and olive oil in a pot. Cook veggies until tender.
Prepare Chicken: Shred or coarsely chop the rotisserie chicken. Add in seasonings.
Cook Rice: Add broth and a bay leaf; bring to a boil. mix in rice and simmer.
Finish Soup: mix in chicken and peas; cook for a few minutes.
Serve: Top with fresh parsley, thyme, and Parmesan cheese if you like. Enjoy.

the cook’s Tips

Serving Suggestions

Some good crusty French bread, honey whole wheat bread, or soup crackers/saltines are all so good with this Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe.
For additional veggies, try roasted broccoli or roasted asparagus on the side.
Some kind of salad, like this roasted veggie salad or this kale couscous salad.

The cooked chicken and peas being mixed into the pot.

Storage

Rice will keep soaking up the surrounding broth as it sits and eventually gets soft and bloated, so this soup is definitely best enjoyed soon after making it.

If you do want leftovers, here’s what I do: I use a wire skimmer to scoop the rice and other solids out of the broth and store the two separately. Then when it’s time to reheat, I warm them up and put everything back together.

Unfortunately, this soup doesn’t freeze and thaw very well with the rice in it. If you’re planning to freeze it, I’d make the soup and rice separately.