This Chicken Soup with Rice and Lemon is comforting and cozy, and packed with good-for-you ingredients like carrots, ginger, leeks, and lemon juice. Perfect for a chilly day, or when you need a warm hug in a bowl!
One of my absolute favorite books for kids is Maurice Sendak’s Chicken Soup with Rice. I read this over and over again to my daughters, and I never once wished they had picked something else. To me, the lovely rhymes in that book are the epitome of comfort. And so in Sendak’s honor, I give you my version of his soup.
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Why Make This Recipe
- Warming and Healthy: When you’re feeling a bit under the weather, or even just a bit down, this is the perfect soup to pick you back up again. The lemon and ginger in there give you an extra dose of vitamins and antioxidants!
- Great Use for Leftover Chicken: This is one of my favorite soups to make when I have a leftover rotisserie chicken. Chop up the extra chicken, and use the carcass to make the broth, if you’re feeling extra industrious!
- Family-Friendly: Kids love this soup, but it’s delicious enough to appeal to adults too. Definitely belongs in your winter repertoire for a whole family-pleasing meal. And, it’s dairy-free and gluten-free too!
Ingredients
- Rice: I prefer to use a long-grain white rice in this soup. You could use brown rice or wild rice, but keep in mind that those have much longer cook times. If you use one of those, you might need to add more liquid, and your carrots may get quite soft. You could make the rice in advance and add it in cooked (see below in Recipe FAQs).
- Chicken: I love to use leftover rotisserie chicken in this soup, but when I don’t have that, I just poach a couple of boneless skinless chicken breasts, and use those instead. Details in Expert Tips!
- Carrots: Carrots are delicious and so pretty in this soup. You could replace them with celery if you like, or do half and half carrots and celery.
- Chicken Broth: I like to use a low-sodium chicken broth (or my homemade chicken stock), so that I can control the salt level of the final soup. If you do not have low-sodium chicken broth, you may not need to add any salt to the soup.
- Parsley: You can use all kinds of fresh herbs to garnish this soup. Try fresh thyme or dill instead of parsley if you like. Or feel free to leave it out!
Instructions
Cut off and discard the root end and the dark green leaves of the leek. Then rinse the remaining leek well, and cut in half lengthwise. Slice into thin half-moons. (If there was a lot of dirt between the layers of the leek, put the sliced leeks in a bowl of cold water, swirl, then let sit for a few minutes to allow the dirt to settle. Then remove leeks with a slotted spoon and pat dry.)
Peel carrots, then chop into small ¼-inch pieces. Peel ginger and chop in half.
Heat butter and oil over medium heat in a large saucepan or dutch oven until butter melts. Add sliced leeks, chopped carrots, and ginger. Sauté until softened, about 8-10 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
Add chicken broth, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, chicken, rice, and salt. Bring soup to a low simmer, then cook for 15 minutes, or until rice is cooked through and carrots are just tender.
Whisk egg in a small bowl until yolk and white are well-combined. Then pour into soup while stirring.
Season soup with additional salt and pepper, and add remaining tablespoon of lemon juice, if desired. Remove ginger chunks before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired.
Recipe FAQs
Yes and no. On the one hand, soup always tastes better the next day, once the flavors have had the chance to really meld. On the other hand, rice can plump up on you the longer it sits in the liquid. Some types of rice plump more than others.
I made this with jasmine rice once, and after a day, the consistency was almost porridge-like. (Still delicious though!) If you don’t want to run the risk of the rice swelling too much, you can also make the soup and the rice separately. (See below.)
Soup will last in the refrigerator for 3-5 days in an airtight container.
Yes, you can. You can cook the rice separately, then add it in with the egg at the end of the cook time. You’ll want to continue cooking the soup for another 5 minutes or so, to allow the flavors to combine. This is a great option if you happen to have leftover rice on hand!
Similarly to the above questions, the only issue with freezing this soup is that the rice may become bloated during the freezing/defrosting process. If you want to freeze this soup, I would recommend making the soup without the rice.
Let it cool to room temperature, and put in an airtight container or freezer bag to freeze. Defrost in the refrigerator for 24 hours before using. Make the rice separately, and add it into the soup as you reheat it.
Expert Tips
One of the keys to this soup is to make sure that the carrots are done the way you like them at the same time the rice is finished cooking. For me, I like carrots that are just barely tender, and not at all mushy. If you are the same way, chop the carrots into ¼-inch chunks—they should be just cooked by the time the rice is ready.
If you like your carrots softer, cut them even smaller. If you like them more crisp-tender, cut them into bigger chunks. And, if you do switch to brown rice or wild rice, you will want to cut your carrots into larger chunks so that they won’t overcook during the longer rice cook time.
If you don’t have cooked chicken, here are some easy instructions for poached chicken. For this recipe, two raw boneless, skinless chicken breasts are perfect. Put them in a large saucepan, and cover with water. Add any aromatics you have around, such as bay leaves, garlic cloves, fresh herbs, peppercorns, celery, or carrots.
You could throw in some of those (washed) dark green leek leaves too. You might also add a little white wine. Bring liquid just to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cover and cook for 8-12 minutes, until they are fully cooked to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
This is easy to check if you have something like my favorite instant-read thermometer (I love this so much, I am an affiliate for them so I get a small percentage if you purchase one!). Let cool, then chop or shred with a fork or your fingers.
If you like your chicken and rice soup with more veggies, this soup works great with add-ins. Stir in a cup of frozen peas at the end, or some fresh baby spinach or baby kale. You can add garlic, onions, or celery with the leeks and carrots too.
This soup is just perfect for when you're feeling a little run-down. For another great option, check out this Italian Penicillin Soup—so comforting and delicious. Or try this Creamy Chicken Mushroom Soup that comes together quickly in your Instant Pot or Slow Cooker.
Other Delicious Soup Recipes
Do you love homemade soup as much as I do? My Maryland Cream of Crab Soup is super creamy and delicious. Or, check out some of my other favorite soup recipes:
Love mushrooms? How about trying this Chicken Soup with Mushrooms from our friends at Fearless Dining?
If you try this lemony chicken soup with rice recipe, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below—I read them all, and your feedback is invaluable to me. And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter. I'd love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!
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📖 Recipe
Chicken Soup with Rice and Lemon
This Chicken Soup with Rice and Lemon is comforting and cozy, and packed with good-for-you ingredients like carrots, ginger, leeks, and lemon juice.
Ingredients
- 1 large leek
- 2 carrots
- 1-inch piece of ginger
- 1 T. butter
- 1 T. olive oil
- 8 c. low-sodium chicken broth
- 2-3 T. lemon juice
- 2 c. (250g) cooked chicken (shredded or chopped)
- ¾ c. (150g) long-grain rice
- ½ t. kosher salt
- 1 egg
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Chopped parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Cut off and discard the root end and the dark green leaves of the leek. Then rinse the remaining leek well, and cut in half lengthwise. Slice into thin half-moons. (If there was a lot of dirt between the layers of the leek, put the sliced leeks in a bowl of cold water, swirl, then let sit for a few minutes to allow the dirt to settle. Then remove leeks with a slotted spoon and pat dry.)
- Peel carrots, then chop into small ¼-inch pieces.
- Peel ginger and chop in half.
- Heat butter and oil over medium heat in a large saucepan or dutch oven until butter melts.
- Add sliced leeks, chopped carrots, and ginger. Sauté until softened, about 8-10 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
- Add chicken broth, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, chicken, rice, and salt.
- Bring soup to a low simmer, then cook for 15 minutes, or until rice is cooked through and carrots are just tender.
- Whisk egg in a small bowl until yolk and white are well-combined, then pour into soup while stirring.
- Season soup with additional salt and pepper, and add remaining tablespoon of lemon juice, if desired.
- Remove ginger chunks before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired.
Notes
Make-Ahead Instructions: You can make this soup in advance, but keep in mind that rice can plump up on you the longer it sits in the liquid. Some types of rice plump more than others, such as jasmine rice. If you don’t want to run the risk of the rice swelling too much, you can also make the soup and the rice separately, then add the cooked rice just before you are ready to serve. Soup will last in the refrigerator for 3-5 days in an airtight container. You can also freeze this soup, though because of the rice plumping, it's recommended to freeze the soup without the rice and add later when you defrost and reheat it.
Poaching Chicken Instructions: If you don’t have cooked chicken, here are some easy instructions for poached chicken. Put two boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a large saucepan, and cover with water. Add any aromatics you have around, such as bay leaves, garlic cloves, fresh herbs, peppercorns, celery, or carrots. You could throw in some of those (washed) dark green leek leaves too. You might also add a little white wine. Bring liquid just to a boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cover and cook for 8-12 minutes, until they are fully cooked to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Let cool, then chop or shred with a fork or your fingers.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 362Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 113mgSodium: 543mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 28g
Nutrition information is provided as a general reference for users courtesy of the online nutrition calculator Nutritionix.
Instagram Users: Now that you've made this recipe, tag me @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because I'd love to see your results!
More About Molly
Cooking healthy(ish) meals with seasonal ingredients is my passion. Trained as a French pastry chef, I spent over 10 years as a personal chef. Here you'll find well-tested recipes that you and your family will love!
Heidi | The Frugal Girls says
Your beautiful soup is so perfect, it has all of the flavors I crave! And I love how you referred to it as a "warm hug in a bowl." We could all use a few more hugs!!
Chef Molly says
Exactly! I really do find soup to be as comforting as a hug sometimes, and this one really delivers!
Chef Mimi says
How interesting! Fabulous ingredients. I might be the only person who’s not driven to soups when the weather is cold, although your soup is totally appealing to me. I think we have a little winter left here as well, which is worrisome because my bulbs are popping up...
Chef Molly says
Yes, it's always dangerous when the weather gets mild and then freezes again. Hope your bulbs survive! Do try the chicken soup when you get the craving. I really love the combination of flavors in there!
Jeff the Chef says
At first, I was really curious about the lemon, but then I saw the ginger and the egg, and I realized that this was a very interesting chicken soup! How refreshing!
Chef Molly says
Yes, not your usual chicken soup! But so delicious and super healthy. It's my favorite get-well-soon soup.