This Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe is a comforting one-pot meal loaded with tender chicken, veggies, and fluffy rice for easy prep and cleanup.
author’s note
One Pot. Endless Flavor. I Can’t Stop Making!
This Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe is a comforting one-pot meal loaded with tender chicken, veggies, and fluffy rice for easy prep and cleanup.
I love a good chicken noodle soup (especially my Creamy Chicken Tortellini Soup), but swapping pasta for rice is such a fun twist. This soup is thick and hearty, filled with tender veggies, chewy rice, and juicy shredded chicken, all simmered in a rich chicken broth seasoned with herbs. It’s quick to make, hands-off, and only needs one pot.
Few things beat dunking a crusty slice of bread into this soup and topping it with finely grated Parmesan cheese. Yum!
Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe Ingredients
| Ingredient | Helpful Swap or Tip |
|---|---|
| Butter & Olive Oil | Use all butter for more flavor or all olive oil for a lighter version. |
| Diced Veggies (Carrots, Celery, Onion) | Cut evenly so they cook at the same rate. Add diced bell pepper for extra sweetness. |
| Garlic & Herbs | Use fresh thyme or parsley at the end for brightness. |
| Chicken Broth | Swanson’s or homemade broth adds the best flavor. |
| Rice (Basmati) | Always rinse first to remove starch and prevent gumminess. Brown rice works but needs longer cooking. |
| Chicken | Rotisserie chicken keeps prep fast. Leftover grilled or baked chicken works great too. |
| Frozen Peas | Toss in straight from frozen without thawing. |
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 chop the rotisserie chicken.
- Add Seasonings: Mix in seasonings.
- Cook Rice: Add broth and a bay leaf; bring to a boil. Stir in rice and simmer.
- Finish Soup: Stir in chicken and peas; cook for a few minutes.
- Serve: Top with fresh parsley, thyme, and Parmesan cheese if you like. Enjoy.
Storage
Leftovers?
Best Same Day: Enjoy soup on the day it’s made; the rice absorbs liquid and thickens the soup.
Freezing: Soup with rice isn’t great for freezing. To freeze, cook rice separately:
- To cook rice: Reduce broth to one carton, rinse basmati rice until clear, soak for 5-10 minutes, boil in water for 5 minutes, then drain. Add cooked rice to individual soup servings.
Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe
This Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe is a hearty, nutritious, and flavorful one-pot meal.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup diced yellow onion
- 1 cup diced carrot
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 (32-ounce) containers chicken stock or chicken broth
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup rice
- 2-1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley optional
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme optional
- Parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter and add olive oil. Add the diced onion, carrots, celery, and garlic and sauté, stirring occasionally, 7–9 minutes or until veggies are crisp tender. Veggies shouldn’t be browning; reduce heat if they are.
- Meanwhile, pull the chicken from the bones and shred or chop into bite-size pieces.
- Add Italian seasoning, chicken bouillon powder, dried thyme, dried basil, dried oregano, dried parsley, salt, and pepper to the vegetables. Stir seasonings for 30 seconds.
- Pour in chicken broth and add bay leaf. Bring soup to a boil. Stir in rice and return to a boil (see note 1). Cover pan, reduce heat to low so the soup is simmering, and cook for 10–15 minutes or until rice is tender.
- Once rice is tender, stir in chicken and peas to warm through, 2–3 more minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Top individual bowls with minced fresh parsley, fresh thyme, and Parmesan cheese, if desired. I recommend adding about 3 tablespoons of parsley.
Final step! Please let us know how it was by leaving a review.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: To cook the rice separately, reduce the broth to 1 carton of chicken broth and follow the directions below for cooking basmati rice:
- Measure the rice and rinse it in a fine-mesh sieve until the water runs clear.
- Place that rice in a bowl and cover it with water to soak for about 5–10 minutes.
- While rice is soaking, fill a large pot with water and bring to boil.
- Once water is at a rolling boil, drain the rice and add it to the pot.
- Cook without reducing the heat for 5 minutes (taste and test to make sure it is tender), then drain and fluff with a fork.
- Add a few spoonfuls of cooked rice into individual soup bowls.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 625kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 52g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 156mg | Sodium: 1010mg | Potassium: 830mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 4217IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 105mg | Iron: 2mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Serve This Soup Alongside:
- A good crusty French bread, homemade honey whole wheat bread, or soup crackers/saltines is the best 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.
This is the best Chicken and Rice Soup I have ever had. The only changes I did, were to use the rack of a roasted chicken to make some of the broth, and used a Texmati rice blend of white, red, brown and wild rice.
Delish! So thrilled to hear this! Thanks Reijo!
This soup looks so delicious, I would love a bowl of this right now as it’s almost below zero again! 🙁 Thanks for sharing
Haha exactly! 🙁 It snowed where I am at today! Thanks for the pin Jenn!
Yum! This is just what I need right now!
Thank you!
I love soup especially during the cold winter months and this one looks delicious Chelsea! Loving all the bright veggies packed in here and a big hot steaming bowl of this is just perfect for a snowy day like today 🙂 Hope you are all staying warm in this weather:)
Nothing better than soup when it’s snowing outside haha! Thanks Kelly! Hope you are staying warm as well 🙂
Love how jam-packed that soup is! I’m not a fan when a soup is too brothy, but this looks perfect!
Same here! And my husband hates brothy soups! Thanks Alyssa 🙂
We love chicken rice soup! It’s one of our favs around here. Beautiful photos!
We love it too! Thanks Melanie 🙂
This soup looks beautiful, Chelsea! I just love the colors of all those veggies. It looks so cozy! Thankfully, I think winter is done where I am, but I would still totally curl up with some blankets and a bowl of this soup. 🙂
Thanks so much Beth!
Brain twins! Definitely posted a chicken soup today as well! This looks so warm and comfy…love the rice addition! 🙂
Haha LOVE it! Lots of chicken soup 🙂
Now that the cold is rearing its ugly head again, this will sure hit the spot! Looks great girl.
Thanks Nicole! 🙂
I love the step by step photos for this recipe; it looks delicious! Yes there are a lot of thing I love about winter but I’m going to admit, soup is top on the list!!