Creamy Chicken And Wild Rice Soup Recipe

A large bowl full of chicken and wild rice soup.

4.57 from 106 votes

Creamy Chicken And Wild Rice Soup Recipe

Creamy chicken and wild rice soup is packed with vegetables, creamy broth, and flavorful herbs. It’s the perfect soup for simmering on chilly evenings.

Prep Time20

Cook Time50

Total Time1 10

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chicken wild rice soup, creamy chicken and wild rice soup, soup

Servings:

Author: Lisa Bass

Equipment

1 Dutch Oven or large pot

Ingredients

2 cups carrot chopped
1 cup celery chopped
2 large onions sliced
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup brown rice or wild rice blend
4 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon celery seed
2 bay leaves optional
2 chicken breasts about 12 oz, cut into bite sized cubes
Zest of one lemon
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup whole milk
2 cups whipping cream

To Thicken

1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup flour

Instructions

In a large pot, cook carrot, celery, and onion in the melted butter over medium heat until the vegetables are tender.
Season with salt and pepper. Add the wild rice, chicken stock, rosemary, thyme, celery seed, and bay leaves.
Raise the heat slightly to allow soup to simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
Add chicken pieces, simmer for approximately 20 minutes more until chicken is cooked and rice is tender.
To finish the soup, add zest of one lemon and lemon juice, whole milk, and cream. Season with more salt and pepper to taste.
To thicken the soup, melt 1⁄4 cup of butter in a separate small pot and whisk 1⁄4 cup of flour into it and stir for a minute or two.
Add this flour and butter paste to the soup to thicken.
Bring the soup back up to temperature and serve with fresh thyme sprinkled on top.

Notes

If you do not have wild rice, you could also substitute with white rice or brown rice.
I highly recommend using homemade bone broth for superior flavor and nutrition.
For the rosemary, thyme, celery seed and bay leaves, you can opt to use fresh herbs if you have them, or grow them in your garden.
You can also substitute skinless chicken thighs, a pre-made rotisserie chicken, or any leftover shredded chicken you may have.
Be sure to zest the lemon lightly, getting just the bright yellow skin off, and not going into the white part of the skin. This keeps the zest from being bitter. Consider opting for organic lemon since you will being using the lemon zest in the soup.
You can use light cream or heavy cream in place of whipping cream.
You could also make this gluten free by making a cornstarch slurry out of water and cornstarch.
The longer the soup sits, the more the flavors develop. So if you’re able to make it earlier in the day and have it sit for several hours before reheating it, the lemon flavors really come out best. Store in the fridge or continue to simmer on the stove.
Make a double batch to have leftovers all week.

Nutrition