Zesty Chicken Soup with Orzo (Printable Version)
Zingy lemon soup packed with tender chicken, orzo pasta and leafy spinach. Quick comfort in under an hour!
# What You'll Need:
01 -
1 tablespoon olive oil
02 -
4 mid-sized carrots, cleaned and chopped (roughly 1 1/2 cups)
03 -
3 mid-sized celery ribs, chopped (roughly 1 cup)
04 -
1 little yellow onion, diced small (roughly 1 cup)
05 -
1 teaspoon dried basil
06 -
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
07 -
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
08 -
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped (roughly 1 tablespoon)
09 -
1 tablespoon regular flour
10 -
6 to 8 cups chicken broth with reduced salt
11 -
1.5 pounds chicken breasts without skin or bones
12 -
1 cup raw whole wheat orzo
13 -
3 cups spinach torn into pieces, loosely packed (roughly 3 ounces)
14 -
1/4 cup lemon juice squeezed fresh (roughly 1 medium lemon)
15 -
2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
# Step-by-Step Guide:
01 -
Warm the oil in a big Dutch oven over medium heat. Toss in the carrots, celery, onion, basil, salt, and pepper. Cook them until they get soft and start to brown a bit, around 8 minutes.
02 -
Throw in the garlic and stir it constantly until you can smell it, about 30 seconds.
03 -
Dust the flour over everything and stir till you can't see it anymore. Pour in 6 cups of chicken broth and mix until the flour totally melts away.
04 -
Gently drop the chicken into the liquid. Let the soup come to a boil, then turn down the heat, partly cover the pot, and let it bubble gently for 10 to 15 minutes until the chicken's done and hits 165°F on a thermometer.
05 -
Take out the chicken, put it on a cutting board and cover it up. Let it sit for at least 5 minutes.
06 -
Get the soup bubbling again, then add the orzo. Let it cook for 7 minutes, stirring now and then so it doesn't stick, until the orzo is still pretty firm.
07 -
Cut up or pull apart the chicken, then put it back in the pot.
08 -
Add the spinach, lemon juice, and dill. Pour in more chicken broth if you want it thinner. Let it simmer 3 to 5 minutes till the spinach gets soft and the orzo is just right. Add more salt and pepper if you need to. Serve it hot.
# Additional Notes:
01 -
You can swap orzo for tiny shells or ditalini if you want. Just follow the cooking times on the box.
02 -
Keep leftover soup in a sealed container in your fridge for up to 4 days.
03 -
You can freeze this soup in a good container for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight before warming it up.
04 -
To warm it up, just put leftovers in a Dutch oven on medium-low or zap them in the microwave.