Chicken and Rice Soup
Chicken and Rice Soup is a comfort food classic for a reason: it’s warming, filling and satisfying with tender, perfectly cooked vegetables, juicy, fall-apart chicken and hearty rice. Today’s recipe is so easy, you’ll never give the canned stuff a second look.
Chicken and Rice Soup Recipe
For years, I truly didn’t understand why people loved soup – because I had only ever experienced canned soups.
But, when my daughter was little we came home one day from the pumpkin patch with a butternut squash and I decided to try my hand at making roasted butternut squash soup. Needless to say, it has changed my viewpoint.
I am now officially a soup person – but only if they are homemade!
Today’s chicken and rice soup is an aromatic, richly flavored soup that is worlds away from anything I’ve ever had from a can. It comes together in less than 30 minutes – and less than 10 minutes of that time is active cooking time. The rest of the time, you can find something else to do as the soup simmers away on the stovetop, filling your home with that unmistakeable smell of homemade chicken soup.
I’ve shared my standard recipe below, but there are many little tweaks you can make to this easy chicken and rice soup recipe to completely transform it into an entirely different soup. I’ve listed a few ideas on how to switch things up – but feel free to experiment and make this soup your own.
Chicken and Rice Soup Variations
- I often use jasmine rice because it’s my favorite, but you can use brown rice for a heartier soup with more fibre and nutrients – or add a wild rice blend for a distinctly fall take on this classic chicken rice soup.
- if you’d prefer a creamy soup, add 1/4 cup heavy cream in the last 10 minutes of cooking.
- use leftover rotisserie chicken like we did with our Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken Soup
- add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice (and possibly even a bit of lemon zest) to brighten up the soup
- swap out or increase the vegetables – zucchini, mushrooms, kale, spinach, bell peppers, broccoli or cauliflower would all be great additions or substitutions
- swap out the poultry seasoning for Italian seasoning or even ranch seasoning
- swap out the rice for cauliflower rice to make this recipe low-carb
- use small pasta (like pastina) instead of rice
How to store leftover chicken and rice soup: the rice will continue to soak up the soup broth as it sits in the fridge, so you have a couple options for storing the leftover soup.
If you can stand to spend a few extra minutes separating the rice from the soup (using a slotted spoon or fine mesh sieve) and store them separately, that is the method that will be best for maintaining the textural integrity of the soup.
However, you can also just store the soup as-is and add more broth or water when you want to reheat – but just note that the rice will have become very soft and some pieces may actually break down a bit.
Regardless of which method you use, the soup can be kept in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
Can I freeze chicken and rice soup? Personally, I don’t recommend freezing this soup with the rice so I would remove the rice before freezing (or make the soup without rice if you plan to freeze it). Freeze for up to 2 months in airtight ziptop freezer bags or your favorite freezer containers. (This set of freezer containers is a crazy bargain.)
Can I use leftover cooked rice? Okay, so while technically you can add precooked rice in the last few minutes of cooking and the recipe will turn out great, all rice can contain bacillus cereus – which can cause severe food poisoning. Even if the rice has been fully cooked previously, that bacteria doesn’t actually disappear – it just becomes benign temporarily.
I personally refuse to re-use rice unless I re-boil it at high temperatures (above 200F) – which, if you do this with already cooked rice, can make the rice very soft and sometimes mealy, so that’s up to your personal discretion.
The bacteria element is important to keep in mind when refrigerating the leftover soup, as well. You want to cool it a bit before adding to the fridge (so that you don’t increase the temperature of the fridge, risking the other foods stored there) but you also want to store it within 2 hours to prevent bacteria growth. If you’re someone who tends to forget putting away food or likes to linger at the dinner table, set a timer so that you don’t forget.
More Homemade Chicken Soup Recipes:
- Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup
- Cold-Fighting Chicken Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
- Instant Pot Cabbage Roll Soup (Low-Carb) from Sizzle and Salt
- Asian-Style Chicken Rice Soup from Kylee Cooks
- Buffalo Chicken Soup from The Soccer Mom Blog
Chicken and Rice Soup Ingredients
- Olive Oil
- Onion, minced
- Celery, diced
- Carrots, peeled and diced
- Minced Garlic
- Poultry Seasoning <– grab our recipe for homemade poultry seasoning here
- White Rice
- Chicken Broth
- Cooked Chicken, chopped or shredded
Scroll down to the printable recipe card for full measurements.
Tip: see our list of suggested variations to make this soup uniquely your own.
Kitchen Tools You May Find Helpful
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Heavy stockpot or Dutch Oven <– highly recommended for even cooking and seamlessly transferring this recipe from the stove to the oven
- Sharp Kitchen Knife
- Cutting Board
- Wooden Spoon or Spatula <– I like these spatulas because they are one solid piece and don’t have removable heads for bacteria to get trapped underneath. Plus they are heat-resistant and have a lifetime warranty.
How to Make Chicken and Rice Soup
Place olive oil in a stockpot over medium heat.
Once oil is hot, add the onion, celery and carrots. Saute for 4 minutes, until onions are translucent.
Add the garlic and poultry seasoning, stirring for 1 minute.
Add the white rice and stir occasionally for 2 minutes until slightly toasted.
Add the chicken broth and set heat to high until broth comes to a boil.
Reduce to medium-low and simmer until rice is fluffy and cooked through, about 12 minutes.
Add chicken and cook until heated through, about 4-6 minutes.
Taste and adjust seasoning before serving.
Grab your free printable recipe card for our chicken and rice soup recipe:
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Chicken and Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil, or more as needed
- 1 Onion, minced
- 2 stalks Celery, diced
- 2 Carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 teaspoons Minced Garlic
- 1 Tablespoon Poultry Seasoning
- 1 1/2 cups White Rice
- 8-10 cups Chicken Broth
- 1 lb Cooked Chicken, chopped or shredded
Instructions
- Place olive oil in a stockpot over medium heat.
- Once oil is hot, add the onion, celery and carrots. Saute for 4 minutes, until onions are translucent.
- Add the garlic and poultry seasoning, stirring for 1 minute.
- Add the white rice and stir occasionally for 2 minutes until slightly toasted.
- Add the chicken broth and set heat to high until broth comes to a boil.
- Reduce to medium-low and simmer until rice is fluffy and cooked through, about 12 minutes.
- Add chicken and cook until heated through, about 4-6 minutes.
- Taste and adjust seasoning before serving.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 341Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 103mgSodium: 9294mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 1gSugar: 12gProtein: 31g
Sugar, Spice and Glitter uses an auto-generate nutrition calculator. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate unless analyzed in a scientific lab, so these should be considered more of a guideline than medical information.
I hope your family loves this chicken and rice soup as much as mine does!
For more scrumptious soups, check out our full soup recipe collection here:
For more ways to enjoy chicken, check out our full chicken recipe collection here:
