Next Post
Artichoke Pesto and Burrata Pizza with Lemony Arugula.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
Lemony Garlic Chicken and Orzo Soup, also known as cozy winter soup that’s light and healthy. Caramelized garlic, fresh herbs, lots of lemon, kale, and chicken broth all make for a tasty, warming soup. There’s even some orzo pasta for good measure, because I do believe that every good soup needs carbs. This is quick, easy, and SO DELICIOUS. You can make it on the stove or in the crockpot, either way it’s going to be good. The aroma will fill your home with the cozy smell of homemade chicken soup…that’s heavy on the garlic…and the lemon. So the best kind of chicken soup!
Please tell me that you guys are still very much enjoying soup? Because over here, it’s still very much soup weather, with temperatures dipping into the negatives overnight. Surely soup weather, right?
In all seriousness, over the last few months I’ve been making a new soup recipe every other week. You’d think I might start to get sick of it, or run out of new ideas. But nope, soup is still exciting me. Crossing my fingers you feel the same way.
This is actually a soup I made a few weeks ago over Christmas. I quickly realized that I needed to have a large batch of something continually simmering away on the stove. That way there was always something for people to snack on throughout the day. What better than chicken soup? It’s the perfect thing to warm up to after coming in from outside. And this chicken soup also happened to do wonders for the cold that many family members seemed to have caught. So not only is this soup good, but will also help to fight off your winter cold.
Cool. Cool.
I don’t know if you guys remember this lemon butter chicken and orzo that I made last year. But it was the inspiration behind the making of this soup. I can’t tell you how much I love that skillet chicken. It’s probably one of my more favorite skillet recipes. I even made it the other day on Instagram. It’s so good.
Anyway, I love the flavors of that dish so much that I decided to turn them into a healthy soup. Which is where this recipe comes in.
It’s everything I love so much about that skillet chicken, but in soup form. Plus the addition of caramelized garlic and a little parmesan too…
Just as good, maybe better. Just depends what kind of mood you’re in!
Start out by searing the chicken in some olive oil, then add the garlic to caramelize it. I LOVE cooking the garlic slowly in the oil and allowing it to become soft, fragrant, and golden brown. It takes that garlicy bite out of the garlic and mellows it out, turning it buttery and sweet. Yummm.
Once you’ve finished searing, add all the remaining ingredients and cook until the chicken is cooked through and falling apart. I prefer to use bone-in chicken, as it adds flavor to the broth, buy you can also use boneless.
I flavored the broth with fresh herbs, plenty of lemon, and a little parmesan. It’s perfectly light and almost spring like, but still cozy enough for winter.
For the orzo, I think it’s easiest to boil it outside of the soup. I know a lot of recipes will tell you to just boil the pasta in the soup. But if you have leftovers, the soup with soak up all the broth, which is a major bummer. SO, I boil the pasta separately, and then add it to each bowl of soup. The heat from the broth will warm the pasta, making leftovers great for lunch the next day.
And on the topic of orzo, I am obsessed. Ever since last year when I made the lemon butter chicken and orzo I cannot stop using it in recipes. It’s my favorite…see these stuffed peppers, these lamb meatballs, these scallops, and this grilled zucchini.
Yup. Obsessed.
With plenty of snow in the forecast, I’m thinking it’s time for another round of this soup. It’s been a few weeks since I made it, and writing this post now has me craving a bowl.
I’ll take mine with extra orzo, lemon, and probably a sprinkle of parmesan too. Oh, and a side of crusty bread. Always bread with soup. Always.
Hope you guys enjoy and happy Wednesday!
If you make this lemony garlic chicken and orzo soup, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Lemony Garlic Chicken and Orzo Soup.
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 981 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts (about 1 pound)
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 8-12 large cloves of garlic, smashed (use to your taste)
- 6 carrots, chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- kosher salt and pepper
- 8 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 parmesan rind, plus grated parmesan, for serving
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 bunch Tuscan kale, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped dill, plus more for serving
- juice of 2 lemons (or to taste)
- 1 pound orzo pasta
Instructions
Stove-Top
- 1. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper. 2. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken and sear until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Reduce the heat to low, add the smashed garlic cloves and cook another 3-5 minutes, until golden. Add the carrots, sage, thyme, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook another 5 minutes. Add the broth, parmesan rind, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Simmer over medium heat for 15-20 minutes or up to 4-6 hours over low heat. 3. Remove the chicken and shred. Stir the kale, dill, and lemon juice into the soup, cooking another 5 minutes. Remove the parmesan rind and bay leaf. Stir back in the shredded chicken. Taste and season with salt and pepper.4. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to packaged directions, until al dente. Drain.5. Divide the orzo among bowls and pour the soup over top. Top each bowl with fresh dill and a squeeze of lemon, if desired.
Crockpot
- 1. In the bowl of your crockpot, combine the olive oil, chicken, garlic cloves, carrots, sage, thyme, broth, parmesan rind, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Season the salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 4-5 hours. 3. Once done cooking, remove the chicken and shred. Stir the kale, dill, and lemon juice into the soup, cooking another 10 minutes. Remove the parmesan rind and bay leaf. Stir back in the shredded chicken. Taste and season with salt and pepper.4. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to packaged directions, until al dente. Drain.5. Divide the orzo among bowls and pour the soup over top. Top each bowl with fresh dill and a squeeze of lemon, if desired.
Instant Pot
- 1. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper. 2. Set Instant Pot to sauté and add the olive oil. Once hot, add the chicken and sear until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Stir in the smashed garlic cloves and cook another 3-5 minutes, until golden. Add the carrots, sage, thyme, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Add the broth, parmesan rind, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Cover and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. 3. Remove the chicken and shred. 4. Set Instant Pot to sauté. Stir the orzo, kale, dill, and lemon juice, cooking another 8 minutes, until the orzo is al dente. Remove the parmesan rind and bay leaf. Stir back in the shredded chicken. Taste and season with salt and pepper.5. Divide the soup among bowls. Top each bowl with fresh dill and a squeeze of lemon, if desired.
This post was originally published on January 16, 2019
Made this tonight and it was amazing!! Both my littles loved it too. My 16 month old who has gotten so weird with food lately even ate his whole bowl (kale include??) Can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow!
Thank you so much Meg! I am so glad your little ones loved this recipe!
Another delicious recipe! Thank you! I made on the stove top, subbed spinach for the kale, forgot the bay leaf, nixed the dill and no rind because I didn’t have. Still wonderful! My 13 year old son loved (he loves most chicken soups) so I’ll be making again and again!
I am so glad you both loved this recipe, Teresa! Thank you so much!
This recipe was delicious! I thought the prep was fairly simple and the broth turned out AMAZING with that Parmesan rind and lemon! I used spinach instead of kale since I’m not a fan of the taste of kale, and it worked great. Even my husband ate it who doesn’t like vegetables 🙂 It was the perfect warm cozy meal on a cold rainy evening. Can’t wait to make it again!
That is so amazing! I am so glad you all loved this and you found a way for him to eat vegetables! Thank you so much Kayla!
This was awesome ! Thanks ?
Thank you so much Bianca!
I made this soup in the crockpot today. It took just a few minutes to throw together and when I came home my house smelled so warm and cozy. I finished it up with lemon, kale and orzo and was not disappointed. This is my favorite chicken soup and my favorite recipe from Half Baked Harvest so far. The lemon and big chunks of carrot were such a nice combination of flavors. Super easy and super delicious weeknight recipe!
Thank you so much Windy! I am so glad you loved this soup and it was perfect for a weeknight!
Do you smash the garlic clove so it’s still whole or into an almost ‘paste’?
I Smash the cloves so that they are still whole. No need to smash them into a paste. They will soften in the soup. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
For the stove-top instructions, do you start to boil the water and then cook the orzo (let’s say 9 minutes) after step 3 or is it started earlier so that the orzo is done cooking at about the same time as step 3 is finished? If the orzo steps are after step 3, do you keep all the other stuff at a simmer the entire time it takes to boil the water and cook the orzo? Thanks!
Hey Dexter! I recommend cooking the orzo during step 3 while the chicken is cooking. This was everything should be done around the same time. Does this make sense? Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much!! xTieghan
I made this recipe last night and it turned out delicious. I substituted rice for the orzo since I’d don’t have any and limes instead of lemons. Ny family enjoyed it and I will definitely make it for them again.
Thank you so much Canty!
I made the Lemony Garlic Chicken and Orzo soup last night. Fantastic! I was not sure about the garlic so only added 8 cloves. I sure wish I had added more! When you get one….so delicious! My house still smells great this morning from cooking this aromatic, healthy, yummy soup. Thanks for this recipe!
Thank you so much Patty!
Can you freeze the leftovers?
HI! I have not frozen this, but I am sure it freezes really well! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe. Thanks so much!! xTieghan
It’s so good! Was a little scared of the 8 cloves of garlic and juice of 2 lemons. The flavours all worked and made for a hearty soup. Why did I have doubts?! Thank you!
I am so glad it turned out amazing for you! Thank you!
Another win! As someone who hates onion and celery, it was nice to not have to make any edits! [that isn’t a judgement statement against recipes with them, I know it’s my issue (: ] This was perfect for a cold snap and we’re very much looking forward to the leftovers.
Hi Ann! I am so glad you loved this soup! Thank you for trying it!
Hi Tieghan! I made this yesterday and LOVE it!! I added lemon zest and ginger since I didn’t have sage. Perfect for a cold snowy NJ weekend. I adore you and your blog ? Thank you for sharing your recipes!!! Xo
Thank you so much Amy! I am so glad you loved this!
I LOVE this soup – had it without the orzo and added the zest from the lemons -I used two thighs and one breast so great – thanks!
Thank you Tracy!
Delicious and easy! Perfect for a winter night.
Thank you so much Arielle!