- Prep Time:
10 mins - Cook Time:
20 mins - Total Time:
30 mins
This chicken orzo soup is a quick and easy soup made with rotisserie chicken, carrots, orzo and just enough cream to add some richness.
After several big heavy meals over the long weekend, I was ready for something quick, easy and light. This chicken orzo soup came through (as it always does).
I have been making this soup for a long time, tweaking the recipe here and there over the years. The original recipe was not even for a soup but chicken breasts served in a light creamy broth. I always felt the broth was the best part so I adjusted the recipe to be a soup, increased the amount of carrots to up the nutritional value and replaced the sautéed chicken breasts with shredded rotisserie chicken to make everything come together more quickly.
You might not consider a soup with cream in it to be light. However, there is only 1/3 cup of cream and it gets divided among 4 servings. It is just enough to add some richness to the soup without blowing your calorie intake for the day.
Chicken Orzo Soup
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Description
This chicken orzo soup is a quick and easy soup made with rotisserie chicken, carrots, orzo and just enough cream to add some richness.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup uncooked orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 cup chopped green onions
- 1 1/2 cups diced carrots
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 cup Chardonnay or other dry white wine
- 2 cups less-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup whipping cream
- 2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, for serving, optional
Instructions
- Cook pasta. In a medium saucepan, bring about 5 cups of water to a boil. Stir in orzo. Boil the orzo for 8-10 minutes or until it has a firm, chewy texture, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta. Set aside.
- Cook aromatics. While the pasta is cooking, start the soup by melting butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add green onions, carrots, and garlic to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until carrots begin to soften.
- Add liquids. Stir in white wine and cook for 2 minutes or until the smell of alcohol has cooked off. Add broth, salt, and pepper.
- Simmer. Bring soup to a low simmer then stir in cream. Simmer uncovered over low heat for 5 minutes.
- Add chicken. Add shredded chicken and cook until heated through.
- Serve. Divide cooked orzo and soup among 4 soup bowls. Sprinkle each bowl with chopped parsley, if desired.
Notes
- Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, April 2000.
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