Believe it or not, in the 2.5 year history of this blog, I have never made a basic chicken noodle soup. Well, I almost made it this weekend until I went perusing through my pantry to see what left over ingredients I had that needed to be used. I found a half bag of wild rice mix that I had left over from this holiday rice dressing last year. It’s a really delicious mix of all sorts of wild rices and since I had kept it tightly sealed, I thought it was definitely worth using.
You don’t have to use wild rice for this recipe, although it gives a really nice texture. White or brown will certainly work in a pinch. See the step by step photos for cooking adjustments for white or brown rice.
If you don’t like creamy soups (this one isn’t super creamy), you can skip the milk mixture at the end of the recipe and use chicken broth instead. Then you’ll have yourself a delicious, clear broth chicken and rice soup. You’ve got options!
I also used the carrots and celery that I had left over from this recipe a couple of weeks ago. I just cleaned and sliced the entire bunch then froze half to use later. I was happy not to have to peel and chop today!
Creamy Chicken & Rice Soup
Servings 8Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.11)
- 1 medium yellow onion ($0.56)
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic ($0.24)
- 1/2 lb. carrots, sliced ($0.39)
- 1/2 bunch celery, sliced ($0.79)
- 1 lb. chicken breast ($1.99)
- 1 whole bay leaf ($0.15)
- 1 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1 tsp dried thyme ($0.05)
- to taste cracked pepper ($0.05)
- 1-2 tsp to taste salt ($0.05)
- 1 cup wild rice mix ($1.37)
- 6 cups water ($0.00)
- 1/3 bunch fresh parsley ($0.26)
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.10)
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.02)
- 2 cups whole milk ($1.07)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Meanwhile, dice the onion (and mince the garlic if using fresh rather than pre-minced). Add the onion and garlic to the hot oil and saute until tender (5 min).
- If using fresh carrots and celery, clean and slice them while the onions are sauteing. Add them to the pot and cook for about 5 minutes more.
- Add the chicken breast (whole), bay leaf, oregano, thyme, cracked pepper, dry rice, and 6 cups of water to the pot. Do not add salt yet. Bring the pot up to a boil over medium high heat, then reduce the heat to low and let simmer for one hour.
- Near the end of the hour, begin to make the creamy milk mixture. In a small pot, melt 2 Tbsp of butter over medium heat. When it is fully melted, whisk in 2 Tbsp of all-purpose flour. Cook and stir the butter and flour mixture for two minutes. Whisk in the milk and allow it to come up to a simmer, whisking occasionally to keep it from scorching on the bottom. Once it reaches a simmer, it will have thickened slightly.
- Carefully remove the chicken pieces from the soup and shred or dice with a knife and fork. Rinse and chop the parsley. Add the parsley and the thickened milk mixture to the soup. Season with salt to taste. I used about 2 tsp of salt, but start with a little and add more as needed. I also added a touch more pepper at this point. Serve hot!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Step By Step Photos
Start by dicing the onion. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the diced onion and minced garlic over medium heat until softened and transparent.
‘Till it looks like this.
Most recipes that I use only require half of the smallest bag or bunch of carrots and celery that you can buy at the store. I never let the other half get limp and moldy in my fridge. I just prep the entire bunch and freeze half so that I’ll have some for next time. I added these to the pot straight out of the freezer and just cooked it for about five minutes or until they were fully thawed.
Once the carrots and celery are thawed (they don’t have to be tender because they’ll boil for quite a while), add the raw chicken and herbs (bay leaf, oregano, thyme, cracked pepper).
This is the wild rice mix that I had in my pantry. I used one cup. Feel free to use any type of rice. Wild rice has a thicker hull so it can withstand one hour of boiling, but if you’re using a regular rice variety, add it a half hour into the simmer step.
Add the dry wild rice mix and 6 cups of water. Bring the whole pot up to a boil over medium high heat and then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for one hour.
After an hour, the rice will be cooked and the chicken will be tender.
Carefully remove the chicken pieces from the pot and cut/shred into bite sized pieces.
It will be hot, so use a fork and knife. Add the shredded chicken back to the pot.
Rinse and chop the parsley. Add it to the pot as well.
At this point you have a really great chicken, rice, and vegetable soup. You can stop here, season with salt, and enjoy it as is. Or, you can go on to the next step and make the creamy milk base.
To begin the cream sauce, melt 2 Tbsp of butter in a small pot over medium heat. Once melted, whisk in 2 Tbsp of all-purpose flour. Stir and cook this mixture over medium heat for about 2 minutes.
Whisk in the milk and allow the mixture to come up to a simmer over medium-high heat. Whisk occasionally as it heats to prevent the bottom from scorching. Once it reaches a simmer, it will be slightly thickened.
Pour the thickened milk mixture into the soup. Stir to combine.
Season the soup with salt to your liking. Start with a 1/2 tsp of salt, stir, taste, and add more as needed. I added close to 2 tsp before it reached a point that I liked. I also added a little more pepper. A little cayenne wouldn’t be too bad either!
This is a really hearty soup that is everything you need in one pot! Protein, vegetables, and carbohydrates!
This was so yummy! My husband loves it! I 1used chicken stock (1/2 the amount) instead of straight water and added frozen corn at the end. It tasted just like canned corn chowder, except way better! I used my Instant Pot to make the soup, it took 15 minutes to cook and everything cooked perfectly.
i love this soup! i have made it 3 times this fall and can’t get enough. i used bullion in the water and bulk wild rice from sprouts (cheaper).
i have not tried freezing but i have made it as a lunch meal prep, and it held up through friday and tasted as good as the first day. i add water and a little salt to reconstitute a bit.
i did try this in a regular stainless steel pot and a cast iron dutch i’ve, and the chicken when made in the stainless steel was not as tough. maybe the temp in the cast iron cooks it faster? not sure if the rice would cook if i did less time.
I made this pretty much as written except used almond milk, heavy cream and gluten free flour. I actually had 2lb of chicken tenders, cooked all but used half in the soup and reserved the others.
I also pureed 1/3 of the soup, without the chicken,and stirred it in with the cream milk mixture. When you puree 1/3-1/2 of the soup it makes it so good you dont need to add milk or cream, but I always do!lol I am pureeing soups because of swallowing problem for hubs and a chipped tooth for me.
I really liked how this soup cooked the chicken and it called for water not broth! Perfect for a hardy soup, economical and easy to adapt.
Hi Beth. Love your site, I’ve purchased several of your cook books for friends and family. Question, how would you modify this recipe to be “slow cooker” compatible?
Hmm, I’m afraid that would be really tricky because of the rice and the milk thickener at the end. I’d definitely need to do some testing before I could give good advice on that one. :(
My baby (bf) is sick as a dog and this was simply amazing! I added mushrooms, broccoli, more garlic, and substituted coconut flour instead of all purpose, and quinoa instead of rice (add 40 minutes in). I was worried to add the milk but it tastes great! I’m thinking of trying a non dairy milk next time but I didn’t want to mess up his very much needed chicken soup.
I’ve commented before, but I’m going to again. This soup is the best! The recipe is foul proof. Thanks!
This was so good. I made it in my instant pot with frozen chicken breasts and it turned out amazingly awesome. So simple to make and so delicious.
I don’t have carrots on hand and I’m trying to decide if it will be too bland without them. Would sweet potatoes be a good substitute?
Hmmm, I bet sweet potatoes would be good/interesting in this! I say give it a try. :)
This soup was amazing! So much better than I thought it would be. I will definitely be making it again. Thanks!
I’ve made this at least 4 times lately – a big hit. Used smoked leg quarters ($.59/lb) chopped and added late, with the milk mixture. Used chicken stock in place of water and added mushrooms, bell pepper, and okra. The okra added immense depth of flavor. I will start trying okra in other soups now, not just gumbo.
Love your website. I check it every time I’m looking for something new to try and you always come through. Thanks!
Seriously. …made this last night for dinner…so good! And it was easy. Thanks for a great recipe! 5 stars! :)
This is amazing. Made tonight for dinner!
This is a delicious recipe. I am so happy I made it for dinner last night. It was so creamy, rich and filling, just what we wanted it. I did use chicken tights instead of breast and I cooked it all using my pressure cooker. At the end I just needed to add the parsley and milk sauce and I was done. It came out really good, everything was perfect even the chicken, it was so tender that it was falling off the bone… yummy.
thanks again.
This soups looks wonderful. Can you tell me if it freezes well? I try to make soups to have on hand in the freezer for lunches and I-forgot-to-plan-for dinners.
I don’t remember if I froze any of this soup or not. From what I’ve read, I think creamy soups are supposed to not freeze as well? But I haven’t tried it, so I’m not sure.
This recipe is great as is, but I recommend trying it with smoked turkey legs instead of chicken–the smokey flavor the turkey adds is wonderful :)