Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
Description
A healthy, nutritious soup that’s even easier to put together if you roast your chicken ahead of time!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 half chicken
- 1 onion
- 4 carrots
- 1 leek
- a few sprigs of fresh thyme (optional)
- a few sprigs of fresh parsley
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 8 ounces uncooked orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- Lemon wedges (optional)
Instructions
- Peel the onion and chop half of it into small pieces and set those aside, reserving the other half of the onion. Peel the carrots and chop 3 of them into pieces and set aside, reserving the other peeled carrot. Cut the leek in half, wash very well, and separate the dark green part from the light green and white parts. Chop up the light green and white parts, and set those aside. Place the chicken in a pot and add enough water to cover. Add the reserved 1/2 an onion, 1 peeled carrot, the washed dark green part of the leek, a few sprigs of parsley, a few sprigs of fresh thyme (optional), a few whole black peppercorns (optional), and a big pinch of salt. Cook gently, at a bare simmer, until fully cooked, about 30 minutes, and set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones, take off the skin, and shred or chop the chicken meat into 1-inch pieces. Strain the poaching liquid. Put the chicken meat in a bowl, add 1 cup of the poaching liquid, and set aside.
- Put the stock and 3-4 cups of the poaching liquid in a large pot. Add the reserved chopped onion, chopped carrots, chopped leeks, and salt to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add reserved chicken, and simmer 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Keep warm.
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Add pasta to pan with chicken and broth mixture; stir in parsley, rind, and juice. Garnish each serving with lemon wedges and cracked black pepper, if desired.
Notes
- To roast the chicken, heat the oven to 375 and season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Not Included in Large Kitchen Box: Thyme (optional), Salt
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4