“Healing” Chicken and Orzo Soup

A bowl of "Healing" Chicken and Orzo Soup with peas, carrots, chicken, and broth.

To save time, I try to use the pre-cooked rotisserie chickens.

“Healing” Chicken and Orzo Soup

As it is officially soup season, I thought I’d kick us off with this AMAZING soup. While it might look pretty basic, the beauty is in that basicness. I was looking to put together a soup with a great broth – soothing as the temperatures are coming down and causing those silly seasonal colds I always seem to get. For the “Healing” Chicken and Orzo Soup, I added a few pantry staples along with lots of turmeric, dill, and lemon juice to create a hearty soup to see you through the season!

Why You’ll Love This “Healing” Chicken and Orzo Soup:

  • Simple to make with pantry staples – I love that the ingredients in this recipe are few and will likely have at home or can easily grab at the store. You are, of course, welcome to add freshly shredded chicken. There is also a certain simplicity to shredding a $5 dollar rotisserie chicken and calling it good.
  • Quick assembly – Bringing the broth to a boil is probably the worst of this, we add ingredients into the bubbling broth and finish up in just 30 minutes!
  • Feel-good flavors – This soup is definitely a soothing, feel-good classic. I use fan favorites like turmeric and lemon juice to pack a great flavor as well as heal any ailment you’ve got going on.
A bowl of "Healing" Chicken and Orzo Soup with peas, carrots, chicken, and broth.

Adding some key spices to this soup definitely gives it a zesty flavor.

The Process:

We’ll start out by bringing about 12 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. I started out by adding some bouillon cubes to get the broth going.

Then set the timer for 30 minutes and add in your shredded chicken, frozen peas and carrots, and the seasonings. I add everything except the lemon juice, which I save for the end to give it a good, bright pop of flavor.

A bowl of shredded chicken sitting next to 3 whole lemons, a frozen bag of peas and carrots, and a bag of uncooked orzo.

You know I can’t say no to Trader Joe’s Orzo.

During the last 5 minutes of the boil time, I add in the orzo (or however long your package instructions say) and finish out the cooking time!

After the timer goes off, I add in a squeeze of lemon juice from about 2 good lemons and serve it up! This soup goes great with a little dollop of yogurt, or (my weird, personal favorite) a few good drops of ghost pepper sauce!

Two bowls of "Healing" Chicken and Orzo Soup with peas, carrots, chicken, and broth.

I like to add a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice to my soup.

This soup is a nice healthy recipe! For more healthy recipe ideas, check out my Artichoke and Kale Naan Pizza.

If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pictures of your creations on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok! Hashtag them #thehappyhaandi. And tag me @thehappyhaandi.

"Healing" Chicken and Orzo Soup

A broth-y, warming soup with chicken and orzo
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 8 people

Equipment

  • Large Pot

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Rotisserie Chicken (shredded with skin removed)
  • 32 oz Frozen Peas and Carrots
  • 12 cups Water
  • 3 Chicken Bouillon Cubes
  • 1 cup Orzo (dry)
  • 2 Lemons (juiced)
  • 3.5 tbsp Salt
  • 2 tsp Turmeric Powder
  • 1 tsp Onion Powder
  • 2 tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tsp Dried Oregano
  • 2 tsp Dried Dill Weed
  • Chili Pepper Flakes (to taste)

Instructions
 

For the Soup:

  • Bring a large pot of water to boil - 12 cups. Add in the bouillon cubes.
  • While the water is coming to a boil, shred the rotisserie chicken.
  • Once the water is at a boil and the cubes have dissolved, add in the shredded chicken and the frozen peas and carrots. Set a timer for 30 minutes.
  • Add all the seasoning, except the lemon juice, and taste, and adjust the broth as it boils.
  • Finally, add the orzo in during the final boil time, as the package instructions say. My orzo, from Trader Joe's, takes 5 minutes so I add the orzo into the pot during the last 5 minutes of the boil time.
  • Once the time is up, remove the soup from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Adjust again to your taste and serve up!

Notes

Notes:
About the broth - I know 12 cups sounds like a lot but...it actually works pretty well and ensures a VERY broth-filled soup. If you're not a fan, you can always dial it back a bit! Maybe to 8 cups. Be aware that the orzo will really drink up the water as it sits in the pot (once it's off the heat). I actually add extra water to my leftovers to get the consistency back to where I like.
Keyword Carrots, Chicken, Chicken Soup, lemon, Orzo, Peas, Soup, Turmeric
Share: