Craving a cozy but not too heavy meal? Try this chicken lemon orzo soup! It's light and vibrant thanks to the lemon and spinach, making it a great choice not just for cooler months but for spring and summer, too.
Recipe Highlights
- This simple soup uses orzo (tiny, rice-shaped pasta), not rice or noodles like most chicken soups — it makes every spoonful tender and hearty without being heavy. Love orzo in soups? Try my Italian sausage orzo soup next.
- Fresh lemon juice makes all the difference! I add lemon at the end to brighten everything up and really set this homemade chicken lemon orzo soup apart from regular chicken noodle. I also stir in the spinach right at the end—it's my little trick for keeping it bright, green, and vibrant instead of dull and overcooked.
- This one-pot meal takes just 35 minutes to make and requires minimal cleanup—perfect for busy weeknights, meal prep, or making ahead!
- If you’re a fan of the lemon and chicken combo like I am, you’ll love some of my other dinner favorites too—like my creamy lemon pepper chicken thighs and lemon garlic butter chicken spaghetti.
How to Make Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup (Step-by-Step Photos)
- This is just a quick overview (with photos)—find the full recipe with exact measurements in the recipe card below. You'll love this cozy soup!
- First up: gather all your ingredients. Here’s a photo with everything you’ll need:
- Heat olive oil in a large stock pot or Dutch oven. Add onion, carrots, celery, garlic powder, and onion powder; season with salt and pepper.
- Cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes until softened, adding fresh garlic during the last 2 minutes.
- Pour in chicken stock, scraping up any browned bits, and add thyme. Bring to a boil, then simmer briefly. Set aside â…“ cup of the stock to cool.
- Stir in orzo and shredded chicken, cooking for 8–10 minutes until orzo is nearly done, stirring often to prevent sticking.
- Whisk the cooled stock with cornstarch to form a slurry, then stir it into the soup. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add spinach and half the lemon juice; cook for 2–3 minutes until wilted. Remove from heat, adjust seasoning, and add more lemon juice to taste.
- Serve warm, topped with parsley, fresh thyme, and a lemon slice in each bowl.
Serve with
- Bacon and Cheddar Cheese Scones
- Garlic Butter Dinner Rolls
- Spinach and Ricotta Flatbread
- Apple Spinach Salad
- Arugula Salad with Lemon Zest and Parmesan
- Tomato Cucumber Avocado Salad with Mozzarella and Basil Pesto
- Strawberry Spinach Salad
Tips for Success
- Spice it up! Feel free to add extra seasonings like red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning, or smoked paprika to adjust the flavor to your liking.
- Toppings make it extra special. Top lemon orzo chicken soup with grated Parmesan, Pecorino Romano, or Asiago, along with fresh herbs, green onions, red pepper flakes, or cracked black pepper.
- Make it gluten-free by swapping out the orzo for long-grain rice.
- No orzo? Use small-cut pasta like ditalini, bow tie, orecchiette, fusilli, or even gnocchi.
- Greens galore! This soup works great with a variety of greens like spinach, arugula, kale, Swiss chard, or collard greens—use your favorite!
Storage Instructions
- Refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- To reheat, warm gently on the stovetop over medium heat, adding extra chicken stock or broth if needed. You can also microwave in 30-second bursts.
- I am not a fan of freezing the soup, as orzo absorbs liquid and can become dense and mushy.
More Chicken Soup Recipes
- White Lasagna Soup with Chicken
- Thai Red Curry Chicken Noodle Soup
- Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Chicken and Spinach Soup with Vegetables
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
Craving a cozy but not too heavy meal? Try this chicken lemon orzo soup! It's light and vibrant thanks to the lemon and spinach, making it a great choice not just for cooler months but for spring and summer, too.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 3 medium carrots peeled and thinly diced
- 2 small celery stalks chopped
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 7 cups chicken stock or broth
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- 1 cups dry orzo
- 3 cups cooked, rotisserie chicken no skins, no bones, shredded (preferrably legs and thighs) - about 1.5 lb
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 cups baby spinach
- 1 large lemon juiced
- Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish
- Chopped fresh parsley
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 small lemon sliced
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large stock pot or Dutch oven. Add onion, carrots, chopped celery, garlic powder, and onion powder. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring for 5 minutes over medium-high heat, until softened and slightly caramelized. Add fresh minced garlic during the last 2 minutes of cooking the veggies.
- Pour in chicken stock and stir to scrape any browned bits. Add thyme. Bring the stock to a boil and simmer for a couple minutes. Remove â…“ cup of the stock and set aside to cool.
- Sti rin orzo and shredded chicken. Cook for 8-10 minutes (or according to package directions) until the orzo is almost cooked. Stir the orzo frequently to keep it from stucking to the bottom of the pot.
- Whisk cornstarch with cooled chicken stock (or water) until you have a slurry.
- Pour the cornstarch mixture into the soup and stir to combine.
- Simmer for 5 minutes, then stir in the spinach. Squeeze in half the lemon. Cook until the spinach is wilted, for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove the soup from the heat. Taste the soup and squeeze the remaining lemon juice into the soup, gradually (if desired) and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
- Serve soup warm, garnished with chopped parsley, fresh thyme. Add a slice of lemon to each individual soup bowl.
Notes
- Chicken options: For the chicken, I used shredded rotisserie legs and thighs, no bones, skin removed. Leftover cooked chicken works just as well, too. If starting with raw chicken, simmer it in the broth for about 15 minutes until it's completely cooked, then shred and return it to the pot before adding the orzo.
- To shred chicken easily, I either pull it apart with two forks or pulse it a few times in a food processor.
- Pasta options. If you can’t find orzo, you can use small-cut pasta like ditalini or mini elbows. It’s also great with leftover cooked rice.
- To prevent orzo from sticking, I always use a heavy-bottomed pot like a Dutch oven and stir frequently. If you're worried about sticking, you can also cook the orzo separately, rinse it, and then add it to the soup.
- Lemon tip: Add the lemon juice gradually. If you have an extra big or juicy lemon, and add it all at once, it can overpower the soup.
- Need more flavor? Add ½ teaspoon or more of Better Than Bouillon chicken base.
- Don’t have chicken stock or broth? Substitute with 7 cups hot water and about 2 or 3 teaspoons of Better Than Bouillon chicken base.
- Time-saving tip: If your store sells fresh mirepoix (pre-chopped onion, carrot, and celery), it can really cut down on prep time.
- Delicious add-ins. I’ve tried adding just a touch of dried ginger and mushrooms - so good!
- Toppings: I love sprinkling my chicken lemon orzo soup with bright chopped green onion and grated or shredded Parmesan cheese. It's also great with some red pepper flakes!
- Meal prep tip: If you're serving the soup right away, it's fine to cook the orzo directly in the pot. But for meal prep, I recommend cooking the orzo separately and adding it just before serving to keep it from soaking up too much broth and getting soggy.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
Amount per Serving
Calories
287
% Daily Value*
Fat
8
g
12
%
Saturated Fat
2
g
13
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
2
g
Monounsaturated Fat
4
g
Cholesterol
46
mg
15
%
Sodium
368
mg
16
%
Potassium
584
mg
17
%
Carbohydrates
31
g
10
%
Fiber
3
g
13
%
Sugar
6
g
7
%
Protein
22
g
44
%
Vitamin A
4939
IU
99
%
Vitamin C
21
mg
25
%
Calcium
50
mg
5
%
Iron
2
mg
11
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Tried this recipe?Be sure to leave a comment and provide a Star Rating below - I love your feedback and try to respond to every comment!
This soup is yummy! I doubled the recipe for a nice big pot of soup. The broth was delicious and the fresh spinach and lemon made it special!
Luanne, I am so happy you loved it! Doubling it for a big pot sounds perfect! 🙂 So glad the lemon and spinach made it feel extra special! 🙂
I made this soup. I am going to make it again. I love it, it was so tasty. next time I will cook the Rosinni separately. (Which was an alternative method).
Hi Frances! Cooking the Rosini (orzo) separately is a great idea to keep the texture just right. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review! 🙂
I am not a fan of regular chicken noodle soup but since I tried orzo for the first time in your butternut squash sausage orzo soup, I use it a lot now. This was super easy using rotisserie chicken. I also added a teaspoon of Better than Bouillon - could actually use more. Unbelievably yummy!
Hi Jennifer! I’m so glad you enjoyed it—and that orzo won you over in the butternut squash sausage soup! Love your tweaks, and thanks so much for sharing! 🙂
I cooked the orzo separately and used 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. I also used peas instead of spinach. Just threw them frozen in the soup. I made this soup immediately after I got it in my email lol. Thank you for the awesome recipe!
Thank you, Amber! Thanks for trying the recipe so fast! Love that you added peas!