Creamy Chicken Orzo Soup

4.95 from 17 votes

Our creamy chicken orzo soup recipe is packed with veggies, cooked orzo pasta, shredded chicken, and a roux-based broth.

Prep 20

Cook 40

Total 1

Fat 13

Carbs 46

Protein 28

Yield

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
4 large carrots finely diced (1.5 cups)
4 large celery stalks finely diced (1 cup)
1/2 medium yellow onion finely diced
2 medium russet potatoes finely diced
2 tablespoons coarse Italian seasoning we recommend a course Italian seasoning like THIS*
1/2 teaspoon salt or more, to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
8 cups chicken broth
1.5 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast
8 sprigs thyme bundled
1.5 cups frozen peas
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1.5 cups uncooked orzo pasta
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour

Place 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a large stockpot and heat over medium/high heat.
When olive oil is fragrant, add garlic, carrot, celery, onion, and potato. Saute for around 5 minutes. Then, season with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper and mix. Add broth and stir.
Submerge raw chicken breast in the broth and add thyme bundle. Bring soup to a rolling boil over medium/high heat.
Once boiling, turn heat down to low and cover. Let simmer for 20 minutes.
While the soup is simmering, prepare orzo pasta by following the directions on the back of the box. Once done, drain and set aside.
When the soup is done simmering, remove herb bundle from the soup and discard. Remove chicken breast from soup and shred with two forks, and set aside.
Now, prepare your roux. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium/high heat. Lower heat to medium heat and slowly add flour to butter. Mix with a whisk until mixture turns into a crumble. Remove from heat.
Immediately add roux to the soup and turn heat back to medium/high heat and bring to a boil. Use a wooden spoon to break up the roux, makings sure there are no chunks in the soup.
One boiling, turn heat off and stir in frozen peas, cooked orzo pasta, and shredded chicken and mix again.
Finally, add 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and mix.

Italian seasoning: if you do not have a coarse Italian seasoning like the one we used, we recommend adding a few red pepper flakes and potentially more salt!