Easy Greek Lemon Chicken Soup

You won’t believe how easy this Greek Lemon Chicken Soup is to put together!  It comes together in under 30 minutes from start to finish and creates a restaurant-worthy soup that can be enjoyed all year long.  You can make this recipe with rice, orzo, egg noodles, or cauliflower rice to suit to your taste buds too.

Why this recipe works

• There’s no chopping onions, celery, or any aromatics, YET it still packs in the kind of flavor you’d get from a soup that’s been stewing for hours.
• This soup is thickened with eggs that have been whisked with lemon juice  so it has a vibrant flavor. 
• This soup is a great make-ahead meal and a easy one-pot meal dinner recipe.
• Although it’s not authentic, I use low carb cauliflower rice in this recipe.  But you can use rice, orzo pasta, or egg noodles (for a more classic chicken soup vibe).  All of these options taste amazing!

The secret to great flavor in this soup

If you have an amazing broth, you don’t have to add tons of ingredients to get a soul-satisfying flavor.

High-quality chicken bone broth or homemade chicken broth works best in this recipe.

If you want to use regular store-bought chicken broth it won’t have as much flavor but you can enhance it by sauteing 1/4 cup finely chopped onions in olive oil to the pot before you add the chicken broth.  Add a chicken bouillon cube to the broth as well.  I would also recommend using uncooked chicken and simmer it in the broth and that will really enhance the flavor as well.

Homemade Bone Broth

I have found Instant Pot Bone Broth + 3 Hacks at home.  You can use this recipe to make it once a month, then you’ll have incredibly delicious broth ready to go when you make this soup.

where to buy bone broth

There are plenty of options now, but not all brands are high-quality.  

I’ve been drinking Kettle & Fire Bone Broth since 2016 and they are my favorite.  You can purchase right from their website or find them in Sprouts’ Market grocery stores among others.

• If you order 6 or more cartons you get FREE shipping, YEAH!
• Both their chicken and beef bone broth is made from organically-raised chickens and cows.  They use only grass-fed organic bones from American farms and source organic vegetables
• I recommend their chicken bone broth for this recipe
• Get 15% off your first order by using the coupon code BESSIEBAKES15
• I’m an affiliate for Kettle & Fire because I love their product and drink it every week.  I receive a small commission at no cost to you if you purchase their product

Click the box below to order Kettle & Fire

more options for bone broth

Bone Fide Provisions has amazing flavor and is quite nutritious.  It can be found in the freezer section at Sprouts’ Market and Publix grocery stores among others.  Get the chicken bone broth for this recipe.

The simple ingredients for this soup

P.S. I forgot to add the cauliflower rice to the photo below, ha!

Easy step-by-step instructions

1. Heat 4 cups of bone broth over medium-high heat and add 4 chicken thighs or 2 chicken breasts.  If your chicken has the skins on them, you can simmer them in the soup for extra fat and richness or remove them.
2. Simmer the chicken for about 15 minutes or until it’s cooked through.
3. When the chicken is fully cooked, remove the chicken from the broth and set aside.  If you use chicken thighs, you can cut them into small pieces or you can shred the thighs or breasts with a fork.
4. Lower the heat of the broth to medium while you shred the chicken.
5. While the chicken is simmering (if using uncooked chicken), whisk two eggs together with the lemon juice until nice and frothy.
6. When the chicken is cooked through, scoop out 1 cup hot broth out of the pot.
7. Add the green beans and cauliflower rice to the hot broth and heat for 3-4 minutes until tender but still has a bite.
8. Once the green beans are cooked through add the chicken back to the pan to reheat.  Season with salt to taste and white pepper.

If you’d like to use real rice, orzo, or egg noodles, cook it to package instructions in a separate pot, then add the rice, orzo pasta, or egg noodles to the soup at this point.

How to temper the eggs so they don’t curdle/scramble in the soup

• Tempering the eggs is a way that we gently raise the temperature of the egg mixture before adding to the hot broth so that the eggs don’t scramble and creates a smooth sauce for this soup.
• After you’ve shredded or chopped the chicken begin tempering the egg mixture with the broth.
• Start whisking the egg mixture with a whisk or fork.  VERY slowly drizzle in the 1 cup of hot broth while whisking constantly until it’s combined.
• When the mixture is combined, slowly add it to the pot with the hot broth while whisking.

Serve this soup with fresh parsley and a slice of lemon!

pro tips:

• If you use chicken with the skins on, remove the skins and crisp them up in a dry saute pan over medium-high heat for a few minutes on both sides until they get nice and golden brown.  They are crispy and delicious!
• You can use pre-cooked chicken from a whole chicken or a store-bought rotisserie chicken which will save about 10-15 minutes on the cooking time to this already easy soup!  If you use pre-cooked chicken simply add the chicken at the end to reheat once the green beans are cooked through.
• I made my Upside Down Roasted Chicken before taking these photos and was able to serve it for dinner, plus I pulled a lot of meat off of the bones and reserved it for this soup, win win!

Check out all of the delicious soup recipes on this site here!

Bon Appetit Ya’ll,

Leslie O.

Easy Lemon Chicken Soup

This spin on the classic Avgolemeno soup comes together in under 30 minutes and has wonderful flavor from the lemon juice, lemon zest, and high-quality chicken broth.

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Course: Lunch and Dinner

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Servings: 0 people

Author: Bessie Bakes

Ingredients

• ▢ 4 cups chicken bone broth
• ▢ 2 lemons zest 1 lemon and juice 1 ½ lemons. Slice the remaining half lemon
• ▢ 4 chicken thighs or 2 chicken breasts or pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from the store
• ▢ 2 eggs
• ▢ 1 ½ cups green beans fresh or frozen
• ▢ ½ cup cauliflower rice or see ingredient substitutions below
• ▢ 2 tsp flat-leaf parsley fresh, chopped finely
• ▢ ¼ tsp white pepper
• ▢ 1 tsp salt or add more or less to taste

• ▢ 2 tsp olive oil for drizzling at the end

Instructions

• Heat the 4 cups of chicken bone broth over medium-high heat in a large pot to a simmer. Cover with a lid to help it heat up faster.
• Add the chicken thighs or chicken breasts and simmer partially covered for about 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.  Timing depends on the size and type of chicken you use.
• Remove the chicken and set aside to cool enough to handle.  Shred or chop the chicken.

If using pre-cooked chicken

• If you use a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from the store, shred about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of chicken. Wait to add the chicken at the end to reheat it in the soup. This will save about 10-15 minutes of cooking time as well!

For the egg mixture

• While the chicken is cooking, whisk together the lemon juice, and 2 eggs until nice and frothy. If you use pre-cooked chicken, make the egg mixture once the broth is hot.

Tempering the egg mixture

• Once the chicken is removed from the pot, lower the temperature to medium heat.
• Scoop out 1 cup hot broth from the pot.
• Start whisking the egg mixture and very slowly drizzle in the hot broth while whisking constantly until all of the broth is combined.

Finishing the soup

• Pour the egg mixture into the pot of hot broth while whisking constantly.
• Add green beans (fresh or frozen) and cauliflower rice and heat until cooked but still has some texture, about 3-5 minutes. 
• Add the chicken back in and season with salt and white pepper to taste.
• Stir in the lemon zest at the end.
• Serve each bowl with a slice of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil on top.  Enjoy!

Notes

Cauliflower Rice

For the cauliflower rice I used frozen pre-chopped for convenience.  But you can certainly chop your own as well.

A substitute for cauliflower rice

You can use regular rice or orzo pasta for a more traditional flavor, or egg noodles (for more of a chicken soup vibe).   Cook any of these to package instructions in a separate pot, then add the rice, pasta or noodles at the end.

Recipe Tips:

• If you use chicken with the skins on, remove the skins and crisp them up in a dry saute pan over medium-high heat for a few minutes on both sides until they get nice and golden brown.  They are crispy and delicious!
• You can use pre-cooked chicken from a whole chicken or a store-bought rotisserie chicken which will save about 10-15 minutes on the cooking time to this already easy soup!  If you use pre-cooked chicken simply add the chicken at the end to reheat once the green beans are cooked through.
• I made my Upside Down Roasted Chicken Recipe before taking these photos and was able to serve it for dinner, plus I pulled a lot of meat off of the bones and reserved it for this soup, win win!

Can I make this ahead?

Yes, in fact it may taste better the 2nd day.  It will keep for up to 3 days in a container in the fridge or up to one month in the freezer.

To thaw from the freezer, put it in the fridge overnight or all day, then reheat the soup. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1g

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