Traditionally known as an authentic Avgolemono soup, this Lemony Greek Chicken and Rice Soup which is thickened with eggs and finished with a little olive oil and pepper, has become a quick favorite of mine.
Aside from carefully tempering the eggs, this soup could NOT be easier to make. You can start with a whole chicken or just a few breasts, I share instructions for both.
Ingredients
The shortest ingredient lists bring THE most flavor. This soup is so good and has the humblest ingredient list.
It's a handful of things you might already have in your kitchen and you have the most decadent soup that I personally crave over and over again!
Tempering the Eggs
The key to the success of this soup is in the tempering of the eggs. What that means is you are going to warm up the eggs slowly and gently, without scrambling them.
Introducing boiling liquid to eggs must be done while whisking CONSTANTLY. This is not a hard task it just must be done slowly with non-stop movement. Start by adding only a drop at a time, and as the eggs become looser you can begin to add more, but if this is your first time doing this, slow and steady is the name of the game.
Method
When I make this soup I usually start with a whole chicken and boil it down for a few hours till it is fall off the bone tender.
I like to start the soup this way because it gives the base more flavor and you get the health benefits of bone broth by boiling the whole bird and getting all the collagen and fat into the stock.
When the chicken is fully cooked, remove it from the pot and pull the chicken off the bones once it cools. If you boil a whole chicken, I prefer to strain the stock so that any little "bits" get removed from the stock.
Alternatively, I dice the onion small and start with chicken breasts and only poach them in the water for about an hour, before removing and shredding them. If you do it this way you do not need to strain your stock.
Strain into another pot or bowl and bring back to boil in the pot. Add in the chicken bullion paste and rice, then temper the eggs and whisk them in.
It is really that easy. This is a soup that you could whip up any day of the week for a warm hug in a bowl.
More Great Greek Favorites
I love to serve this avgolemono chicken soup with rice alongside my Feta Martini that I made for Martini Monday on Instagram.
If you are in the mood for more authentic Greek recipes, give my Homemade Hummus Recipe a try. It is inspired by the one I get at my favorite Mediterranean restaurant.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know by leaving a review or comment! And be sure to sign up for my newsletter, and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook!
📖 Recipe
Lemony Greek Chicken and Rice Soup - Avgolemono
This super simple and AMAZINGLY delicious soup will become one that you will crave again and again!
Ingredients
- 1 3-pound Whole Chicken or 2 pounds Chicken Breasts
- 2 medium Yellow Onions, small diced
- 3-4 cloves Garlic, smashed
- 16 cups Water
- 3 tablespoons Chicken Bouillon Paste
- Kosher Salt
- 6 lg Eggs
- 3 Lemons, juiced
- 1 ½ cup Basmati Rice
- Fresh Cracked Black Pepper, for serving
- Olive Oil, for serving
- Feta Cheese, optional for serving
Instructions
- In a large pot, 6 quarts or larger, bring 12 cups of water to a boil. Place the onion, smashed garlic cloves, and 2 tablespoons of salt into the boiling water along with the whole chicken or chicken breasts based on what you're using. Bring the mixture back to a boil
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the whole chicken for 2-3 hours or breasts for about 1 hour until the meat is tender and cooked through. When the chicken is tender, remove it from the water and set it aside to cool.
- Add 4 cups more water to the pot, along with the bouillon paste, and bring the stock back to a boil.
- While the stock mixture is coming to a boil, pull the chicken off the bones or shred the breasts, when it is cool enough to handle.
- When the chicken stock comes to a boil, add the pulled chicken and the rice into the pot. Bring the mixture back to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
- While the rice is simmering, whisk together the eggs and lemon, and also temper the eggs/lemon mixture by dripping in 1 cup of the simmering broth. While whisking constantly, a drip at a time (don’t pour too much hot broth too quickly or you’ll end up with scrambled eggs).
- Reduce the heat to low and whisk the egg mixture into the simmering stock/chicken/rice mixture, stirring constantly for about 2 minutes after adding. Continue cooking the soup for about 5 minutes, whisking frequently.
- Turn the heat off and let it stand for 10 minutes to thicken up slightly.
- Taste and add in more salt or lemon juice if needed or desired.
- To serve, divide the soup among bowls and top with a few cracks of black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Crumble over some feta cheese if desired, I really enjoy this, but it is not traditional.
Notes
If you have leftovers of this soup, it reheats beautifully in the microwave. Do so by heating slowly for 30 seconds at a time so as not to overcook the eggs. Stir and heat 30 seconds longer as needed till hot.
If the soup becomes too thick from the rice absorbing too much liquid, stir in a bit more chicken stock or water as needed to thin the soup out as desired, though I like it to be a bit like a porridge.
Depending on how juicy your lemons are, you may want to add a bit more. Taste the soup before serving, and add more salt and/or lemon juice till it reaches your desired flavor. I almost always squeeze in an extra lemon, the soup should be fairly lemony.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 383Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 204mgSodium: 556mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 39g
This is an estimated caloric value, actual numbers may differ based on the ingredients used.
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