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About This Recipe
There’s nothing better than a big, warm bowl of chicken soup on a chilly night or when you aren’t feeling the best. This Lemon Ginger Soup is the perfect recipe to warm you up and boost your immune system with it’s cold-fighting properties from the fresh ginger and turmeric.
To help boost the heartiness of this soup, this soup calls for orzo (or any short grain pasta of choice). You can also choose so sub the pasta with rice, white beans or even cauliflower rice for a lower carb option. I’ve written this recipe to include the orzo in the finished dish but I also love preparing the pasta separately that I can add the pasta individually for each serving. As the soup tends to sit, the orzo will absorb a lot of the broth so this can help keep it more “soupy”. You can also easily add extra broth when reheating if you prefer!
This ginger lemon chicken soup is seriously one of my favorite healthy recipes for this time of year! It’s super simple to make and is prepared in one pot so clean up is a breeze! It’s a flavorful soup that is true comfort food and perfect for sore throats, stuffy heads, or just feeling under the weather.
I also love making a big batch of this lemon ginger chicken soup recipe and freezing (see my freezing tips below!) to have one hand when I need a quick, comforting meal. It’s a great recipe to freeze and it is just so easy to reheat a bowl of soup whenever you need last minute meal!
Want more easy soup recipes? Try my French Onion Soup, Buffalo Chicken Soup or Chicken Pot Pie Soup!
Why You’ll Love This Lemon Ginger Chicken Soup
- A cozy meal full of wonderful flavors that will leave you feeling warm and satisfied!
- A great soup packed with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and cold-fight properties!
- Macro-friendly and a great source of protein!
- An easy recipe to make and prepared all in one big pot. Only 10 minutes of prep time.
- Can keep pasta separate and add desired amount to each serving!
- Olive oil
- Chicken – I used boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe but you could also use chicken thighs or chicken tenderloins. To save time, use chicken that is already cooked!
- Butter
- Vegetables: carrots, celery, onions
- Ginger – you can use finely chopped fresh ginger or minced ginger.
- Seasonings: Italian seasoning and turmeric.
- All-purpose flour
- Chicken stock or broth – you can also use chicken bone broth for more added collagen and nutrients!
- Orzo pasta – or other short pasta like acini di pepe.
- Fresh lemon
- To make gluten-free: use gluten-free flour like Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 or King Arthur Measure for Measure and gluten-free pasta.
- Use rotisserie chicken to save time.
- Switch up the protein: try using ground turkey instead!
How To Make
The full printable recipe is below, but let me walk you through the process so you know what to expect when you’re making it!
1. To a Dutch oven or large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt.
2. Sauté until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
3. Add the butter to the dutch oven. As soon as it starts to melt, add the carrots, celery, and onion.
4. Sauté until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed so that the onions turn translucent but not brown.
5. Stir in the ginger, Italian seasoning and turmeric.
6. Sprinkle the flour over top and cook for another minute.
7. Then add the chicken stock and bring soup to a boil.
8. Once boiling, add the pasta and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
9. Add the chicken back in along with the lemon juice.
10. Taste the soup and add salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste. Serve warm by itself or with some french bread or a sandwich. For more liquid, add more chicken broth.
To store: store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. You might need to add a little extra chicken broth when reheating the soup as the orzo will absorb some of the liquid.
To freeze: If you are making this soup planning to freeze it, leave the orzo out (it absorbs a lot of liquid when reheated from frozen) and just freeze the soup. Defrost soup in the fridge the night before. Reheat soup in the microwave or on the stovetop until warmed through, then stir in cooked orzo.
Otherwise if you just have leftovers you want to freeze, you can still freeze! Just add some more chicken broth when reheating the soup.
Serving Tip!
If you don’t want you the pasta to absorb a ton of the broth, feel free to cook the pasta separately and add to your bowl before serving! This is a great way to control how much liquid is absorbed and you can also customize the amount of pasta to your preferences (less brothy or more brothy!).
Should I cook the pasta before adding to soup?
No you do not need to cook the orzo (or pasta of choice) before adding to the soup! The pasta will cook in the broth while the soup simmers.
Could I use rice for this soup instead of pasta?
Sure! You can easily sub the pasta for rice or even cauliflower rice if you prefer. This soup is super versatile so make it your own! If using rice, just rinse the rice before adding and let it cook as the pasta would at the very end.
Can I use precooked chicken?
Yes! If you have meal prepped or leftover cooked chicken feel free to skip step one and just add the cooked chicken at the end. You can use rotisserie chicken, LFF Basic Shredded chicken, or any leftover chicken you have.
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure leave a review, tag me on Instagram or TikTok at @LaurenFitFoodie or hashtag #LaurenFitFoodie so I can see your creations!
Lemon Ginger Chicken Soup (Anti-inflammatory, One Pot)
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1.5 lbs boneless chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces (can also just use 18-oz. already cooked chicken instead)
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 medium carrots (170g) finely chopped
- 3 stalks celery (110g) finely chopped
- 1 medium onion (200g) chopped
- 1 Tbsp ginger finely chopped or minced ginger
- 1/2 Tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 48 oz. chicken stock or broth
- 1 cup orzo pasta (200g) or other short pasta like acini di pepe
- 1-2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice more to taste
- 1/2 tsp salt more to taste
- Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
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Instructions
- To a Dutch oven or large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Sauté until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Add the butter to the dutch oven. As soon as it starts to melt, add the carrots, celery, and onion. Sauté until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed so that the onions turn translucent but not brown.
- Stir in the ginger, Italian seasoning and turmeric. Sprinkle the flour over top and cook for another minute.
- Then add the chicken stock and bring soup to a boil. Once boiling, add the pasta and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender.
- Add the chicken back in along with the lemon juice. Taste the soup and add salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste. Serve warm by itself or with some french bread or a sandwich. For more liquid, add add more chicken broth.
Equipment
- Dutch oven or large pot
- Vegetable chopper (optional)
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition is hand-calculated and accurate. No autocalulations! However, note that values can vary based on the brands you use and if you substitute ingredients.
