Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

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This Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup in the Instant Pot is an easy soup recipe you can make with rotisserie chicken or chicken breasts that has a hearty helping of vegetables and orzo pasta.

Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

This soup is unbelievably delicious and includes my kitchen stables including cooked shredded chicken and orzo.

I was initially skeptical, unsure if I’d like the flavors of lemon in a soup pot.

Turns out, it’s absolutely divine! 

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Citrus zest is a powerful ingredient that’s also sugar, fat, and calorie-free.

Adding a small amount of citrus zest to any recipe will brighten and heighten the ingredient combination.

In case you’re not familiar with orzo, it’s a flat rice-shaped pasta that cooks very quickly. 

I’m always on the lookout for orzo recipes that make quick meals.

Ingredients for Instant Pot Orzo Chicken Soup 

  • Olive oil
  • Spices: dried dill and Italian seasoning
  • Orzo pasta
  • Celery, Carrots, Onions, and Garlic 
  • Chicken broth
  • Boneless, skinless chicken thighs, fully cooked and chopped 
  • Eggs 
  • Lemon zest and juice
  • Baby spinach or baby kale 
Zesty lemon chicken orzo soup made in the instant pot in a blue bowl.

How to Make Instant Pot Orzo Chicken Soup in 4 Easy Steps 

Using the sauté setting on the Instant Pot, add the oil. 

When the oil is nicely hot, add the spices, orzo, celery, carrots, onions, and garlic.

Sauté for one minute, then add the chicken broth to the pot, bringing it to a full boil. 

Lock the Instant Pot lid into place choosing the High Pressure for 4 minutes.

Bring the Instant Pot to full pressure.

When the timer sounds, perform a quick release to remove all the pressure from the Instant Pot.

Unlock and remove the Instant Pot lid and let the soup cool. 

Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, lemon zest and juice together in a bowl. 

Once the soup is fully cooled, stir in the prepared egg mixture and the cooked chicken and baby spinach.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Using the sauté setting once more, reheat the soup until it’s nicely hot.  Serve soup at once with a good crusty bread. 

What if this Orzo Chicken Soup is a little too “lemon-y” for me?

If that’s the case, I’d eliminate the lemon zest, rather than the lemon juice.

Lemon zest packs a stronger punch than the juice, which is why I love it so much! 

What’s the best way to zest a lemon?

Run…don’t walk, and get yo-self a Microplane zester!

This tool makes zesting fun and easy, so you won’t be tempted to skip adding the zest to any recipe.

What is orzo pasta?

Orzo pasta is a flat, rice-shaped pasta that cooks quickly and is delicious in soup, salads, or served just as a pasta side dish.

Orzo loves to soak up moisture, so as this soup sets, you may have to add more broth.

If I don’t have orzo pasta on hand, can I substitute another shape of pasta in this soup recipe? 

Yes, you could substitute acini de pepe pasta which is smaller in size and will cook quickly, much like orzo pasta does.

Actually, any pasta will work in this recipe, but you will likely need to increase the time in the Instant Pot from 4 minutes to 5 minutes. 

A blue bowl loaded with chicken and orzo soup

More Favorite Recipes to Enjoy

Easy lemon chicken orzo soup in a blue bowl with garnish

Instant Pot Orzo Chicken Soup

Chef Alli
This Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup in the Instant Pot is an easy soup recipe you can make with rotisserie chicken or chicken breasts that has a hearty helping of vegetables and orzo pasta.
Servings: 8 servings
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 4 minutes
Approx. Time Needed for Instant Pot to Pressurize: 15 minutes
Total Time 29 minutes

Ingredients
 

  • 1 Tbs. olive oil
  • 1-2 tsp. dried dill
  • 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
  • 1 cup dry orzo pasta
  • 2-3 ribs celery, diced
  • 2 large carrots, diced
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, crushed crushed
  • 8 cups chicken broth
  • 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cooked and chopped (2-3 cups of cooked, chopped chicken of any type works great)
  • 3 eggs
  • Zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 1-2 cups chopped or torn fresh baby spinach or baby kale

Instructions
 

  • Using the sauté setting on your Instant Pot (or any electric pressure cooker), add the oil to the pot. When the oil is hot, add the spices, orzo, celery, carrots, onion, and garlic; sauté for one minute, then add the chicken broth to the pot, bringing it to a full boil.
  • Once the soup is boiling, lock the Instant Pot lid into place; use the manual setting to set the cook time to 4 minutes, bringing the Instant Pot to full pressure. When the timer sounds, perform a quick release to remove all the pressure.
    Turn off the Instant Pot and remove the inner pot to rest on a cooling rack. Let the soup cool down for 30 minutes, stirring it often to speed up the cooling.
  • Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, lemon juice, and lemon zest together in a bowl. Once the soup has cooled down, stir in the egg/lemon mixture, along with the cooked chicken and fresh spinach.
    ** Please Note: If the soup is too hot when you add the egg/lemon mixture, it will cook your eggs and you’ll have a scrambled egg soup…don't do it!
  • Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper, then return the inner pot to the IP. Using the sauté setting once again, heat the soup to the desired serving temperature. Serve at once with good, crusty bread.

Nutrition

Calories: 192kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 14gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 939mgPotassium: 495mgFiber: 2gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 3045IUVitamin C: 26mgCalcium: 66mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

An overhead shot of Instant Pot Chicken Orzo Soup with crackers.


Chicken orzo soup in a blue bowl.

3 Comments

  1. So yummy!! It’s such a great idea to put lemon in this soup! It makes it bright and light. I didn’t have orzo, but I had some leftover rice in the fridge, so after removing the inner pot out to cool, I added the rice. It helped it to cool quicker and allowed the rice to absorb some of the flavors. Definitely will make this again!

    1. Hi Clyta –
      I’m so sorry that I’m just NOW seeing your comment on this soup recipe. And what a great way to use up your leftover rice – I didn’t even think about how rice could help the soup to cool more quickly – way to go! I love this soup, but my Hubs isn’t a fan because of the lemon flavor….so sad! I think it’s flat delicious. 🙂
      Let’s Keep Cookin’,
      Chef Alli

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