Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Creamy chicken and wild rice soup warms up any chilly night, and it turns out just as delicious with long grain, brown rice, or a wild-rice blend.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound chicken breast boneless, skinless cubed into 1 inch pieces, about 2 chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon salt divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ medium yellow onion diced, about 1/2 cup
- 2 stalks celery diced about 2/3 cup
- 1 medium carrot peeled and diced, about 1 cup diced carrot
- ¼ cup salted butter about 4 tablespoons, 1/2 of a stick
- 2 cloves garlic minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 4 cups chicken broth I used low sodium
- 1 cup heavy cream or half and half
- 1 cup wild rice
Instructions
- In a large heavy bottom pot or dutch oven over medium high heat, warm the olive oil.1 tablespoon olive oil
- Place the cubed chicken, salt and pepper in the pot. Cook the chicken for 5-7 minutes until it just starts to be lightly golden and is no longer pink in the middle. Remove the chicken from the pot and set to the side.1 pound chicken breast, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Add the onion, celery and carrot. Cook for about 6-8 minutes until the onions begin to appear translucent and the vegetables are softened, stirring frequently. Be sure to scrape any brown bits off the bottom of the pot as this will give the soup extra flavor. Add the garlic and cook while stirring for about 30 seconds.½ medium yellow onion, 2 stalks celery, 1 medium carrot, 2 cloves garlic
- Place the butter in the pot with the vegetables and turn the heat down to medium. Stir until the butter is melted. Then add the flour and stir until it coats the vegetables. Cook the vegetable and flour mixture for 1 minute, as this will keep the soup from having a floury taste.¼ cup salted butter, ¼ cup all purpose flour
- Place the cooked chicken back in the pot. Add the chicken broth, heavy cream and rice to the mixture. Stir and allow the liquid to come to a gentle boil across the top of the pot, this will take about 6-8 minutes. I don't recommend heating this on higher heat, as it can split the dairy. We want to heat it gently.4 cups chicken broth, 1 cup heavy cream, 1 cup wild rice
- Cover the pot with a lid and turn the heat down to medium low, so the soup continues to simmer. Allow the soup to cook for 30-45 minutes or until the rice is fully tender. The grains will split and it will be chewy when done. Then serve and enjoy!
Notes
You can swap long grain white rice for wild rice. After adding the rice, cook for 20-25 minutes or until the rice is tender.
Brown rice can also be added in place of wild rice. Expect it to take about the same amount of time, but I recommend checking for the rice's doneness after 25 minutes.
If you have a wild rice blend (such as the type sold by Lundberg or Rice Select) you can use it. Start checking the rice for doneness after about 20 minutes.
If you have a long grain and wild rice blend, such as is sold by Rice A Roni or Uncle Ben's, I recommend checking for doneness after simmering it for about 20 minutes.
If you have a packet that's a wild rice blend or other rice blend, such as the types sold in packets and is usually precooked, I recommend cooking it according to the packet directions and then adding it to the soup at the end. You will only need to simmer the soup vegetables and chicken for about 20 minutes using a packet of precooked rice.
Add additional salt and pepper at the end to taste if desired.
Nutrition
Calories: 460kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 114mg | Sodium: 606mg | Potassium: 638mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2062IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 55mg | Iron: 2mg