Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup
Creamy chicken and rice soup offers a gentle bowl with tender vegetables and shreds of chicken throughout. Thyme and parsley give the broth a familiar savory flavor. It's a welcoming supper when you'd like to settle down with a spoon and something soft, warm and satisfying.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Total
- 45 min
- Original yield
- Serves 6
- Ingredients
- 13 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Main course
- Primary protein
- Chicken
- Cuisine
- American
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: 31–60 minutes
- Dish type
- Soups · Soups & stews · Rice dishes
A few quick notes
1. Start with the vegetables
Give the onion, carrots and celery those first few minutes in the pot before the broth goes in. You’re softening the base of the soup, and the onion should look translucent before you move on.
2. Add the garlic briefly
The garlic and dried herbs only need a minute before the liquid is added. That short time wakes them up without letting the garlic sit too long in the hot pot.
3. Stir while it simmers
Once the rice is in, give the soup a stir every 10 minutes. It helps keep the rice moving as it cooks and thickens the broth.
Get to know the ingredients
Use uncooked rice
The rice goes into the soup uncooked, not pre-cooked. Long grain white or brown rice both work, but brown rice needs the longer simmer listed in the recipe.
Chicken goes in raw
Add the boneless, skinless chicken breasts whole and raw, then shred them after simmering. That lets the chicken cook in the broth and keeps the steps nice and simple.
Choose the cream you like
Any cream can go in at the end. A higher-fat cream will make the soup richer and a bit thicker, which is exactly why heavy cream is a good fit here.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 6. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 5 steps completeMake room for Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
The last little job
Pull the chicken out once the rice and vegetables are tender, shred it, then stir it back in with the cream. The cream goes in at the end so the soup finishes smooth and creamy.
A little more help as you go
White rice and brown rice cook differently
The simmer time depends on which rice you use. White rice is ready sooner, while brown rice needs the longer end of the timing range before it turns tender.
Don’t rinse the rice for this soup
Rinsing rice is often helpful, but here the extra starch is useful. It helps give the broth that thicker, creamier feel as the rice cooks.
A few questions you might have
Can I use brown rice instead of white rice?
Yes. Use long grain brown rice and follow the longer simmer time, cooking until the rice and vegetables are tender.
Should the chicken be shredded before cooking?
No, add the chicken breasts whole and raw with the broth and rice. After simmering, remove them from the pot, shred them, and stir the chicken back in.
Why isn’t the cream added earlier?
The cream is stirred in after the chicken is shredded and returned to the pot. That keeps it as the finishing touch rather than something that simmers the whole time.
Can I use minute rice?
Use long-grain rice for the main method. Minute rice also works if you add it once the vegetables are nearly tender instead of at the beginning.
How do I know the simmering is done?
The soup is ready for the chicken-shredding step when the vegetables and rice are tender. Stir every 10 minutes while it simmers so the rice cooks evenly in the broth.
Any more cooking tips?
Ingredients and Substitutions: vegetables : I start this recipe with a classic mirepoix (carrots, onion and celery) to build flavor, but you can add in lots of others if you like! Add the ones that cook longer with the mirepoix, and add the ones that cook quickly at the end (for example, frozen vegetables, leafy greens, broccoli etc.) chicken : I like to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts but you can use thighs if you prefer. If you want to use bone in meat, that works too! You will just remove the bone when you shred the chicken. rice : I usually use long grain white rice in this recipe. Brown rice works great but will need a longer cook time. I prefer not to use minute rice, though you can and it works fine — just add it once the vegetables are nearly tender. Normally, I rinse my rice to remove excess starch before cooking it. But in this recipe, a little starch helps to make this soup thick and creamy. cream : I like to use heavy cream in this recipe for the best flavor and consistency. However, any cream will work! You could even substitute with milk plus 1 tablespoon of corn starch or flour if you need to.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: thereciperebel.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
