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A piping hot bowl of this creamy chicken and rice soup recipe is such a comfort on a cold day! It’s simple to make with no fancy ingredients, and the rich broth is irresistible.
If you’re craving a non-creamy version of this recipe, try my Easy Chicken and Rice Soup.
Why you’ll love it
Hello comfort food! This cozy chicken and rice soup is straightforward to make and basically a hug in a bowl. The chicken and rice cook right in the soup, making it super convenient and so that cleanup is pretty minimal. That’s an important factor for feeding hungry mouths after work.
I’m a big fan of jazzing up chicken soup while still using everyday ingredients you’ve probably already got in your pantry and fridge, so that’s what we’ve got going on in this soup. While a classic Chicken Noodle Soup is always appreciated, sometimes changing it up with rice and a creamy broth just hits the spot. It makes a filling and easy meal.
What you’ll need
- Celery, onion, carrots, and garlic – the base for many soups. I like using sweet (Vidalia) onions best.
- Olive oil – for sautéing
- Flour – it’s a thickener
- Chicken broth – for another layer of flavor
- Italian seasoning – it’s a delicious dried herb blend that comes in a single jar. I use it in tons of my recipes, so it’s a staple in my pantry.
- Rice – for this one I like jasmine rice. It’s a flavorful long grain white rice.
- Heavy cream – it adds a rich, luxurious touch to the broth
- Chicken – we’re using uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- This is the ladle I use for my soups. It doesn’t spill all over the place when serving.
- For all my soups I like to use a Dutch oven. It’s sturdy and conducts heat great.
- I mince the garlic cloves with this garlic press. One squeeze and no sticky fingers!
How to make creamy chicken and rice soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Sauté the carrots, celery, and onion in a Dutch oven or soup pot with the olive oil until softened, followed by adding in the garlic and flour.
Slowly pour in the chicken broth and stir until the flour dissolves, and then scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the Italian seasoning, rice, and cream.
Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Add in the chicken, and cook until both it and the rice are cooked through. Season generously with salt & pepper.
Pro tip
If you do need to make this soup ahead of time, I suggest cooking the rice separately and adding it to each bowl just prior to serving so that it doesn’t soak up a lot of broth before it’s time to serve it. It absorbs it pretty fast!
Substitutions and variations
- You can use rotisserie or leftover Baked Chicken. Just be sure to add it in towards the end of the cooking time, around the last 5 minutes, so it doesn’t overcook.
- Swap for chicken thighs if you prefer. I would leave them intact and add them in at the same time as the rice. They’re a lot harder to overcook than chicken breasts and become more tender the longer you cook them. Just shred them with two forks, and add the meat back to the soup once it’s done cooking.
- I wouldn’t sub the heavy cream for something lower fat. It could lead to curdling since we’re cooking at a fairly high heat, and the soup won’t taste as good.
- I don’t recommend swapping the white rice for brown rice or wild rice directly because it takes much longer to cook and wouldn’t work as written. However, you can cook a different variety of rice separately and add it into the soup at the end if you wish.
What to serve with chicken and rice soup
- This soup is a hearty meal as-is, but you can definitely serve it with a slice of crusty French bread, sourdough, or Garlic Bread.
- I also enjoy pairing it with a side salad. Try mixed greens with my Classic Homemade Ranch Dressing.
Leftovers and storage
- Leftover chicken and rice soup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Keep in mind that the longer it is, the more the rice will absorb the broth.
- Reheat this chicken soup in a saucepan over a low heat, giving it a splash of broth to thin it out if needed.
- This is not one of those soups that freezes well due to the cream and rice.
Questions about this creamy chicken soup, or want to write a review a star rating? Talk to me in the comments below! You can also find me on Instagram.
Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 stick celery chopped finely
- 2 medium carrots peeled & chopped finely
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 3/4 cup uncooked white jasmine rice
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1 pound uncooked chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces/strips
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the olive oil, celery, carrots, and onion to a soup pot over medium-high heat. Sauté for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the garlic and flour and cook for about a minute.
- Slowly pour in the broth and stir/scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot until the flour has dissolved.
- Stir in the Italian seasoning, rice, and cream. Increase the heat to high, and once the soup comes to a gentle boil, give it a good stir, then reduce the heat so it's simmering and cover the pot with the lid slightly ajar. Simmer the soup for 10 minutes. I stir it every now and then to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
- Add in the chicken and cook for another 7-10 minutes or until the chicken and rice are both cooked. Season with salt & pepper as needed (I am generous with both). This soup will soak up the broth FAST. You may need to add more chicken broth if you prefer a less thick soup, and you'll definitely have to add broth to leftovers. Cook the rice separately if you don't plan on eating it right away (add rice to individual portions just before serving).
Notes
- Recipes serves 4-6 depending how much people eat/what it’s served with.
- 1 pound of chicken breasts usually works out to 2 medium chicken breasts (a bit less or more than a pound is fine).
- This recipe is best enjoyed right after it’s made. Soups with rice and cream typically don’t freeze too well.
- I don’t recommend subbing the cream for something lower fat in case it curdles (the cream is cooked over a fairly high heat).
- This recipe is also in the Salt & Lavender: Everyday Essentials cookbook.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This was amazing! I may have cheated a bit since I used garlic butter marinated thighs I had to use from the butcher and used Knorr chicken bullion instead of salt, but it came out so good! Served it with sourdough I baked over the weekend.
Hey nothing wrong with that!! I’m glad you enjoyed the soup! 🙂
Made this tonight but cooked the rice separately. Very bland soup. I added nutmeg. Added quite a bit of salt & pepper and still bland. Any suggestions?
Hi! Hmmm… my first thought is you didn’t add enough salt (that’s the usual culprit with creamy recipes), but it sounds like you salted it quite well. At the end of the day, it’s a creamy chicken soup… not something with particularly bold flavors. Sorry it wasn’t a home run for you. 🙁 This is just a thought off the top of my head, but maybe adding a bit of Cajun seasoning could kick it up a notch.
Excellent recipe! I made it per the instructions and then added some frozen green peas at the end—because I like the additional color, I think.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jo! Peas are a great addition!
Excellent!! Very easy to put together and everyone loved it!
Wonderful!! Thank you!! 🙂
In the recipe it lists the calories as 548kcal, is that per serving or for 4 servings. Is one serving a cup?
Hi! It’s for 1/4 of the recipe. I am not a trained nutritionist, so I have no idea what that actually equates to in cups/oz/etc. The nutrition info is pulled from a database and I provide it as a courtesy to give people a general idea of calories, but if you’re relying on the info for health reasons, I’d weigh the actual ingredients you’re using and calculate it that way.
Sooo good!!! I am trying to figure out if I can turn this recipe into a crockpot recipe. Any ideas?
Hi! I’d probably add the rice in fairly late to the cooking process so it doesn’t absorb all the broth and get mushy (I am taking a wild guess here… maybe with like an hour or so left and put the Crockpot on “high”). I would also add the cream in towards the end as well.
I don’t understand what ” prep the chicken” am I missing a part about that ? Are we suppose to cut the chicken up in small pieces ? So we throw it rare into the pot ?
If you look at the ingredients list, it says “1 pound uncooked chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces/strips”. So you’d cut it up. Hope you enjoy the soup!
My daughter is allergic to dairy, but this soup looks amazing! I can get around most dairy ingredients except when it calls for cream. I don’t need a low fat substitute for cream, but I do need some idea that’s a dairy free option. Any ideas?
Hi! So, I haven’t tested any dairy-free substitutes, but I know some people use Silk whipping cream (which is dairy free) in my recipes or coconut milk (can change flavor but some seem to like it). Or, you could make her this version which doesn’t contain any cream: https://bit.ly/3dy61QJ
I have often used silken tofu well stirred as a substitute for heavy cram in savory recipes. It is very satisfactory, my guests never notice.
I would use Califia Farms or Oatly Barista oat milk for a decent dairy free option. It’s creamy and tastes very mild so it won’t alter the taste.
Canned coconut milk ! It’s used in a lot of creamy vegan soups and it does the trick!
My whole household is sick and I made this today. So good! Thanks for the recipe!
Hope you guys feel better soon!
What do you recommend instead of Italian seasoning?
Hmmm… I recommend Italian seasoning because it’s an easy (and inexpensive) way to add a balanced herb flavor to so many recipes (you’ll see I use it in tons of my recipes), so I recommend picking a jar up next time you’re at the grocery store. You could add in individual herbs if you prefer (depending on what you’ve got in your pantry). Something like a bit of oregano and thyme would work.
This came out amazing! This will definitely go in the rotation!
Fantastic!! I’m so pleased to hear it!