This dairy-free creamy chicken soup with rice is marvelously flavored with rosemary and lemon zest for a comforting one-pot meal that only takes an hour to make!
Welcome to my newest soup crush!
I know, I know, we’re in full-blown Spring mode, but the chilly mornings and evenings has my body continuing to crave hearty soup.
If you made my Instant Pot Chicken Soup with Rice, this recipe is similar! Yet different.
Both soups are lovely and amazing during the cold winter months.
Once is creamy, zesty and herby (this one), one is brothy and tastes just like momma’s classic recipe.
To make this soup ultra creamy and comforting while keeping it dairy-free and healthful, I added full-fat canned coconut milk.
I also added some lemon zest for a nice acidic balance as well as some additional dried herbs, like rosemary.
The end result is one of those meals you’ll want to make over and over again! It takes so very little effort or time and hits so many nutrient bases.
Because I tend to avoid onions and garlic most of the time, I made the recipe Low-FODMAP by leaving them out.
If you don’t have gut issues and tolerate onions and garlic well, by all means add ½ a yellow onion and 3 to 5 cloves of garlic.
You can also add celery if that’s your jam!
I like to make the soup in my Dutch oven on the stove top, but you can absolutely use your pressure cooker if that’s your preference. I have included instructions for both methods in this post.
How to Make Creamy Rosemary Chicken Soup with Rice:
Heat the oil in your Dutch oven (or stock pot) and add the carrots. Cook carrots until they begin to soften, then scoot them to the side of the pot so you can brown the chicken.
After browning the chicken for a couple of minutes, add the remaining ingredients for the soup and cover.
Bring soup to a full boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook 30 to 40 minutes, until the rice is fully cooked and soup has thickened. Uncover and increase the heat to bring soup back to a gentle boil. Cook to reduce and thicken for 5 to 10 minutes.
Serve heaping bowls of soup and enjoy!
And for those of you who love using your pressure cooker for soup, here are your…
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Plug in your Instant Pot and press the Sauté button. Add the avocado oil and allow pot to heat up for a couple of minutes. Add the chicken and brown the meat for 1 to 2 minutes (avoid cooking it through).
- Add the remaining ingredients to the pot and secure the lid. Press the Soup/Broth function and set the time to 20 minutes, keeping the vent sealed. Allow the pressure cooker to go into the Keep Warm mode and let it sit an additional 10 minutes.
- Release the pressure by turning the steam valve to venting and let all of the pressure release. Once the pressure has released, you can remove the lid and serve the soup!
Recipe Adaptations:
- Add ½ yellow onion and 3 to 5 cloves of garlic if you don’t follow a low-FODMAP diet.
- Add 2 stalks celery if you don’t follow a low-FODMAP diet.
- If you do dairy, feel free to swap the coconut milk with half & half
- Looking for an ultra protein-rich meal? Add 1 more chicken breast.
- I use white rice in this recipe, but you can swap it for your favorite rice. Just note the cook time may be longer depending on the type of rice you use.
My cookbook, Paleo Power Bowls, is now available! CLICK HERE to check it out. Thank you for your all your support!
If you make this Creamy Chicken Soup with Rice, please feel free to share a photo and tag me at @The.Roasted.Root on Instagram!
Enjoy your creamy dreamy filling rosemary chicken soup with rice!
Creamy Rosemary Chicken Soup with Rice
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- 3 large carrots peeled and sliced
- 1/2 cup uncooked rice see note*
- 1 large boneless skinless chicken breast chopped
- 3 cups chicken broth or bone broth
- 1 cup full-fat canned coconut milk
- 1 lemon zested or 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp dried rosemary
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 4 cups baby spinach
- 1/2 tsp sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in your dutch oven (or stock pot) over medium and add the carrots. Cook carrots until they begin to soften, then scoot them to the side of the pot so you can brown the chicken.
- Once the chicken has browned for a couple of minutes, add the remaining ingredients for the soup and cover.
- Bring soup to a full boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook 40 to 50 minutes, until the rice is fully cooked and soup has thickened. Uncover and increase the heat to bring soup back to a gentle boil. Cook to reduce and thicken for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Serve heaping bowls and enjoy!
This is delicious soup. My kids do not typically enjoy soup, but they both cleaned their bowls out completely. My 5-year-old – our pickiest eater – asked if I could add this to the regular rotation. And it was so easy to make, too! My husband and I loved it, too. It has such a lovely zing of lemon, herby rosemary, fresh spinach and carrots paired with the creamy coconut and tender chicken. Yum!
Awww I love hearing that, Jennifer! Thanks so much for sharing!
This was so freaking good. I have a problem with following recipes the way they’re written. I’m always adding and subtracting things. But I followed this one almost perfectly. Except for seasoning the chicken with chili, pepper, and some chicken herbs. I’m this is the best soup I’ve ever had. It’s so delicious
Wahoo! I’m so happy to hear it! Thanks so much for reporting back, Amethyst! xo
@Julia,
Hi Julia! I’m here again making this recipe for the 4th or 5th time today since I first found it in February. It is me and my boyfriends favorite go to soup. It’s so easy and delicious. I try to always keep the ingredients for it on hand so I can make it whenever I need it. I had the flu for the past week and we made it twice. It was exactly the comforting taste I needed while I was sick.
I’m so happy you enjoy it, Amethyst! It definitely is one of those great go-to comfort foods for when you’re craving something cozy 🙂 Thanks so much for swinging back around to share your experience! xo
Is there a low fodmap broth you recommend?
@Abigail,
try FODY Foods Chicken Soup Base or Vegetable Soup Base.
I use this exclusively and it is delicious.
I absolutely loved this! I just got the instapot and was astounded at how easy and fast but gourmet it came out!! The only thing I might change next time is how much of the dried Oregano and Rosemary I added. Maybe I had rounded scoops vs flat or something but it was just TOO strong for the amount of soup and at times was a bitter bite, but next time I will watch it! This is one of my new favorites now! My kiddos even liked it!
I’m so happy to hear you and your family enjoy it, Jaquee! Thanks so much for the sweet note! xo
Fantastic! I made this for dinner and it was a huge winner. The soup is creamy with a great balance of rosemary and chicken soup flavors, and I love that it uses straight forward (and low FODMAP) ingredients. I made the Instant Pot variation and stirred in spinach at the very end. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so thrilled to hear it, Jack!! I love how easy and comforting the soup is. I seriously make it all the time (at least once a week!), it’s almost laughable! Thank you for the sweet note! xo
I have an excel spreadsheet of recipes that I refer to when planning meals for the week. I add almost every single one of your recipes to it!! This looks amazing and I can’t wait to try. One of our particular favourites is the instant pot turmeric chicken and root vegetables, it is so so simple and tastes way better than you would think from the simple ingredients 🙂
Oh Naomi, that is so great to hear!! I’m so happy you’ve been enjoying my recipes – I LOVE that turmeric chicken and I hope you enjoy this soup as well! Thanks for the sweet comment! xo