Herby Chicken and Rice Soup with Crispy Chicken Skin
This is the ultimate chicken soup: comforting, flavorful, and exactly how chicken soup should taste. It’s loaded with veggies, chicken thighs, fresh herbs, and rice, then finished with a lemony herb sauce, crispy chicken skins, and fresh chives.
Servings: 4
Equipment
- Dutch Oven or large pot
- Immersion Blender or food processor or blender
Ingredients
Soup
- 2 teaspoons Avocado Oil or neutral oil of choice
- 1 ½ pounds Bone-In Skin-On Chicken Thighs I used 5 chicken thighs
- Kosher Salt & Black Pepper to taste
- 1 medium Yellow Onion diced (about 1 cup)
- ½ cup Carrots diced
- ½ cup Celery diced
- 3 cloves Garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 4 tablespoons All Purpose Flour
- 4 cups Unsalted Chicken Bone Broth or chicken broth/stock of choice
- 2 cups Water
- 1 bundle Fresh Rosemary, Sage, and Thyme I tied a couple sprigs each of these fresh herbs
- 2 Bay Leaf
- ¾ cup White Rice uncooked (I used Jasmine Rice)
Herb Sauce
- ¼ cup Fresh Basil
- ¼ cup Fresh Parsley
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon Lemon Zest adjust to taste
- 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt adjust to taste
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper adjust to taste
Toppings
- 5 pieces Crispy Chicken Skin crumbled (or however many chicken thighs used)
- 2 tablespoons Fresh Chives thinly sliced
Instructions
Herb Sauce
- While the soup cooks, combine basil, parsley, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil, ½ tsp kosher salt, and ¼ tsp black pepper in a container. Blend with an immersion blender until smooth (or use blender/food processor). Taste and adjust as needed.
Soup
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Heat avocado oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper, place skin-side down, and sear until golden (about 10 minutes). Flip, cook 2 minutes more, then transfer chicken to a plate.
- Remove the skin from the chicken and place on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Bake until crispy, about 25 minutes, flipping halfway (longer if not using an air fryer oven).
- In the Dutch oven with the reserved fat, cook onion, carrot, and celery for 7 minutes until softened. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Push veggies to one side, melt butter, and stir in flour to make a roux. Cook 2 minutes, then mix into the vegetables.
- Add chicken broth, water, herb bundle, and bay leaves. Return chicken thighs and their juices. Season with another pinch of salt and pepper, cover, and simmer over medium-low for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in rice, cover, and cook 15 minutes until tender. Stir every few minutes.
- Remove chicken to shred, discarding bones. Remove herb bundle and bay leaves. Return shredded chicken to soup and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve the soup in bowls topped with herb sauce, crumbled crispy chicken skin, and fresh chives.
Video
Nutrition
Calories: 699kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 44g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 21g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 157mg | Sodium: 551mg | Potassium: 721mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 3511IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 3mg
