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Greek Lemon Chicken Soup’s charm lies in its simplicity: the perfect balance of creamy stock, comforting chicken and herbs, and that fresh lemon flavor we all embrace — with gentle comforting year round in-season veggies and fresh dill. Nourishing and loved by all, this one-pot soup is easy to make and perfect for family or guests.
Make this recipe on the stove top in just 15 minutes, or in your Instant Pot, with a cooking time of just 5 minutes.
Enjoy with any real food diet, including Gluten free, Paleo (grain-free), Whole30, Anti-Inflammatory, VAD, Low Oxalate, Low FODMAP and/or AIP. See a few slight variations below.
Ingredients in Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
Variations
To make this recipe Gluten-free, Low FODMAP or VAD — Use rice, brown or white, you choose, already cooked.
For Paleo, Whole30, AIP, or if preferred — Use orzo pasta (this one).
Find the best quality regular Italian organic orzo here, for those doing VAD or not needing gluten-free/grain-free, if preferred over rice.
Here are all the ingredients you’ll need:
- water
- chicken thighs, boneless skinless (whole) — A word on chicken thighs: Most come on a tray with cellophane over the top. Any excess juices get absorbed beneath. But another packaging method uses plastic bags where the thighs are sitting in a lot of protein juices. If you buy the latter, it’s important to put the thighs into a strainer/colander and rinse them off. Just draining the juices from the bags isn’t enough; the broth ends up looking curdled when all of the proteins cook, and not tasting as good. So rinse and strain if your chicken comes wrapped in sealed bags.
- sea salt, or my preferred kosher salt (which isn’t as salty; “cleanest” salt after 3rd party testing)
- fresh lemon juice
- carrots (use white carrots for VAD)
- celery (omit for Low Oxalate, or sub for more carrots)
- dried dill, and powdered dried rosemary or dried oregano (choose rosemary for VAD)
- ground white pepper, or ground ginger (for VAD and AIP)
- cooked rice, or cooked grain-free orzo for Paleo diets, or Italian ancestral orzo if preferred
- fresh dill
- lemon slices
How to make Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
How this soup’s made: We cook together so many flavorful ingredients gently and end up with tender lemony chicken and characteristic Greek herbs in a rich chicken stock that’s even more satisfying with the addition of rice or orzo. The Greek flavor profile is exciting because the ingredients cook with the lemon juice — just the right amount. The dish is finished with lemon slices and pretty green fresh dill, lots of it — making an attractive bowl and very happy taste buds.
In this recipe, the carrot is grated, which also adds a different and appetizing dimension to the texture and flavor of this gem of a soup.
- This recipe assumes you have already-cooked rice or orzo ready to go. If it’s not cooked yet, cook it now, according to package instructions.
- Stove top: In a large pot, combine water, celery, salt, dried herbs and ground white pepper/ginger. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add chicken, lemon juice, shredded carrots; then reduce the heat, cover, and let it simmer slowly for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken is just cooked through.
- For Instant Pot, combine in insert: chicken, water, lemon juice, shredded carrots, celery, salt, dried herbs and ground white pepper/ginger. Secure lid, press Manual button, and use arrow button to choose 5 minutes. When timer sounds, allow NPR for 10 minutes, then do a QPR.
- Use tongs to remove chicken to a cutting board. Cut into small bite-size pieces, and return to pot.
- Also add to pot: cooked rice or orzo pasta. Add fresh dill and lemon slices. Serve, making sure each bowl gets one to two lemon slices.
Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
Equipment
- soup pot or Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 6 cups water
- 1 cup celery finely chopped (omit for Low Oxalate, or sub for more carrots)
- 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sea salt <--If you use the linked-to product, use 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons; it's my preferred salt choice for clean eating (but not as salty; it's the "cleanest" salt after 3rd party testing)
- 2 teaspoons dried dill
- 1-½ teaspoons dried powdered rosemary or 1-½ teaspoons dried oregano (choose rosemary for VAD)
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper or 1-½ teaspoons ground ginger (for VAD)
- 2 to 3 pounds chicken thighs boneless skinless (whole), amount according to preference
- 1-½ cups carrots shredded, use white carrots for VAD
- ½ cup lemon juice fresh (about 2 large lemons)
- 2 cups cooked rice (brown or white) or cooked grain-free orzo for Paleo diets, or Italian ancestral orzo
- ¾ ounce dill fresh, chopped (1 "clamshell" of herbs)
- 12 slices lemon one large lemon, or 2 smaller
Instructions
- This recipe assumes you have already cooked rice or orzo ready to go. If it's not cooked yet, cook it now, according to package instructions.
- Stove top: In a large pot, combine water, celery, salt, dried herbs and ground white pepper/ginger. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add chicken, lemon juice and shredded carrots; then reduce the heat, cover, and let it simmer slowly for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chicken is just cooked through.For Instant Pot, combine in insert: chicken, water, lemon juice, shredded carrots, celery, salt, dried herbs and ground white pepper/ginger. Secure lid, press Manual button, and use arrow button to choose 5 minutes. When timer sounds, allow NPR for 10 minutes, then do a QPR.
- Use tongs to remove chicken to a cutting board. Cut into small bite-size pieces, and return to pot.
- Also add, and stir into pot: cooked rice or orzo pasta. Add fresh dill and lemon slices.
- Serve, making sure each bowl gets one to two lemon slices.
Nutrition
Pin Greek Lemon Chicken Soup here:
More anti-inflammatory soup recipes
- Anti-Inflammatory Ginger Chicken Soup
- Paleo Chicken Tetrazzini Soup (can also be made with turkey)
- Chicken Noodle Soup (Instant Pot or stove top)
- Potsticker Soup
- Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup
- Tom Kha Gai (Thai Coconut Chicken Soup)
Hélène says
Why not use bone-in thighs, cook first in water and start w/broth then add in deboned chicken? Much more flavorful. No histamines for those who can’t have made-ahead broth.
Megan says
Yes, wonderful, Helene! Not everyone will want to de-bone, or pay for the added weight of the bones, but if you prefer that, sounds great! (Either way, this recipe does not use made-ahead broth, though, and can be lower in histamines by using fresh-frozen chicken.)
Skye says
This was so easy and so delicious! Thank you for a lovely, simple, tasty recipe. I used skin on thighs since it’s what I had. Yum!
Megan says
So happy you enjoyed, Skye! Thanks so much for sharing what you did!