Description
Avgolemono Soup is a traditional Greek lemon chicken and rice soup known for its creamy texture and bright, tangy flavor. This comforting soup combines tender shredded chicken, delicate rice, and a luscious lemon-egg sauce, perfect for a light yet satisfying meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 celery ribs, chopped
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 to 2 lemons)
- 1 ½ cups cooked white rice
- 2 cups shredded chicken
- Chopped fresh dill for garnish
Instructions
- Prepare the Vegetables: Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and chopped celery, then sauté for 3 to 4 minutes until they are softened and fragrant.
- Add Broth and Seasoning: Pour in the chicken broth, season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to your taste, and bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat.
- Make the Avgolemono Mixture: In a blender, combine the eggs, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and ¼ cup of the cooked rice. Blend until smooth, about 20 seconds. While blending, slowly stream 2 ladle-fulls of the hot broth from the saucepan into the blender to temper the egg mixture, preventing curdling.
- Incorporate the Lemon-Egg Puree: Slowly stir the lemon-egg puree back into the simmering soup. Add the remaining cooked rice and shredded chicken. Cook gently for 5 to 10 minutes until the soup slightly thickens. Avoid boiling the soup during this step to prevent the egg mixture from curdling.
- Final Touch and Serving: Remove the pot from heat and garnish the soup with chopped fresh dill before serving. This adds a fresh, aromatic finish to the dish.
Notes
- Use low-sodium chicken broth to control the saltiness of the soup better.
- To avoid curdling, always temper the egg mixture slowly with hot broth before adding it to the pot.
- Leftover cooked chicken and rice work perfectly for this recipe, making it great for using up leftovers.
- For a dairy-free version, this recipe already fits as it contains no dairy ingredients.
- Fresh lemon juice yields the best flavor compared to bottled lemon juice.
- Adjust lemon juice amount according to taste preference for tartness.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl (about 1.5 cups)
- Calories: 250 kcal
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 500 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 22 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 20 g
- Cholesterol: 110 mg
