This is the Easiest Chicken Wild Rice Soup! The hearty comfort food comes together in one pot with a wild rice blend, veggies and sage.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Olive oil – or another neutral cooking oil like avocado or canola oil.
- Chicken breasts – chicken thighs would also be good.
- Mushrooms – use any mushroom blend of your choice.
- Yellow onion – white onion or shallots would also work.
- Garlic – freshly minced garlic is best but jarred minced garlic can be used in a pinch.
- Carrots – double up on the celery or swap out for leeks instead.
- Celery stalks – see substitution notes above.
- Italian seasoning – use herbes de province instead.
- Salt & pepper – to taste.
- Chicken broth – vegetable broth would be the best substitute here.
- Wild rice blend – feel free to use another variety of rice of your choice.
- Fresh sage – swap out for 1 tsp. dried sage instead or leave this off altogether.
- Lemon juice – freshly squeezed or bottled lemon juice would both work.
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How to make chicken wild rice soup
Step 1: Sauté the mushrooms.
Heat olive oil in a large pot over med-high heat. Add mushrooms, cooking for 2-3 minutes until mushrooms release juices.
Step 2: Cook the veggies.
Add onions, garlic, celery and carrots, cooking another 5 minutes until vegetables soften.
Step 3: Add the chicken.
Add chicken and sauté for 2-3 minutes until lightly browned.
Step 4: Mix in the seasonings.
Add Italian seasoning, salt & pepper, chicken broth and rice, stirring and bringing to a boil.
Step 5: Simmer for 40 minutes.
Reduce heat to a simmer, then cover pot with lid and cook for 40 minutes until rice is cooked through.
Step 6: Serve and enjoy!
Stir in fresh (or dried) sage if using, along with lemon juice. Serve and enjoy!
Slow cooker + Instant Pot instructions
If you want to make this recipe even easier, try using the slow cooker. Simply dump everything into the pot in the morning and come home to an amazing dinner that evening. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours then stir in the sage and lemon juice at the end like the original version of this recipe. This way, the soup is completely hands off!
If you need dinner quickly, you can also use your Instant Pot for this chicken wild rice soup. Here's how to cook this soup in your pressure cooker:
- Add olive oil and vegetables to the Instant Pot.
- Add the chicken, seasonings, rice and broth in that order.
- Set the Instant Pot to cook on high pressure for 15 minutes. Wild rice takes longer to cook than other varieties of rice.
- Let the Instant Pot naturally release for at least 5 minutes to prevent liquid from coming out of the vent and all over your kitchen, then do a quick release for the rest.
- Stir in the sage and lemon juice at the end.
Frequently Asked Questions
This wild rice soup is made with chicken breasts, mushrooms, onion, garlic, carrots, celery stalks, Italian seasoning, chicken broth, wild rice, sage and lemon juice. It’s super easy to make and so flavourful!
You don’t need to cook the rice before adding it to the soup. It will cook alongside the rest of the ingredients and soak up the liquid from the broth while the soup simmers.
You don’t really need any sides for this wild rice soup since you’ve already got your protein, starch and veggies all in one dish! That being said, if you’re looking for something to serve on the side, you can’t go wrong with some nice crusty bread or a side salad.
This soup usually doesn’t require any thickening, since the softer grains of rice in the wild rice blend will do a great job of thickening the soup. However, if you want, you can add some flour to the soup – I would recommend no more than 1 tbsp. Add it after sautéing the vegetables and before adding the broth for the best results. You could also make a cornstarch slurry and add it in at the end, then let it simmer for a few minutes to thicken.
Storing and reheating
This chicken wild rice soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It’s even better as leftovers since all the flavours have a chance to soak into the rice as it sits. To reheat, warm it up in a pot on the stovetop or in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes.
Can you freeze chicken wild rice soup?
This chicken wild rice soup freezes beautifully. Let it cool almost to room temperature then place it in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to eat your soup, let it defrost in the fridge overnight or reheat it in a pot on the stovetop right from frozen. If you stored individual serving sizes in glass containers, you can just pop one of the containers right in the microwave for 6 to 7 minutes from frozen, stirring halfway through.
Be aware that while rice by itself is fine to freeze, rice that is frozen in a soup will not retain the exact same texture. It will continue to absorb the liquid and will be a little soggier after being reheated. The taste will still be the same though!
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Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this soup into your weekly lunches.
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
- This is the wild rice blend I use.
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months.
Easiest Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 medium-sized chicken breasts, diced
- 2 cups sliced mushrooms
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 3 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning or herbes de province
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup wild rice blend
- 1 tbsp fresh finely chopped sage (or 1 tsp dried – optional)
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over med-high heat. Add mushrooms, cooking for 2-3 minutes until mushrooms release juices. Add onions, garlic, celery and carrots, cooking another 5 minutes until vegetables soften.
- Add chicken and saute for 2-3 minutes until lightly browned. Add Italian seasoning, salt & pepper, chicken broth and rice, stirring and bringing to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer, then cover pot with lid and cook for 40 minutes until rice is cooked through.
- Stir in fresh (or dried) sage if using, along with lemon juice. Serve and enjoy! Soup will last in the fridge up to 5 days, or you can freeze in glass bowls with lids up to 3 months.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Cynthia says
This is THE BEST wild chicken rice soup recipe out there. I’ve made it three times in the past three months. It even freezes well!
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you like it so much!
Sheri says
I made this recipe because I like wild rice. I used wild rice and brown rice separately and turned out fine. My husband and I don’t like mushrooms, so left those out. I did use herbs de provence – my favorite! I made it in the heat in Phoenix. I love soup any time of the year.
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂
Sonia K. Saldana says
I Love Chicken soup, but I wanted something different. I made this exactly as written with the exception of the baby spinach I added at the end. It is an Awesome soup! Thanks for the recipe!
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed, Sonia 🙂 Thanks for sharing your review!
David M Ramsey says
I have made this 2 times now. I made it last night because it was -7 out and soup sounded good. I love making it. Its very easy to make. The first time I made it, I had extra that I froze. I had it out of the freezer a month later, and it tasted as good as the day I made it. Def a winter dinner when it cold.
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoy it so much! Thanks for leaving your review, David 🙂
Misti says
I’m making this for a friend who has the flu. Looks great! With the wild rice, do I include the seasoning that comes with it?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Misti – it sounds like you may have bought a special type of flavoured wild rice. Don’t add any extra seasoning not listed!
Kim says
Made this and it tastes amazing. What is a serving size? One cup?
Thank you
Taylor Stinson says
So happy you like it Kim! Unfortunately I don’t know the serving size but there are 6 servings – divide the recipe in 6 and each one is a serving!
Pam says
I made this in my instapot. Didn’t have mushrooms and.didn’t add the sage it was excellent Used the herbes due province. Will make again.
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed!