Greek Lemon Soup
Serves 3
10 mins prep
60 mins cook
70 mins total
Greek Lemon Soup tastes like home to me. My mom has been making this soup for me since I was a baby. There are so many outstanding versions of this soup, and my version is one I learned while living in Greece. Rice, chicken, and egg yolks are cooked directly in the soup, making this a wholesome, filling one-pot meal.
Avgolemono Sauce
Add the water, onion, garlic, celery, carrot, and salt to a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, add the chicken, and reduce the heat to medium. The water should be at a hard simmer. Cover the pot halfway with a lid and let the soup cook for 40 minutes.
After 40 minutes, remove and transfer the chicken on a plate or cutting board. Using forks or tongs, shred the chicken. Keep the shredded chicken aside.
Now, transfer the cooked veggies with one full ladle of broth to a blender. Blend the veggies until smooth and return the mixture to the pot of broth.
Add the washed rice (or orzo) to the pot of broth and blended veggies. Adjust the heat to medium-high and let it cook for about 20 minutes. Taste for doneness and remove the soup from the heat.
Meanwhile, make the "avgolemono" which is the egg-lemon sauce. In a bowl, add the egg yolks, lemon zest and juice and whisk to blend.
Slowly add in some of the broth from your soup pot and whisk vigorously. This step is called tempering, which prevents the eggs from breaking and/or overcooking in the soup.
Add the egg mixture into the soup pot (off the heat) with the shredded chicken, freshly chopped parsley and enjoy!
Note: When reheating the soup please heat on medium-low as you stir so you don’t break the egg.
