Avgolemono Soup is a fabulously lemony chicken and rice soup made super creamy without any cream! It’s classic Greek comfort food.
Years ago my friend Barb made Greek avgolemono soup for me and I haven’t stopped thinking about this simple lemony chicken and rice soup since. Somehow she never got around to giving me her recipe, and so I was finally forced to make it on my own. If she’s reading, maybe she will send me her recipe and we can compare the two ;) If you love lemon like I do, you need to give this a try.
Chicken broth thickened with eggs and flavored with lemon is a Mediterranean concept, so good that everybody got in on the action in some way or another…there are versions of it in Greece, Turkey, and Italy, as well as in Arabic and Jewish cuisines. The texture and flavor of the soup is incredible, it’s silky and lightly creamy (although there’s no dairy whatsoever) with a pronounced lemon tang.
My recipe is cobbled together from a bunch of sources. I take what I like from each one until I’ve got all the components…not too many eggs, extra lemon, no celery, rice not orzo…Of course traditionally this soup starts by boiling a chicken and creating your own broth. I used a cooked rotisserie chicken and broth from the market without sacrificing the flavor of this wonderful soup.
The minute you add the egg and lemon mixture to the hot broth you get a wonderful creamy emulsion. The soup can be reheated successfully as long as you do it gently and don’t bring it to a full boil.
This avgolemono soup is a perfect way to bring a little Mediterranean sunshine into the darker months…The dish can be delicate, or hearty, depending on how much chicken and rice you add. I think this would be ideal for any members of the family who are under the weather.
I love this easy technique of creating a super lemony sauce thickened with eggs that I’ve adapted it again and again ~
Ingredients
- about 2 cups leftover cooked rice or orzo pasta
- 1 quart chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups cooked white meat chicken, cut in chunks
- 3 eggs, well beaten
- about 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
- salt and fresh pepper
- snipped chives or parsley
Instructions
- Heat the stock and water in a large soup pot to simmering. Add in the chicken meat and simmer for a few minutes. Take it off the heat.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the 3 eggs and the lemon juice together, make sure they are well incorporated and the eggs are completely broken up.
- Slowly pour one ladle of the hot broth into the egg mixture, whisking all the while. Add another in slowly, and then a third. You are tempering the eggs so they don’t curdle when you add them to the hot broth in the soup pot.
- Then, slowly, drizzle in the lemon egg mixture back into the broth, whisking constantly. (If you are good at that pat the head and rub the tummy trick, you’ll do fine with this…)
- The soup will turn a cloudy creamy color. Put the pan back on the burner and heat gently until it thickens slightly but doesn’t boil. Don’t stop whisking or stirring. This will only take a few minutes, and don’t wait for it to get super thick, it won’t. It just has a nice full bodied texture.
- I like to put the rice in the individual bowls first, and then top with the hot soup. This way the rice doesn’t absorb too much of the broth and get soggy. Add the parsley or chives, check the seasonings, and serve right away. Be sure you salt the soup sufficiently, and add more lemon if you want to.
- Serve garnished with snipped chives or parsley.
Thanks for pinning my avgolemono soup!
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34 Comments
Patricia
July 7, 2019 at 6:49 pmSue, Just made this for dinner. Great flavors, but I would’ve liked it to be a bit thicker (creamier like one I had at an old school Greek Restaurant). Any suggestions?
Sue
July 7, 2019 at 7:11 pmYes, the restaurant may have cooked the rice in the broth, and then pureed some of the soup for a thicker texture, that’s a traditional way of making it thicker if you prefer that.
Kathy Evans
November 11, 2018 at 5:55 pmHi sue,
This recipe looks delicious! I am having a problem getting some of your recipes. The carrots and brown butter and sage looks so good but I can’t find the recipe. If you have a moment could you give me a tip on what’s going wrong? Thanks in advance!
Sincerely,
Kathy
Sue
November 11, 2018 at 6:01 pmNot sure what’s going on Kathy, here’s the link to the post, and the recipe is there when you scroll down…Rainbow Carrots with Browned Butter and Sage. If you still have trouble let me know.
karen marie
October 20, 2016 at 2:38 pmDecades ago, when I lived in Boston, I used to get an avgolemono soup at a restaurant downtown that was so good! Thick, flavorful – oh, my word. Instead of using a spoon to eat it, I would scoop it into my mouth using pieces of their fantastic pita bread. I don’t know whether they made the pita themselves or bought it locally. But that soup … my mouth dreams of it.
Sue
January 1, 2019 at 11:27 amThat sounds amazing, I love food memories like that :)
Jo
July 29, 2014 at 9:21 pmHi…I was wondering if I could eliminate the chicken and possibly replace with corn as my hubby is vegetarian. I had this soup on the weekend for the first time, it was mindblowing, I am now addicted and scouring around to find a vegetarian version if possible.
Great blog site.
Sue
July 29, 2014 at 10:16 pmYou can definitely eliminate the chicken, although the flavor will be milder. I have a recipe on the blog for a version with asparagus : http://theviewfromgreatisland.com/2014/04/lemony-asparagus-soup.html
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert
February 16, 2014 at 4:38 pmWonderful soup Sue. It sounds terrific. So cool you updated and re-posted. That would be great about how since we can’t seem to shake this winter weather. We had a foot of snow last week and I think it will stay on the ground until June!
Tanya Schroeder
February 14, 2014 at 5:52 pmYou would do my mother proud. I grew up eaten this soup-it is my favorite! It’s warm, comforting and soothing. There is nothing like it!
denise@magnoliaverandad
February 14, 2014 at 2:46 amI love all these ingredients, and anything with lemon is a winner – the essence of the Mediterranean.
Carol Tschida
February 13, 2014 at 1:34 pmI love this soup. My friend Leda first made it for me when she was visiting from Greece decades ago and it’s a go to comfort food for my family every since. We used orzo pasta instead of rice because I was out of rice. Either way is lovely. Just be sure to pre-cook and drain the orzo before adding it to the soup or it will be too starchy. Thanks for sharing your version.
Sue
February 13, 2014 at 6:34 pmThanks Carol, I think I will try it with orzo next, for a change.
sippitysup
February 13, 2014 at 11:35 amMy partner calls this grandma food because it’s the kind of soup she always made for him. GREG
Sue
February 13, 2014 at 3:32 pmYup, this definitely has a grandma quality to it ;)
Penny
February 13, 2014 at 6:54 amThis soup sounds fabulous Sue. As a matter of fact, we are snowed in at our kids house right now and Kristen and I are planning to make this tonight, adapting it a little with what we have on hand. Thanks for the great recipe.
Sue
February 13, 2014 at 9:33 amHope it keeps you warm Penny!
Joanne
February 13, 2014 at 4:24 amI’ve been meaning to try out a veg recipe for avgolemono, though I feel like that would be heretical in some way. But I love the flavors in it! Such a comfort.
Micheline
February 12, 2014 at 10:17 amHi! First time visitor to your page! It’s beautiful, tons of unique ideas here. I’m adding you to my Bloglovin’ feed so I can keep up with your new posts!
Sue
February 12, 2014 at 11:39 amHey Micheline, welcome in!
Jeanette
September 16, 2011 at 2:08 pmI had this soup at a Greek restaurant recently and it has been on my mind so I’m so glad to find this recipe for it. I wasn’t sure if it used whole eggs or egg yolks. Definitely going to give this a try – pure comfort food.
Sue
February 12, 2014 at 12:11 pmSome recipes do use egg yolks, This one works very well, I’ve made it numerous times and I never have had trouble with the eggs as long as I temper them first.
Little Petite
September 16, 2011 at 4:03 amYummy it looks delicous!!! =D
-Adriana
Mary
September 16, 2011 at 2:47 amThis is one of my favorite soups and I’ll have to give your version a try. It looks wonderful. Your pictures aren’t too shabby either :-) I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
From Beyond My Kitchen Window
September 16, 2011 at 12:19 amI love this soup. I use to order it everytime I was eating out at my local Greek Restaurant. Yours soup looks delicious. Great photos!
Barbara
September 16, 2011 at 12:17 amBarb checking in:
Hiya Sue, Your soup looks fab-u-lous! I only made it that one time and I congratulate you on shaving one day off the prep time by starting with a roasted chicken. My recipe came third hand from the sister of someone who was once married to a Greek guy. I’m sure you hit the nail on the head…and that’s how I do lots of my cooking , combining recipes from here and there. Love to all. xoxoxob
(For some reason I can’t comment from work.)
Maris (In GoodTaste)
September 15, 2011 at 11:37 pmWhat fantastic photos these are!The soup looks very delicious and i am going to give it a try!
Gerlinde in Dallas
September 15, 2011 at 4:30 pmThis soup is wonderful with the addition of mint. I add a teaspoon or more of dried mint along with a few tablespoons of uncooked rice to the broth. When the rice is cooked, I add the eggs and lemon.
I love this soup!
Bianca @ Confessions of a Chocoholic
September 15, 2011 at 3:57 pmI’ve only had this once but still remember how silky and comforting it was! I definitely want to try making it myself, so thanks for the recipe!
Sarah (Snippets of Thyme)
September 15, 2011 at 2:27 pmThe soup is such a beautiful color. I could see serving it at a wedding or baby shower. Or, with some luscious scallops. Is it lunch yet?
hostess of the humble bungalow
September 15, 2011 at 2:25 pmWhat an interesting combination of flavours.
This would be a lovely cold weather soup and I would serve it with a rustic peasant bread.
You could write a cookbook Sue!
Jane and Lance Hattatt
September 15, 2011 at 1:34 pmHello Sue:
We love anything lemony and know that we should find this soup absolutely delicious. Our housekeeper already makes a marvellous chicken broth, so now all we need to be able to do is explain the other bits. How is your Hungarian?!!!