Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup

 My favorite cozy soup recipe from my Minnesota days, creamy chicken and wild rice soup.  Hearty and simple with a classic base of onions, carrots and celery in a flavorful creamy broth with mushrooms, nutty wild rice and chicken.  This is some creamy comfort food in a bowl right here!

I spent several years in Minnesota and it's safe to say that anything with wild rice is kind of ubiquitous up there.  Wild rice and chicken soup was often on the menu in restaurants and pretty much available in the hot food bars of all the major grocery stores (looking at you Byerlys, Lunds and Kowalski's).  And for good reason, it's freakin' delicious!

My version of this classic soup is easy to make and so flavorful, and made even easier by using leftover chicken or turkey.  I always have leftover chicken from those big ass Costco rotisserie chickens, and it's perfect for this soup.  And it hits just the right level of silky creaminess, not watery nor gloppy thick.

INGREDIENTS

• Wild rice  I use the wild rice that comes in a 4-ounce box, about ⅔ of a cup.
• Carrot, celery and onion  pretty standard holy trinity for soup!
• Cremini mushrooms (baby bellas)  add such flavor to this creamy soup.
• Homemade chicken stock  use it if you got it, makes a world of difference.  I always have some in my freezer, here's my favorite way to make quick and easy chicken stock in the Instant Pot.
• Garlic, thyme and bay leaf  for seasoning, along with salt and pepper.
• Butter, heavy cream 
• Cooked and cubed chicken  here's where rotisserie chicken breast meat comes into play and makes this recipe easy and saves time, that's what I often use.  Any leftover chicken or turkey will work, and you could also bake some chicken breasts beforehand, too.

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN WILD RICE SOUP (STEP BY STEP)

RECIPE NOTES AND TIPS

• I recommend using only real wild rice, not a rice blend.  You can find wild rice in the rice section in the grocery.
• Store-bought chicken broth is just fine if you don't have homemade, try and use a good quality unsalted brand.
• Use the cremini mushrooms, they are so much more flavorful in this soup than white button mushrooms.
• If you want to roast skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts beforehand in the oven for this recipe, just rub a little olive oil on top, salt and pepper, and bake at 350º until done, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool, then remove the skin and bones.  Tender, juicy chicken every time.
• Cook until the wild rice reaches your desired tenderness, I like mine a little toothsome, your preference.
• Serve with some warm, crusty bread to dunk in the tasty broth, so good!

This hearty and creamy soup is so cozy and comforting in the cold weather months, but honestly, chicken and wild rice soup is tasty and welcome on the table year round.  Give it a try, you'll love it.  Miss you St. Paul!  xo- Kelly🍴🐦

You might also like this Wild Rice Chicken Salad with grapes and almonds, perfect for lunch or a light dinner.  Nice in the warmer weather, but same as the soup, good year round!

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Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Hearty, simple and comforting soup with mushrooms, onions, carrots and celery in a flavorful creamy broth with nutty wild rice and chicken.

5 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 311kcal

Author: Kelly Wildenhaus

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Ingredients

• ▢ ½ pound cremini mushrooms, cleaned, quartered and roughly chopped (8 ounces)
• ▢ 4 tablespoons butter, divided
• ▢ 1 medium carrot, peeled, diced about ½ cup
• ▢ 1 small yellow onion, diced about 1 cup
• ▢ 1 rib celery, diced about ½ cup
• ▢ 1 large clove garlic, minced
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• ▢ 1 bay leaf
• ▢ ⅓ cup all purpose flour
• ▢ 1 (4-ounce) package wild rice, rinsed about ⅔ cup
• ▢ 2 quarts (8 cups) chicken stock, preferably homemade or unsalted store-bought
• ▢ 3 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite-size pieces from rotisserie chicken
• ▢ 1 cup heavy cream, room temperature
• ▢ Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper

Instructions

• Heat 1 tablespoon butter in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until browned and liquid is released. Remove to plate and set aside.
• To same pot, melt 3 tablespoons butter and add carrots, onion and celery, sprinkle with a little salt and cook until onion is translucent and vegetables start to soften. Add garlic, thyme and bay leaf, sauté another minute until fragrant.
• Sprinkle flour over vegetables, cook and stir constantly for 2 minutes.
• Stir in wild rice, then gradually whisk in chicken stock. Stir in the reserved mushrooms and bring to a boil, then turn heat down and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring frequently, until rice is tender.
• Add the cooked and cubed chicken and stir to combine and heat through, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk in the heavy cream, simmer gently to heat through, about 3 to 5 minutes.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

• I clean mushrooms of dirt with a damp paper towel. I don't run them under water, I think they brown better this way.
• You can freeze this soup, no problem.
• Use 100% wild rice, not a rice blend.
• The soup will reduce and thicken slightly, I usually partially cover the pot the last 15 minutes or so.

Nutrition

Calories: 311kcal Carbohydrates: 11g Protein: 20g Fat: 21g Saturated Fat: 12g Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g Monounsaturated Fat: 6g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 88mg Sodium: 175mg Potassium: 540mg Fiber: 1g Sugar: 2g Vitamin A: 1936IU Vitamin C: 2mg Calcium: 53mg Iron: 2mg

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