Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup is cozy and comforting with bright fresh flavor from the lemons. This soup is healthy and tasty, made with simple ingredients, and the perfect meal for any night of the week.

Fall is in full swing around here and that means kids are back in school and schedules are crazy busy. Instant pot and slow cooker meals have saved the day for me. Monday’s, in particular, are our busiest day, we often don’t get home till 7 pm. So creating a delicious meal from scratch needs to be quick and easy!

My kids absolutely love this cozy and delicious soup with crunchy buttered sourdough. Fall is my favorite time cause that means loads and loads cozy delicious soup. I’m on a mission to turn hubs into a soup lover too, he still doesn’t consider soup to be a ‘meal’ ha! Don’t worry I will eventually turn him.

I made the Lemon Chicken Orzo soup with chicken breast but you can use chicken thighs too. I drop my chicken breasts in whole and shred them after the soup is cooked however you can cube them before cooking if you prefer a chunkier bite. Orzo pasta comes in whole wheat if you are looking for a healthier option and it is super cheap!

Can I make Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup Stovetop?

Absolutely YES!

1. Add 2 tbsp cooking oil or butter to your soup pot. Over medium-high heat sautee your diced onion, carrot, celery, and lemon zest till tender and fragrant.

2. Add-In your chicken breast and seasonings, cook 4 mins each side. You can also use pre-cooked shredded chicken if you choose to do this go ahead and skip this step.

3. Add in the broth and bring to a simmer for 20 mins. Add the orzo and stir till softened. If you are using pre-cooked chicken stir it in.

4. Shred your chicken if needed and add it back to the soup back to the soup. Stir in your spinach, lemon juice,  parsley, and dill. Adjust seasonings to taste!

5. Dish, garnish, serve and enjoy!

Yield: 4

Instant Pot Lemon Chicken and Orzo Soup

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Fresh, vibrant and filling lemon chicken soup is good on any day of the week! Have a gourmet soup made in the pressure cooker in half the time. Easy to prepare with simple healthy ingredients, serve it up with some sourdough toast!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter or oil
• 3 carrots, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 white onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 3 celery stalks, chopped (about 3/4 cup)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp pink salt
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 32 ounces chicken stock
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup orzo

After Pressure Cooking:

• 2 cups spinach
• 3 tsp fresh lemon juice, can adjust and add more if you like
• 1/4 cup parsley, diced
• 2 tbsp dill, diced, plus more for topping

Garnish:

• - fresh parsley and dill
• - grated parmesan cheese
• - lemon wedges
• - crisp sourdough bread

Instructions

1. Chop veggies and have all ingredients prepped before starting to cook the soup. Pressure cooking is quick so make sure you have everything prepped and ready.
2. Turn pot on the sauté setting. Once the pot is hot add your butter or oil. Add in the onions and garlic stirring till tender and fragrant.
3. Add in the lemon zest, carrots, and celery stirring frequently for about 35 seconds.
4. Add in the chicken, salt, pepper, and oregano. Give it a quick stir and add the broth and orzo.
5. Place lid on your pressure cooker and make sure the pressure regulator is set to the sealing position.
6. Select the "manual" program, then set the time to 4 minutes at high pressure. You can also select the "soup" program and follow the same cooking time. It will take 7-10 minutes for your pressure cooker to come up to pressure for the actual cooking to begin.
7. When the soup is done wait about 5 minutes and do a 'Controlled' Quick Release of the steam. PLEASE BE CAREFUL WHEN RELEASING THE STEAM. When ready remove lid.
8. Pull out chicken breasts and shred with 2 forks, place chicken back in the pot.
9. Add in the lemon juice, spinach, parsley, and dill. Adjust seasonings! I like a lot of lemon juice so I typically will add more lemon juice and salt.
10. Dish, Garnish, Serve, and Enjoy!!