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Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup Instant Pot recipe is packed with wholesome & nutritious ingredients, fresh lemony flavor, rice shaped orzo pasta & tender chicken. This soup is even better than Panera lemon chicken orzo soup.

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Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

Lemon chicken orzo soup is so easy to whip up in the electric pressure cooker just like this instant pot panera broccoli cheddar soup. The tiny rice shaped orzo pasta, the tender chicken and the veggies are all cooked together in the same pot. The soup is than thickened with a gluten free thickener (optional).

If you love the Panera Bread lemon chicken orzo soup than you'll love this recipe because this soup tastes even better.

Try our some most famous soups - Chili's chicken enchilada soup instant pot , creamy chicken tortilla soup instant pot , unstuffed cabbage roll soup instant pot.

Ingredients

Find the Ingredients with actual measurements at the bottom of the post. The list below is just a reference.

Orzo Pasta: Tiny rice shaped pasta that looks like rice but get's cooked much faster. tastes yummy too!
Chicken: Use either boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs. I used thighs for today's recipe, we love dark meat!
Aromatics: Yellow onion & garlic. You can definitely go heavy with the garlic to add an extra layer of flavor.
Veggies: Carrots & celery.
Seasonings: Paprika, ground black pepper, thyme, oregano, fresh rosemary or dried rosemary (read NOTES at the bottom of the post), salt for flavor.
Cooking fat: Light or extra light olive oil & butter. We always prefer unsalted butter in our recipes, that way we can control the extra salt in the recipe.
Fresh lemon juice: Nothing beats the flavor of fresh squeezed lemon juice. Don't skip this and don't use bottle juice.
Fresh lemon zest: This will give you a lemony chicken orzo soup, take the soup to the tops and pack a punch! Don't miss it.
Thickener: Corn starch slurry. 1:1 cornstarch + water diluted to make a thick slurry. This acts as a gluten free thickener and thickens soups and stews beautifully. You may totally skip the thickener and enjoy the much lighter version of the soup.
Garnish: Fresh chopped flat leaf Italian Parsley is our favorite garnish here and also some slices of fresh lemon. Yum!

Tips & Tricks

Chicken options: If you prefer dark meat use boneless skinless chicken thighs, otherwise use chicken breasts.
Al dente orzo pasta: Do not increase the cook time, it'll over cook the orzo pasta. Serve the instant pot lemon chicken orzo soup almost instantly once you are done pressure cooking. The more the pasta rests in the soup the more tender it becomes.
Freezing tips: The soup when frozen along with the pasta will still taste yummy and hold up but the orzo will become soft and puffy & soak up the liquid. If you plan to freeze the soup, it's a good idea to skip pressure cooking the orzo and freeze the soup without the pasta. Later, add cooked orzo pasta to individual serving bowls.
Using rotisserie chicken: You can add left over rotisserie chicken to this soup. Skip pressure cooking the chicken, follow the rest of the recipe as such and add the diced or shredded rotisserie chicken at the end, serve immediately!
Better than Bouillon: Don't miss out on the better the bouillon chicken base. It adds great depth of flavor and you can almost instantly make a batch of quick chicken stock at home while making the recipe and ditch the store bought version. Dilute the better than bouillon chicken base in warm water to make an instant chicken stock.
Intense lemony flavor: Add ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice and throw in a 2-3 slices of fresh lemon and than pressure cook the soup.
Optional thickener: You can skip thickening the soup with cornstarch and enjoy a much more brothy and lighter version of the recipe. We prefer a slightly thick soup, more like a stew. The cornstarch also adds a touch of creaminess to the lemon orzo soup.

lemon chicken orzo soup garnished with lemon & ground black pepper, a spoon being dipped in the soup — Lemon chicken orzo soup

How to make Instant Pot lemon chicken orzo pasta?

Find the detailed step by step recipe along with measurements + Video at the bottom of the post.

Step #1 Sauté aromatics & veggies

sautéing aromatic and veggies in instant pot — Sauté aromatics & veggies

Sauté aromatics: Sauté the aromatics over high heat (sauté mode, high heat setting) for just 20 secs.
Sauté veggies: Throw in the chopped veggies & sauté for 1 min. Add the seasonings and sauté another minute or just 30 secs.

Step #2 Deglaze pot

deglazing pot, adding orzo pasta and chicken in instant pot — Deglaze pot

Deglaze pot: Pour chicken stock and deglaze the pot very well by scraping the sides & the bottom of the pot with the help of a spatula. There should not be any food particles stuck at the bottom of the pot. This step is very important & it will help prevent the "burn" error!
Add orzo & chicken: Add the uncooked orzo pasta. Give everything a quick stir, throw in the boneless skinless thawed or fresh chicken thighs or breasts, add a fresh twig of rosemary.

Step #3 Pressure Cook

pressure cook the orzo chicken soup — Pressure cook

Pressure cook: Add some fresh lemon zest. Cancel the sauté function, close the lid, seal the valve and pressure cook on high heat for 3 mins followed by quick release.

Step #4 Thicken Soup & serve

shredding chicken and thicken the soup in instant pot — Shred chicken & thicken soup

Shred chicken: Fish out the pressure cooked chicken and shred with the help of a pair of fork or cut into bite size pieces. Transfer it back to the pot. Add the lemon juice and give everything a good mix.
Thicken soup (optional): You can thicken the soup a bit for a creamy texture but this step is totally optional. Add the cornstarch slurry and mix well. Hit back the Sauté function and allow the soup to simmer for 1 min on low heat. This will help thicken the soup. For best texture serve the soup immediately.

best lemon chicken orzo soup served in a soup bowl, a spoon and fresh rosemary twig on the background — Best Lemon chicken orzo soup

Is lemon chicken orzo soup healthy?

Yes, lemon chicken orzo soup is healthy. It's packed with fresh, wholesome and healthy ingredients.

Can you freeze Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup?

Yes, you can definitely freeze lemon chicken orzo soup for upto 2 months. .

You can freeze the soup in two ways: with the orzo pasta and without the orzo pasta. Read the "Tips & Tricks" above for more information.

The orzo pasta will become soft and puffy if you freeze the soup along with the pasta.

Storing tips

Fridge: Store any leftover soup in air tight containers for upto 3 days in the fridge. The orzo pasta will soak the liquid. So, follow the reheating directions shared below.

Freezer: Freeze in portion size freezer safe containers for upto 2 months. Follow the re-heating directions shared below.

Reheating directions

From Fridge: You can reheat the fridge cold soup in the microwave oven until warm or hot. The orzo pasta will soak up a lot of the liquid. So, you may need to add more stock and than reheat for a good consistency.

Frozen soup: Thaw the frozen soup in the refrigerator overnight and follow the reheating directions shared above.

Panera Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup variations

Lemon chicken orzo soup with spinach: Follow this recipe and add about 2 cups baby spinach at the end after turning off the instant pot. The residual heat will help wilt the leaves.
Lemon chicken orzo soup with kale: Follow the same recipe and add 2 cups chopped and rinsed kale leaves at the end after turning off the instant pot. The residual heat will help wilt the kale leaves.
Greek lemon chicken orzo soup: Whenever I make a Greek lemon chicken orzo soup I add lots of fresh chopped dill leaves at the end to garnish the soup. The recipe would remain the same.