Chicken and Wild Rice Soup for Chilly Autumn Days

Warm up with a bowl of chicken and wild rice soup.

Food is a love language, and a bowl of homemade soup tops the list. This hearty recipe is perfect for hunkering in on a cold night, to fill your belly and settle your soul.

Suzy Robertson shares her recipe for chicken and wild rice soup. This soup is gluten free, and can be made dairy free as well. Suzy uses fresh herbs and baby bella mushrooms for the best flavor.

Find more recipes from Suzy on Instagram, @suzysnaturalhealthmovement, or on her website, learntocookhealthy.com.

Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

(GF & can be DF)

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Tbsp. butter or extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small white or yellow onion, peeled and diced
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 c. chicken stock
• 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts or pre-cooked chicken
• 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, diced
• 1 c. uncooked wild rice, rinsed and drained
• 1 Tbsp. finely-chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 Tbsp. Mrs. Dash garlic & herb
• 2 c. whole milk (or nut milk for DF)
• 2 large handfuls fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
• Sea salt & pepper, to taste

METHOD

1. Sauté the veggies. Melt butter or oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat.  Add onion and sauté for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add carrots, celery and garlic and sauté for 3 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add in the next round of ingredients. Pour in the chicken broth.  Add the chicken breasts (if using raw chicken- if using pre-cooked chicken then add at the very end and warm through), mushrooms, wild rice, rosemary, bay leaves and stir to combine.
3. Let the soup continue cooking until it reaches a simmer.  Then reduce heat to medium-low to maintain the simmer, cover, and cook for 40-45 minutes or until the wild rice is tender — being sure to stir the soup every 5-7 minutes so that the bottom of the pot does not burn.
4. Shred or dice the chicken. Use tongs to carefully transfer the chicken breasts to a clean plate.  Then you can either dice or use two forks to shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces, and stir it back into the soup.  This is where you would add the pre-cooked chicken if using it.
5. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir in the milk and baby spinach until combined.
6. Remove and discard the bay leaves.  Taste and season the soup with however much salt and black pepper you think it needs.
7. Serve warm and enjoy!

NOTES

Instant Pot Option- To make pressure cooker chicken and wild rice soup, simply add the butter, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, chicken stock, chicken breasts, wild rice, rosemary and bay leaves to the bowl of your Instant Pot.  Cover, seal and cook on high pressure for 30 minutes, followed by a 10 minute natural release, followed by a quick release.  Continue on with steps 4-7.

Crock-Pot Option- To make slow cooker chicken and wild rice soup, simply add the butter, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, chicken stock, chicken breasts, wild rice, rosemary, bay leaves and seasonings to the bowl of a large slow cooker.  Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours, until the rice is tender.  Continue on with steps 4-7.