Julie Clark
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Wild Rice Creamy Chicken Soup
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This wild rice creamy chicken soup is sure to satisfy the heartiest of appetites. It’s filled with Uncle Ben’s wild rice, tender chicken, carrots, celery and onions.
I first made this soup about 5 years ago for Matt’s mom and dad after they had been sick. I had found a recipe online and it was good, but I needed to tweak it slightly to be one that our family returned to time after time.
I stuck that paper away in my cupboard and thought of it often, but this fall pulled it back out to work on it. Today I’m sharing with you the final soup recipe my family loved. Like seriously devoured as soon as I was done photographing it.
This easy Wild Rice Creamy Chicken Soup with Uncle Ben’s rice is a ‘must-have’ recipe in your winter soup recipe box. It’s a hearty chicken soup and the perfect comfort food.
About this Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup:
- Flavor: This has a common flavor of a creamy chicken soup, but Uncle Ben’s wild rice gives it a little bit of a deeper, nuttier flavor. The seasonings from the wild rice box mixes adds common soup seasonings of rosemary, thyme and sage.
- Texture: This is a thick soup that will continue to get thicker as it sits. If you’d like it thinner, add a little less of the flour roux. But it is creamy and the chicken & veggies are tender. So good!
- Method: This cooks on the stovetop in a large soup pot or dutch oven.
A Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup recipe is a favorite in the state of Minnesota, and you can actually find recipes called Minnesota Chicken & Wild Rice Soup. Wild rice is actually the state grain of Minnesota.
For this soup, I’m using Uncle Ben’s Long Grain & Wild Rice box mix, so it is a mixture of traditional rice and wild rice.
Ingredients Needed
- Butter. The salted butter helps give the veggies and soup a rich base.
- Garlic. Use fresh minced garlic or store bought minced garlic rather than garlic powder.
- Celery, Carrots & Onions. I chop up my own, but if you need a shortcut, look for mirepoix, a frozen vegetable blend containing celery, carrots and onions that is perfect for saving a step in making soup.
- Chicken Stock. Chicken broth will work as well. Low sodium chicken stock is a good option because of the seasoning that comes with the box rice mix.
- Cooked Chicken. Shred rotisserie chicken, leftover shredded chicken, or even grilled chicken. Boneless skinless chicken breasts or skinless chicken thighs…either work. Just make sure the chicken is fully cooked and in bite size pieces. It’s a great recipe for leftover chicken.
- Uncle Ben’s Original Long Grain and Wild Rice Blend. You’ll use both the rice and the herbs seasoning packet to keep this soup easy.
- Flour. This is what is going to help thicken the soup.
- Milk. Some recipes call for heavy cream, but since the flour mixture will thicken the soup, I saved a few calories and fat grams and used 2% milk. It’s still very creamy. Make it dairy-free by using coconut milk.
Use leftover turkey
During the soup season, you may have leftover turkey from the holidays to use up. This wild rice creamy chicken soup would be excellent with leftover roasted turkey and even homemade turkey broth.
How to Make Wild Rice Creamy Chicken Soup
- Sauté the veggies. Melt butter on the stove top in a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, celery, carrots and onion. Cook and stir for 5-8 minutes until the vegetables start to soften and onions turn translucent.
- Simmer the rice. Add the chicken stock and shredded chicken. Bring this mixture to a boil, then add the rice and seasoning packets from the rice boxes. Cover and simmer 20 minutes over low heat.
- Make the roux. While the soup is simmering, melt the ⅓ cup butter in a medium saucepan. Reduce the heat to low, then whisk in the flour until you have a thick paste. Whisk in the milk ⅓ a cup at a time, stirring until smooth before adding more. Cook until the mixture is thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Add the roux to the soup to thicken. Stir the milk mixture into the broth and rice. Cover and cook over medium low heat for 5-8 minutes or until heated through and thickened as you’d like.
Make it a meal.
To complete this meal, serve the wild rice creamy chicken soup with a simple side salad and bread. Here are a few options:
And serve garlic parmesan wings as an appetizer!
Storage Instructions
This wild rice creamy chicken soup is best served right away, but if you have leftovers, don’t worry! It is just as every bit as good warmed up the next day, it will just be thicker like stew. And honestly second day soup is one of my favorite things.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Because this soup is milk based, it doesn’t freeze the best. The milk can split and curdle upon reheating.
Wild Rice Creamy Chicken Soup
This Wild Rice Creamy Chicken Soup is sure to satisfy the heartiest of appetites. It's filled with Uncle Ben's wild rice, tender chicken chunks, carrots, celery and onions.
Servings 8
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Ingredients
For the soup:
- 2 tablespoons salted butter 28 grams
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 cup chopped carrot
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 6 cups chicken stock 48 ounces
- 3-4 cups cooked chicken* 22 ounces, cut or shredded into bite size pieces
- 2 boxes Uncle Ben's Original Long Grain and Wild Rice 6 ounces each
For the roux:
- ⅓ cup salted butter 76 grams
- ½ cup all-purpose flour 65 grams
- 2 cups milk 16 ounces
Instructions
Make the soup:
- Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, celery, carrots and onion. Cook and stir for 5-8 minutes until the vegetables start to soften and onions turn translucent. 2 tablespoons salted butter, 2 teaspoons minced garlic, 1 cup chopped celery, 1 cup chopped carrot, 1 cup chopped onion
- Add the chicken stock and shredded chicken. Bring this mixture to a boil, then add the rice and seasoning packets from the rice boxes. Cover and simmer 20 minutes over low heat. 6 cups chicken stock, 3-4 cups cooked chicken*, 2 boxes Uncle Ben's Original Long Grain and Wild Rice
Make the roux:
- While the soup is simmering, melt the ⅓ cup butter in a medium saucepan. Reduce the heat to low, then whisk in the flour until you have a thick paste. ⅓ cup salted butter, ½ cup all-purpose flour
- Whisk in the milk ⅓ a cup at a time, stirring until smooth before adding more. Cook until the mixture is thickened, about 5 minutes. 2 cups milk
- Stir the milk mixture into the broth and rice. Cover and cook over medium low heat for 5-8 minutes or until heated through and thickened as you’d like. It will continue to get thicker as it sits.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Use rotisserie chicken, leftover shredded chicken, or even grilled chicken. Just make sure the chicken is fully cooked and in bite size pieces.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Calories: 480kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 80mg | Sodium: 428mg | Potassium: 710mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 3188IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 116mg | Iron: 2mg
Wow…this is perfect! So delicious and easy!
I want to make this soup today and serve it tomorrow. Would you recommend thickening it with the roux tomorrow after reheating or thicken it today and reheat it thickened?
Just make this soup and it is delicious! Used unsalted butter and broth as using the packages in the Rice-a-Roni provided ample sodium. This recipe is a keeper.