This 30 Minute Lemon Chicken Soup is rich in flavor but incredibly light and easy to throw together! The lemony broth is packed with veggies and chicken.

I’ve been craving a lemon chicken soup since I visited my best friend Rebecca in Mississippi last month. We got together for our 20 year high school reunion (I don’t know how it’s been that long, let’s not talk about it) and had dinner with friends at her house the evening before. She made a luscious lemony broth that I’ve been dying to replicate!

So that’s what started me down this path and now I’ve made TWO lemon chicken soup recipes. This incredible 30 Minute Lemon Chicken Soup right here and another one which you’ll see in my cookbook coming out in October 2020.

Oh, you’re going to love how refreshing this broth is. And while it doesn’t include noodles (who says chicken soup has to have noodles anyway?) it’s still a completely delicious soup that I swear will replace your traditional chicken noodle soup. That’s right, I said it.

Ready in only 30 minutes. Loaded with so many yummy ingredients like chicken, spinach, carrots, garlic (obviously, have we met?), onion, and celery. Plus plenty of luscious lemon and herbs. It’s all my soupy dreams come to life.

For this recipe you’ll need (full list of ingredients and instructions are in the recipe card below):

  • Extra-virgin olive oil (or another cooking fat)
  • Celery
  • Onion
  • Minced garlic
  • Chicken stock or broth
  • Chicken breasts or thighs (boneless)
  • Carrots
  • Simple seasonings and herbs
  • Lemon juice
  • Fresh spinach

To make this soup we’ll start by sautéing the celery, onion, and garlic in a little oil. Once it’s fragrant and the onion is tender it’s time to incorporate the other ingredients.

Everything except the spinach goes right into the pot. Stir. Crank up the heat to bring it to a quick boil. Then drop the heat to medium or medium-low and let it all simmer until done. Stir in the spinach when done.

Can you use chicken broth instead of stock?

Absolutely. I do it all the time. The flavor difference is usually fairly minor. Just adjust the seasonings at the end if necessary.

Should the chicken be cooked before adding it to this soup?

We’re adding raw chicken to this soup so that it adds even more flavor to your chicken stock (or broth) as it cooks. This is why we crank the heat up a bit in the beginning and then lower it.

Can you add whole chicken breasts instead of chopping the raw chicken?

Absolutely. I love to add the chicken already chopped because it breaks down further as the soup cooks and you’ll see lots of pieces of chicken in every bite. It’s perfectly fine to add the chicken breasts to the soup, let it all cook, and then chop or shred your chicken at the end.

More recipes like this:

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5 from 16 votes

30 Minute Lemon Chicken Soup

This 30 Minute Lemon Chicken Soup is rich in flavor but incredibly light and easy to throw together! The lemony broth is packed with veggies and chicken.
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Yield: 8 (1 cup) servings
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 30 mins

Ingredients 

  • 2 tbsp cooking fat of choice, I use olive oil, avocado oil, or ghee.
  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 1 cup celery, diced
  • 1 tbsp garlic, minced
  • 32 oz chicken stock
  • 1 1/2 lb chicken breasts or thighs
  • 1 cup carrots, cut into circles
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp dried rosemary
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 1/2 oz spinach

Instructions

  • Add your cooking fat of choice, onion, celery, and garlic to your soup pot. Sauté on medium high heat, stirring frequently, until onion is tender and the garlic has a bit of browning.
  • Cut your chicken into small chunks. This will help the chicken cook quickly and evenly in the soup.
  • Stir in all other ingredients except for your spinach. Bring to a boil on high heat. Then cover and reduce to a simmer (medium or medium low heat) for 15-20 minutes. Chicken should be cooked through when done.
  • Stir in spinach leaves. (The spinach will wilt very quickly while you stir.) Taste and add extra salt or pepper if you like. Serve!

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup, Calories: 185kcal, Carbohydrates: 8g, Protein: 21g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 57mg, Sodium: 725mg, Potassium: 588mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 3585IU, Vitamin C: 8.1mg, Calcium: 38mg, Iron: 1.2mg
Did you make this recipe?Tag @thewholecook and hashtag it #thewholecook on Instagram.

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