Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Why you’ll love it

• One pot and very little hands-on time.
• Creamy without being heavy: a quick roux keeps it silky.
• Meal-prep friendly: it reheats beautifully all week.

Quick facts

Ingredients

For the soup

• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 8 oz (225 g) cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 6 cups (1.4 L) low-sodium chicken broth
• 3/4 cup (130 g) wild rice, rinsed
• 1 1/2 lb (680 g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
• 1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

For the creamy base

• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup (40 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) half-and-half
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tbsp dry sherry (optional)

Step-by-step method

1. Cook the vegetables. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery and mushrooms and cook, stirring, 8–10 minutes, until softened and the mushrooms release their liquid. Add the garlic and thyme and cook 1 minute.

2. Simmer the chicken and rice. Add the broth, wild rice, whole chicken pieces, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer, cover and cook 20 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F (74°C).

3. Shred the chicken. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks. Keep the soup covered and simmering 25–35 minutes more, until the wild rice is tender and many grains have split open.

4. Make the roux. In a small saucepan, melt 3 tbsp butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook 1–2 minutes, until it smells nutty. Slowly whisk in the half-and-half and cook, whisking, 2–3 minutes, until smooth and thick.

5. Finish the soup. Stir the cream mixture and shredded chicken into the pot. Simmer gently 5 minutes, until the soup is creamy and slightly thickened. Stir in the parsley and sherry, if using, and season with salt and pepper.

How to know it is done

The chicken should register 165°F (74°C) before you shred it, and the wild rice is ready when the grains are chewy-tender and many have burst open to show their white centers. The finished soup should coat the back of a spoon.

Tips for the best result

• Use 100% wild rice, not a quick-cooking blend; blends cook faster and can turn mushy.
• Never boil the soup hard after adding the cream, or it can separate.
• The soup thickens as it sits; thin leftovers with a splash of broth.

Variations and substitutions

• Leftover turkey or rotisserie chicken: skip step 2’s chicken and stir in 4 cups shredded cooked meat at the end.
• Lighter: use whole milk instead of half-and-half.
• Gluten-free: skip the roux and thicken with 2 tbsp cornstarch mixed into the cold half-and-half.
• Slow cooker: cook everything except the creamy base on LOW 6–7 hours, then shred the chicken and stir in the roux.

Storage and reheating

Refrigerate in airtight containers up to 4 days. Reheat gently over medium-low heat, adding broth as needed. Cream soups can turn grainy when frozen, so for freezing, freeze the soup before adding the creamy base (up to 3 months) and finish it after reheating.