Roasted Greek Lemon Chicken Soup is packed with flavor and is a spin on the blog classic: Homemade Roasted Chicken Soup! Absolutely perfect for cold winter days!
Best Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
Our classic Roasted Homemade Chicken Soup is SUCH a popular recipe so I am very excited to share this fun spin on that beloved recipe! Between the roasted chicken and the amazing garlic and lemon – this is a go-to for me when I am not feeling 100%! I am a big fan of cooking quick on the weeknights, but a little slower on the weekends … this would be more of a weekend recipe. Yes, it takes a bit of time, but it is so worth it!
Looking for More Soup Recipes?
If you love them as much as we do, you definitely need to try our Golden Turmeric Chicken Soup!
What You Will Need
- whole chicken – be sure to fully thaw a whole, roaster chicken from your local grocery store.
- ghee – option to use this, butter, or just a little bit of olive oil.
- salt and pepper – simple seasonings that are always a must when cooking any type of meat.
- onion, celery, and carrots – fresh vegetables we use in almost all of our homemade soup recipes.
- head of garlic – everything is always better with some garlic in the mix.
- lemon – added to lighten and brighten all those flavors.
- fresh rosemary & dill – highly recommend tossing in some fresh herbs for even more flavor!
- chicken broth – keep it simple and use a store-bought version or learn how to make chicken broth.
- eggs – a great way to add a little protein, plus great flavor!
- lemon juice – always love a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
How To Make Roasted Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
Roast your chicken. Add your broth, cover and let simmer.
Remove chicken (let cool) and then break down, separating the meat from the bones. Strain the broth and add chicken + broth back to same pot. Add in fresh veggies and allow to simmer.
Combine eggs and some warm broth – whisk to combine. Add egg/broth mixture to pot and stir to combine.
Serve and enjoy!
Substitutions
- Whole30/Paleo: if you are concerned with Whole30/Paleo just make sure you are checking your broth ingredients.
- Add-Ins: If you aren’t concerned with Whole30/Paleo feel free to add in orzo or noodles of your choosing – I would recommend adding them in at the end (pre-cooked) so they don’t soak up the broth while they cook.
Recipe FAQs and Tips
- Is there another name for Greek Lemon Chicken Soup? Yes! It is also called Avgolemono and it is a very famous Greek soup. I put my own spin on it here and hope you enjoy it!
- Ensure Chicken is Thaw/Fresh: make sure your chicken is 100% thaw before roasting or it will impact the cooking time.
- Broth temp: before you add in your egg mixture to the soup make sure the soup isn’t boiling – I added it when the temp the broth was approximately 170 degrees and it was perfect! If you add in the egg mixture when it is boiling the eggs will cook (so it would be like scrambled eggs floating in your soup – yucky) – so make sure you don’t do that! I used a meat thermometer to test the broth temp and feel free to toss in an ice cube or two if you need to.
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Other Recipes You Might Like
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Whole Roasted Chicken
Leftover Turkey + Wild Rice Soup
Homemade Beef Vegetable Soup
Roasted Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: Approx. 15 cups
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stove Top + Oven
- Cuisine: Greek-Inspired
Description
Our homemade Roasted Greek Lemon Chicken Soup recipe is a flavorful and delicious bowl of winter comfort food!
Ingredients
Broth:
- (1) 5-6 pound whole roasting chicken (fresh or thawed)
- 2–3 tablespoons ghee, softened (or butter or olive oil)
- kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 1 small yellow onion, quartered
- 1–2 celery stalks, cut into 2–3 inch chunks
- 2 medium whole carrots, peeled & cut into 2–3 chunks
- 1 garlic head, cut off the top
- 1 lemon, halved
- 1–2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1–2 sprigs fresh dill
Soup:
- 8–10 cups chicken broth (homemade or store-bought)
- cooked, shredded chicken (using the roasted chicken)
- 4 celery stalks, sliced
- 1 medium sweet yellow onion, chopped
- 4–6 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
- 1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- (optional) a few handfuls of fresh spinach or chopped kale
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place chicken in a dutch oven and rub all over with softened ghee (butter or olive oil). Sprinkle with generous amounts of salt and pepper to coat.
- Roast Chicken + Veggies: Place onion, celery, carrots, garlic, lemon, rosemary, and dill around the chicken. Roast on middle rack of the preheated oven, uncovered, for 1.5 hours.
- Simmer: Remove from oven and place on burner. Add chicken broth and turn heat up to high. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cover for 45-60 minutes.
- Prep Broth for Soup: Remove chicken from the broth and set aside to cool slightly. Strain broth and discard the cooked vegetables, reserving the garlic and lemon.
- Make Soup: Place strained broth back in your soup pot along with fresh onion, carrots, celery and dill. Take the roasted lemons and squeeze into the broth. Take garlic and remove 2-4 cloves and roughly chop; add these to the broth as well (you can add more if you want).
- Shred Chicken: Remove chicken skin and bones from the meat and use two forks to shred. Add meat to the pot. Stir to combine and let simmer 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat to let broth cool a bit.
- Egg Mixture: Whisk together the eggs and fresh lemon juice in a separate mixing bowl. Then take approximately 1 cup of broth (which should be around 170 degrees) and slowly whisk into the egg mixture. Once that is combined, slowly add it back into the dutch oven, whisking to combine. Feel free to place back on low heat, but be sure not to boil as the eggs will cook!
- Taste & Serve: Taste and add any salt or pepper, as necessary, as well as any additional dill. Before serving feel free to add a handful of fresh spinach or even kale, if you want! Enjoy!
Notes
- Size of dutch oven: I used a 5 1/2 qt. dutch oven.
- Whole30/Paleo: be sure to check the broth ingredients and ensure you use ghee or olive oil instead of butter.
- Add-ins: if you aren’t concerned with Whole30/Paleo, feel free to add in some cooked orzo or pasta at the end, if you want! I wouldn’t recommend cooking it in the soup as it will soak up quite a bit of broth during the cooking process.
- Consistency: If you want the soup thicker, then I would suggest sticking with 8 cups broth and if you want it thinner I would lean towards 10 cups broth.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 100
- Sugar: 4.1 g
- Sodium: 683.1 mg
- Fat: 4.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 12.6 g
- Protein: 4.9 g
- Cholesterol: 56.7 mg
Melissa says
This is soup soothes the soul, so hearty and delicious I make this over and over again during the colder months. 10/10 would recommend, I also sometimes buy a precooked roasted chicken if I’m short on time.
Erin says
So glad you enjoyed it, Melissa! Thanks for coming back and leaving a review!
Benda says
I made this the other night when it was raining here in California. And the fact that it’s raining, we’ll we’re in a drought here. This soup was delicious and one that I will make again. Thank you Erin for your wonderful recipes! I also make your broccoli cheddar soup quite often.
Erin says
So happy to hear that, Benda! Thanks for coming back to leave a review – I so appreciate it!
Kathy says
Wonderful and delicious just like all your recipes! How long will it last in the fridge and can it be frozen? Thanks!
Tina Green says
This recipe is amazing. Probably the best soup I’ve ever had. Thank you so much for sharing it. I’ve sent it to many people as a recommendation.
Erin says
That is so awesome to hear, Tina! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave your feedback, I really appreciate it!
Deborah Crow says
Delicious!
Meagan says
Made this last night and it was so good! With the weather changing here in MN, I’m looking for more soup recipes and this one will definitely be added to the rotation!
Erin says
So happy you enjoyed it, Meagan! And I agree – bring on soup season! Thanks for taking the time to leave your feedback – it is so appreciated!