How To Make Greek Lemon Chicken Soup (Avgolemono)

There are a lot of great Greek dishes out there and one of the best is the Greek lemon chicken soup avgolemono. 

This traditional soup is super delicious and a great recipe to try out in the summer – but how? If you have been wanting to try out some new, exciting recipes then this is definitely one for you.

Avgolemono is a traditional Greek dish that is fun to make and try out.

So, check out the guide below to learn more about this Greek lemon chicken soup and how to make it! 

What Is Avgolemono?

First, let’s learn a little bit more about avgolemono. 

Avgolemono is a traditional soup from Greece. It’s very fragrant and appetizing and is very easy to make. This is thanks to its use of simple ingredients and similarities to the classic chicken soup.

If you love chicken soup then this recipe will be slightly familiar – but just different enough that it tastes completely new! 

The main ingredients of avgolemono are chicken and lemon, which gives the soup its iconic yellow color. This is why many know this dish simply as a Greek lemon chicken soup.

However, many recipes add ingredients like rice and orzo to give it more body. On top of this, avgolemono also features plenty of light vegetables for a balanced, filling meal. 

It’s refreshing and zesty, making it the perfect soup to enjoy during the summer. Its sharp lemon flavors pair well with the meaty chicken, making it tasty as well as filling. 

You can adjust the vegetables you add as you desire but most recipes add things like celery and onion. These are light vegetables that complement the lemon flavors of the soup without drowning them out.

They keep the meal hearty while maintaining that refreshing taste. 

Avgolemono is a great way to use up leftover chicken and it’s fun to explore different cuisines. This dish is considered a classic in Greece so if you want to add more Greek dishes to your diet, this is one for you to try! 

So, check out the recipe below and give it a try! 

Key Ingredients In Avgolemono (Greek Chicken Lemon Soup)

Chicken – Of course, a key ingredient in a Greek chicken lemon soup is the chicken. You can use any type of chicken in this soup but the easiest is 2 whole chicken breasts.

This is because it is boneless and easy to shred later in the recipe. However, if you have scraps of chicken left over from the day before supper, then you can just use those! 

Chicken Stock – To enhance the chicken flavors in your soup, it’s a good idea to add some chicken stock to the mix. 

Eggs – Depending on the recipe you follow, avgolemono either calls for eggs or egg yolks. These eggs should be kept at room temperature. 

Garlic – Garlic is great for seasoning. It enhances the flavor of your Greek lemon chicken soup! 

Herbs – This ingredient is added for garnishing. You can use dill, parsley, or both! You can also use some bay leaves for additional flavor. 

Lemon Juice – This ingredient is essential for avgolemono. Without it, it just wouldn’t taste the same!

Olive Oil – This oil is for sauteing your vegetables before adding them to the soup.

Orzo – Orzo is a very small type of pasta that resembles rice. Its name actually translates to ‘barley’. However, if you don’t want to use orzo, rice is a good substitute.

Vegetables – To help give your soup more body, add some diced veggies. This includes onions, carrots, and celery. 

Key Equipment For Avgolemono

When it comes to what cooking equipment and utensils you will need to make avgolemono, you just need the basics. 

This includes: 

• One large stock pot 
• A stirring utensil
• A vegetable knife to dice your vegetables
• A mixing bowl
• Two forks for shredding chicken (optional)

You probably already have this sort of equipment lying around your kitchen so there’s no need to rush out and buy extra things! 

How To Make Avgolemono

Your first step in making your avgolemono soup is to prepare your vegetables. Take your portions of onion, carrots, and celery, and dice them up. In a large stock pot with your olive oil, saute the vegetables until they are soft. 

Add in the garlic, your chicken, chicken stock, and any bay leaves that you want to add for extra flavor. 

Bring the mixture to the boil and reduce the heat for it to simmer. Leave the pot to simmer for at least 15 minutes. 

If you are using whole chicken breasts, you will now need to remove them (along with the bay leaves). In its place, add in your orzo (or rice) and leave the pot to simmer again for another 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, use your forks to shred your chicken breasts and add them back into the pot. However, if you are already using scraps of chicken, then there is no need to remove the chicken for shredding!

In a separate bowl, mix together your lemon juice and egg yolks with a whisk. Temper the mixture by adding 1 or 2 ladles of the hot broth to the mixture. Then, add the whole mix to the pot and leave it to cook for another 5 minutes. 

After this, your Greek lemon chicken soup should be ready to serve. Stir in your additional seasoning (like your parsley or fresh dill) and serve immediately. Enjoy! 

What To Serve With Avgolemono 

Sometimes, a soup on its own isn’t enough. If you plan on serving avgolemono as a main dish for supper, you will probably want to serve a side dish or two along with it. So, what sides work well with avgolemono?

As a soup dish, avgolemono works great with bread. Serve up some warm, buttery rolls as a simple side dish option. If you want to be more creative, try garlic bread or grilled cheeses.

As Avgolemono is a Greek dish, you can try serving some classic Greek bread like flatbreads or village bread. 

You can serve more than just bread with avgolemono. 

The lemon flavors of this soup make it pair well with other lemon-flavored dishes. Roast vegetables in lemon juice, or serve lemon rice, or a salad with lemon dressing. In fact, any kind of Greek salad works well with this Greek dish! 

You have lots of options open to you so pick out the ones that work best with your palette and give them a try! 

How To Store Avgolemono

It’s not uncommon to have some leftovers after your avgolemono meal. However, you don’t have to throw them out – you can store your avgolemono to enjoy at a later date! But how? 

First, you will need an airtight container. Pour your leftover avgolemono soup into the container, seal the lid, and make sure to store them inside your refrigerator.

If you don’t have an airtight container then a bowl with plastic wrap will work just fine – just make sure the wrap tightly seals the bowl! 

It’s important that you keep your avgolemono in a refrigerator and not at room temperature as it contains cooked chicken. Chicken can go bad very quickly when kept at room temperature. So, storing your avgolemono in the refrigerator is a must. 

Avgolemono can be kept for 3 days if stored correctly. However, you should try and eat up your avgolemono as soon as possible if you have used scrap chicken in your recipe.

Those scraps are likely already a day or two old so they don’t have a much longer shelf life before they go bad! 

Alternatively, you can freeze your avgolemono soup to make it last longer in storage. You should still use up your soup within 3 months, however, but that is plenty of time!

This also means you can make a batch of avgolemono soup, freeze it, and eat a portion every day at lunch if you desire! 

Once you are ready to serve up your leftover avgolemono soup, reheat it first in a pan or in the microwave. Make sure you don’t boil the soup during this.

This is because the soup contains eggs and boiling the eggs will make them curdle – yuck! 

You may notice that your reheated avgolemono soup is a lot thicker than it originally was. This is because the orzo (or rice) you have used in the soup has soaked up more of the liquid.

This can easily be fixed by adding some extra chicken broth to the soup while it reheats. 

And that’s it! Once the soup is piping not (but remember, not boiling) you can serve it up as usual! 

Final Thoughts

Avgolemono, or Greek lemon chicken soup, is a super fun and tasty recipe. More people should try cooking themselves!

It’s the perfect soup recipe for hot summers as it’s so refreshing – and it uses up any scraps of leftover chicken, vegetables, or orzo in your home! 

It’s also very easy to make yourself. So, if you want to give this recipe a try, then just follow the instructions above. Try it out for supper or batch cook and freeze your Greek chicken lemon soup to serve later in the week – whatever works for you! 

Just have fun and enjoy your classic Greek lemon chicken soup! Happy cooking!