This wonderful egg-lemon Greek soup is easy to make and delicious.
Chicken stock and breast, along with a small amount of rice provide the heartiness. But the whipped eggs and lemon add the sumptuous dimension that make this dish so unique.
I’m so happy that my dear friend Nan suggested it. It’s on my absolute favorites list now!
Please excuse the Southwestern USA dishes… they are what I have! Southwest Greece?
Avgolemono Soup
Ingredients
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 small onion, peeled and quartered
1 small carrot
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup long grain rice
2 eggs
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Ground black pepper to taste
Method
- Bring chicken broth, onion, carrot, bay leaf, and salt to a simmer. Add chicken breasts, cover and gently simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove chicken breasts, let cool slightly, and pull chicken into thin strips. Set aside.
- Strain soup and return to boil. Add rice and gently simmer for 20 minutes. Add shredded chicken back to soup for another 5 minutes.
- Whisk eggs until they are frothy, then whisk in lemon juice.
- Add a cup of the hot soup to the egg-lemon mixture very slowly, whisking as you pour it in. Add another cup in the same manner.
- Take the soup off the heat and stir the egg mixture to it.
- Serve using parsley and crushed pepper to garnish.
Notes
This is the recipe I used. It called for a full cup of rice, but for my diet’s sake I reduced it to half a cup and it was perfect. My thought is that the rice simply adds a bit of texture.
Next time I try this recipe, I’ll try Orzo rather than rice. Several recipes called for it.
I neglected to cover the broth during the 30 minute simmer. The broth reduced quite a bit, but, in my opinion, it was perfect.
Slowly whisking in a bit of the soup to the egg-lemon mixture gently warms the mixture and avoids it from curdling when added to the soup pan.
The carrots and onion left over from straining the soup made a good side dish for a later meal!