Avgolemono - Greek Lemon Chicken Soup (Gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free)

If you visit Greek restaurants and have never had Avgolemono, you are missing out!! Tender chicken and orzo or rice are surrounded by a silky, rich lemon-egg broth. This soup is so luxurious and smooth, it's like heaven on a spoon! Even better, it comes together in less than 30 minutes.

Just looking at this soup, it's hard to believe that it can be so thick and creamy without using flour or dairy... but, it's true! Tempering the eggs before adding them to the pot is the simple secret!

Don't worry if you haven't tempered eggs before. It's easy! Basically, you mix up the eggs in a separate bowl and gradually add small ladles of warm broth to them while continuously stirring. Then, you can add the egg-broth mixture to the pot without the eggs cooking, separating, and becoming stringy.

Traditional Avgolemono doesn't include a lot of vegetables like carrots, celery, etc. However, I needed to clean a few things out of the fridge so into the soup they went! To make my version grain-free, I used @miraclenoodle Shirataki Rice in place of white rice or orzo.

Avgolemono - Greek Lemon Chicken Soup (Gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free)

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 cup chicken broth (or poultry bone broth)

• 1 cup rice, orzo, or shirataki rice

• 2 cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts shredded (You could poach them in the broth ahead of time, let them cool, and then shred them)

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

• salt and pepper to taste

• Chopped fresh parsley or green onion tops for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

• Warm the broth in a stockpot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.

• Once the broth is at a rolling boil, turn the heat down to medium-low. Add the rice, salt, pepper, and shredded chicken, and simmer for 20 minutes (or until the rice or orzo is tender).

• Meanwhile, using a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and the lemon juice until smooth. While continuously whisking, slowly add 2 ladles-full of broth from the stockpot (try not to scoop any of the rice).

• Once the ladled broth is combined with the egg-lemon mixture, add the sauce to the stockpot and stir.

• Remove from heat and serve immediately garnished with fresh parsley or chopped green onion tops. Enjoy!