Perfect for a light meal or a side dish this simple vegetable rice soup is made with classic vegetables, chicken broth, and rice. Reminiscent of chicken noodle soup but simpler and lighter.
At our house we call this ‘sick soup’ mostly because when I see the signs of a cold coming or when someone isn’t feeling well, I drop what I was going to make for dinner and fix this instead. Simple and comforting I almost always have all the ingredients on hand. So today I will be sharing this much loved family recipe, ‘sick soup’ or more commonly Simple Vegetable Rice Soup.
Now just because I call this ‘sick soup’ doesn’t mean I always make it when we are sick or you have to make it when you are sick. I make this soup as both a side dish and a main dish depending on the day. As a main dish I’ll often pair it with a salad or a simple sandwich like a grilled cheese, you know the deal ‘pick two’ soup, salad, sandwich… As a side I usually will pair it if I am making a meal based around meat to even the meal out, so I’ll pair it with a roast chicken or pork chops.
In my house I consider all the ingredients I have in this soup staples so I am able to make it at a drop of a hat, so let’s take a look at what is in this!
The Ingredients
Vegetables. The vegetables for this soup I consider basic and staples, onion, carrots, and celery. This trio of vegetables is also known as the ‘holy trio’ in some cuisines and in French cooking is called Mirepoix. A perfect base to a simple soup. Although a mirepoix is usually 2 parts onions, 1 part carrot, 1 part celery, for this soup I decided more carrots and celery was best.
The broth/water. So to be fair this part I definitely do a little different every time and feel free to use what works best for you. I either use my homemade chicken broth, bouillon with water, or store-bought broth. I also will sometimes use 4 cups broth and 4 cups water or when I want a richer flavor I will do all 8 cups broth.
Rice. I usually have Jasmine rice in my pantry so thats what I use, but almost any kind should work here. I would give your rice a quick doneness test before you serve it though if you do use a different kind.
Seasonings. I only season this with dried parsley because I like the simpleness of the soup and I don’t want to take away from that but you could also add a touch of salt or some bay leaves if you were looking for a little more flavor.
The Method
In a large pot heat olive oil over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook 3-4 minutes stirring occasionally until tender and translucent.
Add chicken broth and water, bring to a boil.
At a roiling boil add the rice and parsley. Cover, reduce to medium heat and cook for 15 minutes or until the rice is tender. Serve immediately.
TIPS & TRICKS
• You can add other vegetables you have on hand, mushrooms, chopped potatoes, or peppers would all be a lovely addition to this soup
• This soup doesn’t keep super well, the rice absorbs most of the moisture if it sits overnight, my kids still love to eat it this way but it won’t be as watery as it originally was
Simple Vegetable Rice Soup
perfect for a light meal or a side dish this simple soup is made with classic vegetables and rice
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 carrots, chopped
- 4 stalks celery, chopped
- 4 cups chicken broth*
- 4 cups water
- 1/2 cup rice
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
Instructions
- In a large pot heat olive oil over medium-high heat until hot and shimmering. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook 3-4 minutes stirring occasionally until tender and translucent.
- Add chicken broth and water, bring to a boil.
- At a roiling boil add the rice and parsley. Cover, reduce to medium heat and cook for 15 minutes or until the rice is tender. Serve immediately.
Notes
*I almost always use Better than Bouillon to make this soup. You can also use a full 8 cups of broth for a deeper flavor.
I don't find that I need extra salt in this soup but depending on what broth you use you may want to add a little
Nutritional data is automated, final nutritional information will depend on ingredients used and any changes made.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Amount Per Serving: Calories: 131Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 80mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 6g
Peace & Love
Lauren, The Schmidty Wife
P.S. Looking for more soups like my Simple Vegetable Rice Soup? Check out my Homestyle Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup or my Slow Cooker Black Bean Tortilla Soup.
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This recipe is wonderful. I love how flexible it is, being able to really add whatever ingredients I have on hand. Thank you so much!
I am so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for taking the time to leave a message!
This soup was perfect ! Never knew you could add rice and cook it like that !
Thanks so much! So glad you enjoyed it!
So simple yet so soothing and filling. This was just the perfect remedy for when my throat was too sore to swallow solids. I omitted celery and added grated ginger, ground turmeric, black pepper and chilli flakes. Thank you for the recipe!
Can I double the rice in this recipe as my husband likes his soup a little hardier?
You could give it a try, I can’t speak to how much of the liquid it would soak up since I haven’t tried it before but I think that it should make a hardier soup!
This was so delicious! I tweaked the recipe a bit by mincing some garlic and frying up those with onions and mushrooms first. Then I added the carrots with celery and let it cook for just a minute. (I’m not found of mushy veggies so I was scared to cook them right away) Then added veggie broth w/ water, tossed in some frozen broccoli and cover for just 1 minute. Uncovered then added 1/4 extra rice (it did soak up a lot of liquid but if you like less juice then this is perfect) plus the parsley along with oregano, basil, black pepper, dried chives and ground ginger. Okay maybe I tweaked it quite a lot but the recipe is perfect for on its own or a base. You can add anything to this.
Thank you!!
Good morning,
I had tried this vegetable soup and added more vegetables to it. I try to stay away from a lot of starches. I am a huge soup and stew lover. I love making everything from scratch because I know what I put into. My meals is wonderful because I know what’s in there and what is healthy and what is not healthy and I don’t have to add a whole bunch of preservatives like a lot of people go ahead and they buy cans of soups and stews. And also when people go to restaurants, I love the menu say it’s homemade, but you don’t really know if it is. And I like to know how long something has been sitting where I go to eat. Because if I have the soup of the day or whatever it is how long has it been in that pan or how long did you make it? I am kind of a Health not when it comes to a lot of things. I know Saint I do tap in to a little bit of sugar here and there but I have to be so careful of what I put into my body because I am a diabetic. I’ve grown up with this all my life And this way, if I know what I put into my body, I know I won’t get sick or my sugars won’t go through the roof. I’m very health conscious and I’m trying to get my kids to be the same way. They’re 28 and 23 and my oldest one has a very fatty liver, because he eats the way his father Taught him. Because when I was always working and I always try to make dinner so I had a time I’ll leave them in the slow cooker or I’ll make it up in advance because I will go ahead and make a lot of meals in advance and that way all they have to do is to go ahead and heat it up in the oven or on top of the stove. I don’t recommend anybody cooking or heating anything up in the microwave I don’t like microwaves . I remember when I was just a teenager. I guess it was something wrong with their microwave and come to find out my friend was basically eating their meals with radiation. I don’t see them now because they have passed away with it. I am where I am 59 in a couple weeks I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in . It took a big scare when I had found out. I was type one diabetic when it when I was younger. And where I’m getting to be a little bit older I have to start lifting a little bit of weight because my mom muscle mass is not all that great. I take my dogs out walking every day. Rain shine. Snow song is is not ice. I live in the great state of Maine and I love it here I grew up here often on because I always seem to come home. I have lived in other different states, but I have always come back to Maine. It’s one of the safest states in the United States. The only bad thing I have to do most of the time when I’m out walking with my dog is Maine is one of the highest states for having ticks. This is the main reason why a lot of people need to watch out when they are out walking and make sure you wear the strongest Deep off spray . And I was totally shocked to see what the Lyme disease does to a lot of people and animals who do not have their treatment. They need their treatments just as much as humans do. And my for babies are my babies. They are not dogs to me they’re not animals to me. So please be careful when you go out and do spray yourself down and make sure your dog is treated for fleas ticks anything that will get on them.
But I like to go ahead and say that if there is any kind of other homemade soups and stews, I would appreciate an update on recipes and stuff you all take care. God bless you all and have a great summer.
Yes, your body is your temple. Take care of it, so it will take care of you.
I am miserable and, according to my expired and current COVID testing strips, I am free of that plague. I am sick, though, coughing, irritable, and generally yucky. This soup made me feel better. It came together in a snap, and it reminded me of my grandmother. Thank you.
Loved this recipe! Very tasty and comforting and is a new fall favorite. Thank you for sharing.
My family loved it, but most importantly my sick toddler! I added a pinch of ginger, garlic, canned chicken & bell pepper! Huge win for my picky eater!
I’ve made this many times. I love how I can make it quickly from simple fresh ingredients and sometimes I add some shredded chicken.
I added better than boullion, thyme, and cut up meatballs. Very good
This is a great “base” recipe….meaning I took it and embellished as I saw fit based on our preferences and what is in your refrigerator. For example, I had carrots, celery and onion, but I also had a yellow squash I needed to use. I chopped that up as well, but added it several minutes after the carrots, celery and onions (squash is a much more delicate vegetable). I also had about 1/3 of a COSTCO rotisserie chicken, so I simmered that for hours yesterday, skimmed off the fat this morning and shredded the left over chicken. I added it to the soup mix after the vegetables had started to cook. Additionally, I always have cartons of low sodium, organic chicken bone broth on hand, so I used that as well. Finally I not only used parsley, but Italian herbs and pepper as well. The whole soup is simmering now (the house smells fabulous!), and I will add salt near the end if needed. Thanks for this recipe.