Vegan Lemon Chicken Soup (Avgolemono Inspired)
Vegan Lemon Chicken Soup is bright and tangy, creamy, and all around nourishing. A protein-packed soup perfect for any time of year!
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Servings: 6
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Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 1 medium carrot peeled and diced
- 2-4 cloves garlic minced
- 8 cups chicken-style vegetable broth see notes for brand recommendations; or sub regular vegetable broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 8-10 ounces vegan chicken defrosted and chopped; see notes for brand recommendations
- 1 cup arborio rice or orzo
- 1/3 cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice from about 2-3 medium lemons
- 1 (12 oz) carton silken tofu
- salt and pepper to taste
- fresh chopped parsley or dill or both, to garnish
Instructions
- Sauté aromatics: In a pot, heat olive oil over medium heat until shimmering. Add diced onion, celery, carrot and garlic and sauté 3-5 minutes, or until the onions are translucent.
- Add broth & chick'n: Pour in the vegetable broth, then add in the bay leaves and chopped vegan chicken. Bring the broth up to a boil.
- Cook the rice (or pasta): Stir in the rice (or orzo). Reduce the heat to medium-low if needed to maintain a gentle boil. Cook for 12-15 minutes, or until the rice is tender. (If you're using orzo, it may cook a bit faster; cook until it's approaching al dente.) Stir occasionally to keep the rice/pasta from sticking to the bottom.
- Make the lemon sauce: In the meantime, add lemon juice and silken tofu to a blender. (You can also use an immersion blender; just add the ingredients to a jar or measuring cup with high sides.) Blend until the mixture is perfectly smooth.
- Thicken the soup: Stir the tofu-lemon mixture into the soup. It may start out a little foamy; just keep gently stirring it and it will gradually become smooth. Let the soup simmer for another minute or two to heat everything through.
- Taste and adjust: Add salt and pepper to preference. (If you used regular vegetable broth, you will likely need to add extra salt. If you used a chicken-style bouillon, these tend to run quite salty, so you may need little to no extra salt.)
- Serve: Garnish the soup with plenty of chopped fresh parsley or dill. Enjoy!
Notes
- Vegan chicken: I have made this with both the Daring "Original Plant Chicken Pieces," and with the MorningStar Chick'n Strips and both are tasty, though we have a slight preference for the texture of the Daring.
- Vegan chicken-style broth: Better Than Bouillon and Edward & Sons make my favorite options. Use enough bouillon for 8 cups of broth — usually 4 bouillon cubes or 8 teaspoons bouillon paste (2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons). Also note that Better Than Bouillon makes real chicken bouillon and a vegan chicken bouillon, so double-check you're buying the right one.
- Soy curls: Another great plant-based chicken substitute. Sub in 1 dry cup of soy curls. Rehydrate them in boiling water for about 10 minutes ahead of time, then squeeze out the extra water and give them a chop before adding them to the soup. (I don't recommend adding the dry soy curls directly to the soup because they will absorb all the broth.)
- Whole foods, plant-based: Instead of vegan chicken, feel free to substitute in a 15 ounce can of chickpeas or white beans, drained and rinsed.
- Silken tofu substitute: You can substitute in about 1 cup of beans. (I recommend a creamy white bean like Great Northerns.) Blend them with the lemon juice, ideally in a high speed blender, until they're as smooth as possible before adding into the soup.
- Extra lemony: If you are a big fan of lemon, add some lemon peel for a more concentrated flavor. Add one or two strips of the peel to sauté with the aromatics. The peels can then be removed and discarded with the bay leaves before serving.
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