A Month of Soups: Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

If there's one good thing about winter, it's comfort food. Soup tops my winter comfort food list. The infinite variety means I can make soup every week without hubby saying I'm repeating myself.

Whenever I want to make a new-to-me soup I hit the internet looking for recipes. Inevitably I end up combining at least two recipes and throwing in an additional tweak or two as well.

Like many soups, this one starts with a "mirepoix", a combination of chopped onions, carrots and celery, sautéed in a quarter cup of butter (half a stick).



After about five minutes, I added half a pound of sliced fresh mushrooms and continued to cook until the onions were translucent. I added a clove of minced garlic and cooked for another minute, careful not to burn the veggies.



Next I sprinkled half a cup of flour over the vegetables and stirred it all together. (I really think 1/2 cup was too much flour; the finished soup was much too thick. Next time I'll use 1/4 cup and see how that works.)



Add the half-and-half or cream and stir well, using a whisk if needed to work out any lumps. Add the chicken stock and the seasonings (thyme, marjoram, sage, rosemary, and salt and pepper to taste), and stir to combine. (It really did look bright yellow until I stirred in the spices and herbs, then it mellowed to a nice brown color.)



Reduce the heat to a simmer, and add the chicken, rice, and wine. The wine of course is optional, it won't hurt to leave it out. I'm not a wine drinker but I do enjoy the taste of white wine in some chicken dishes.

Simmer the soup for about half an hour, or a little longer if you like the rice more tender. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve.

This was a really tasty soup, and very filling. I hope you'll enjoy it too.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

1/4 cup butter
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 lb sliced fresh mushrooms
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup flour *
5 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp each of thyme, marjoram, sage and rosemary
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups wild rice, cooked
1 lb chicken, cooked and cubed
3 Tbsp white wine (optional)
1 cup half-and-half or cream

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the onion, carrots and celery and saute over medium heat for about five minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to saute until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and cook carefully for another minute, being careful not to let it burn.

Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and butter and whisk together. Cook this for a few minutes to avoid a “raw flour” taste. (*Note: I'll reduce the flour next time, it was too thick. I thinned it with milk before serving.)

Whisk in the half-and-half, then whisk in the chicken broth. Add the thyme, marjoram, sage and rosemary; add salt and pepper to taste. Reduce heat. Add chicken, cooked rice, and wine. Let simmer for 30 minutes (or longer if you want the rice to be more tender). Serve.



The Month of Soups collection:
Cream of Asparagus Soup
Spilt Pea Soup
Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Ham and Bean Soup
White Bean Tortellini Soup
Roasted Tomato Soup
Chicken and Mushroom Soup
Broccoli and Cheddar Soup
French Onion Soup
Albondigas Soup



This post has been shared at some of my favorite blog hops  including the Homestead Blog Hop.


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