This Vegetarian Lemon Orzo Soup is light yet comforting, and it's packed with veggies, fresh herbs, and bright lemon flavor. It's fully vegan, easy to make, and you can have it on the table in less than 45 minutes! Serve it for lunch or dinner, or freeze it as meal prep for busy days!
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Why You'll Love This Lemon Orzo Soup
Vegetarian twist on the classic - Lemon juice, lemon zest, parsley, and dill together give this soup an amazing, fresh, and bright flavor. It's a vegetarian twist on the Greek lemon chicken soup (Avgolemono), and it's just as light yet comforting as you'd expect Greek cuisine to be! I swapped the egg for canned chickpeas to keep it fully vegan but to still add some protein and texture back in.
Easy and freezer-friendly - You can have this soup on the table in less than 45 minutes, and it has very simple, basic ingredients. The leftovers are just as delicious, and you can even freeze the soup if you're meal prepping for lunch or dinner!
Ingredients
- Canned chickpeas - You can cook your own chickpeas, or (like me) use canned ones to save time. Make sure you rinse them well. I find most canned chickpeas have salt added, but if yours don't, you may need to salt your soup a little more.
- Orzo - While orzo might look like rice, it's a type of pasta, so it's usually not gluten-free, though you may be able to find gluten-free orzo online or at specialty stores. It's a very versatile pasta shape that holds its shape very well after cooking, which makes it perfect for soups!
- Aromatics - Carrots, yellow onion, and celery create a classic mirepoix, but I also add garlic for even more flavor. They're the base of the soup and add a ton of flavor.
- Vegetable broth - To keep this soup vegetarian, I'm using vegetable broth, but you can use any broth you have, both homemade or store-bought. I like buying low-sodium ones and adding salt to taste.
- Fresh herbs - Fresh parsley and fresh dill are a must here! You'll add them at the very end of cooking, and they give the soup so much flavor and freshness. While you could add dried herbs in a pinch, I strongly recommend fresh herbs. I also cook the soup with dried bay leaves (you don't want to use fresh bay leaves here, they're too pungent).
- Lemon - The star of the show! Use only freshly squeezed lemon and fresh lemon zest for the best flavor. It's sooo much better here than the juice from a concentrate!
- Avocado oil - I cook pretty much everything in refined 100% pure avocado oil, so I used it here to sautee the onions as well. It has a neutral flavor and a high-smoke point. You can use any vegetable oil you have.
Variations and Substitutions
- Eggs or chicken or both - You could always stick to the original Greek version and add the whisked eggs back in at the end of cooking, or add some cooked diced or shredded chicken to make the soup even more filling.
- Dried herbs - I strongly recommend using fresh herbs for the best flavor here, but you can always use dried herbs in a pinch. Only add 2 teaspoons of dried parsley and ½-1 teaspoon of dried dill at first, and add more to taste.
- Different small pasta shapes - If you don't have orzo, a great substitute would be any other tiny pasta shapes like Stelline (little stars), Ditalini (short tube-shaped pasta), or Fillini (short noodles).
- Greens - You can add some baby spinach or chopped kale at the end of cooking when you're adding lemon juice and herbs, if you want to add some greens to the soup. No need to cook them; once you stir them in, they'll wilt in just a couple of minutes.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Heat a large pot over medium heat on the stovetop. Add avocado oil, finely chopped yellow onion, and sea salt.
- Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes or until slightly caramelized.
- Add diced carrots and celery and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add minced garlic and cook for just 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add vegetable broth and bay leaves.
- Bring the soup to a boil. Once it’s simmering, add orzo and stir.
- Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring a few times to make sure the orzo isn’t sticking to the bottom.
- Add drained and rinsed chickpeas and simmer for another 5 minutes.
- By now, the vegetables should be tender and the orzo al dente, or softer. The longer you cook the orzo, the more liquid it will absorb, but it doesn't get mushy.
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- Take the soup off the heat and stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, finely chopped parsley and dill, and black pepper.
- Serve hot with crusty bread or croutons if desired and enjoy!
Tips & Tricks!
- Use a quality vegetable broth - The broth is what makes up the majority of the soup, so use a good one you like! I prefer using low-sodium ones. If you don't have enough broth, you can always dissolve a bouillon cube in some hot water as well.
- Save some broth for reheating or add water - The orzo will continue soaking up the broth as it chills in the fridge, so your soup will get thicker the longer it sits. This is unavoidable, and you just need to add more broth or water when you're reheating it!
Storing and Reheating
Refrigerator: You can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Keep in mind that the orzo will keep absorbing the liquid, so the soup will thicken as it sits. I always just add more broth when I'm warming it up.
Freezer: You can also freeze the soup in a freezer-safe container for up to 2-3 months. I recommend these Souper Cubes. They're silicon, and once the soup freezes, you can take it out as a brick and store it in ziplock bags or vacuum-sealed bags. It's perfect for saving space in the freezer and meal prep!
Reheating: Reheat the soup in a saucepan on the stove until it starts to simmer. Add more broth or water as needed to thin it out. You can also reheat the soup in the microwave, but I always recommend the stovetop.
Reheating from frozen: If frozen, defrost the soup in the fridge overnight first, or you can reheat it from frozen; it will just take longer. I recommend starting at a lower heat and adding a splash of water to avoid the soup sticking to the bottom of the saucepan as it defrosts.
FAQs
You can add cooked white beans instead, or just leave them out!
No, there's no need to cook it separately. The orzo cooks in the soup with everything else. If you want the soup extra thin, you can cook the orzo separately, but I find that to be too much work, plus I like the thicker consistency.
More Orzo Recipes
I was going to link more soup recipes, but I mostly only have blended soups (aside from the one below), so instead, I'm gonna share other orzo recipes you might like if you enjoy this soup! It's such a versatile pasta shape. It's great for anything from salads to soups, and it's perfect for one-pan meals.
- Vegetable Orzo Soup (with canned tomatoes and lots of veggies)
- One Pan Broccoli Orzo
- Greek Orzo Salad
- Orzo Caprese Salad
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Have you tried this Vegetarian Lemon Orzo Soup? Please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below!
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Print📖 Recipe
Vegetarian Lemon Orzo Soup
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4-5 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This Vegetarian Lemon Orzo Soup is light yet comforting, and it's packed with veggies, fresh herbs, and bright lemon flavor! It's vegan, easy to make, and you can have it on the table in less than 45 minutes! Serve it for lunch or dinner, or freeze it as meal prep for busy days!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- ½ cup finely chopped yellow onion
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 cup diced carrots
- ¾ cup diced celery
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 6-7 cups vegetable broth (or a mix of vegetable broth and water)
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 cup dry orzo
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- ½ tsp fresh lemon zest
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat a large soup pot over medium heat.
- Add avocado oil, finely chopped yellow onion, and sea salt.
- Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes or until slightly caramelized.
- Add diced carrots and celery and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add minced garlic and cook for just 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add vegetable broth and bay leaves.
- Bring the soup to a boil.
- Once it’s simmering, add orzo and stir.
- Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring a few times to make sure the orzo isn’t sticking to the bottom.
- Add drained and rinsed chickpeas and simmer for another 5 minutes.
- Take the soup off the heat and stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, finely chopped parsley and dill, and black pepper.
- Serve hot with crusty bread or croutons if desired and enjoy!
Notes
Storing: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Allow the soup to cool down before storing. You can also freeze it in a freezer-safe container or souper cubes for 2-3 months.
Reheating: Reheat the soup in a small saucepan on the stove over medium heat for approx. 10 minutes or until warmed through. I recommend bring it to a boil and then simmering for 1-2 minutes. If frozen, defrost in the fridge overnight first or reheat from frozen with a splash of water over medium heat, moving the soup around often to prevent it from burning. This should take around 20 minutes, depending on how much soup you’re defrosting.
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