Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup: A Freezer-Friendly Family Favorite

This Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup recipe is a family favorite! It’s flavorful comforting, and freezer friendly. We’ll walk you through each cooking step and ensure you end up with a crowd-pleaser soup that freezes well, too.

Photo byThriving Home

About This Recipe

Confession time. As I was getting ready to clean my stock pot after making this soup recently, I shamelessly used my hands to scrape, swipe, and lick every last bit of creamy goodness from the bottom.

Don’t judge me until you try it. I think you’ll understand. Keep this recipe close for football weekends, when company comes, or just to enjoy on a cold winter night while watching your favorite movie.

Cooking Tip: Mise En Place

Cooking is more enjoyable and effecient when you’re prepared! So be sure to get organized ahead of time–also known as mise en place by the French.

• Read through the recipe.
• Set out your equipment and ingredients.
• Prep any ingredients ahead that are required–like chopping veggies and cooking the rice.

Ingredients Needed

As with most of our recipes, we aim to cook with real, whole food ingredients.

Photo byThriving Home

Ingredient Notes

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, divided (I love Kerrygold brand.)
• 1 cup diced yellow onion
• 1 cup diced celery, leaves and all
• 1 cup peeled and diced carrots
• Salt and pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 teaspoon pre-minced garlic)
• 1 quart (32 ounces) store-bought or homemade chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 – 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (sub: boneless chicken thighs)
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (sub: all-purpose flour or gluten-free baking flour)
• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 cups cooked wild rice blend

How to Make Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Now that you know how to prepare, let’s walk through how this soup will come together. The recipe below has more specific details.

Sauté the Veggies

In a large Dutch oven or pot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, just until the vegetables are tender. Add the garlic for the last 30 to 60 seconds.

Add the Broth and Chicken

Stir in the broth, poultry seasoning, more salt & pepper, and the chicken breasts.

Cook the Chicken

Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until chicken is fully cooked. (Stir the chicken breasts around occasionally for even cooking.) Remove and set aside the chicken to a cutting board and let rest.

Make the Butter/Flour/Milk Mixture

While the chicken cooks, make the white sauce. In a medium pot, melt the remaining butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until bubbly. Slowly pour in the milk while continually whisking. Increase the heat to medium-high and whisk constantly until the milk mixture thickens to the consistency of thin gravy.

Add It All Together & Simmer

Add the thickened white sauce and prepared wild rice to the soup pot, stir, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer. Note: The white sauce will continue to get thicker the longer it sits, so it’s important to add it to the soup right away. If soup is too thick, stir in more broth.

Using two forks, shred the chicken. Return the chicken to the pot and heat until warmed through, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.

Photo byThriving Home

What to Serve with Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Cheddar Biscuits

Mandarin Orange Salad with Creamy Citrus Dressing

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Biscuits

Autumn Chopped Salad with Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Additions and Substitutions

As with most of our recipes on Thriving Home, we try to provide flexibility for your specific dietary needs. Try any of these substitutions or additions in this soup.

• For gluten-free: Instead of wheat flour for the white sauce, use gluten-free 1:1 baking flour (like Bob’s Red Mill brand).
• For dairy-free: Use a plain, unsweetened non-dairy milk like almond milk and a plant-based “butter”. It will not be nearly as rich-tasting, but it will work in a pinch.
• Instead of chicken breasts, use boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
• In place of the wild rice blend, try using cooked brown rice or any kind of white rice. FYI, I’ve tested this recipe with 100% wild rice (not a blend). The texture was too chewy for me.
• For more veggies, simply double the amount of onion, celery, and carrots you chop. I do this frequently!

How to Freeze This Soup

As authors of two cookbooks and self-proclaimed “freezer cooking evangelists”, we always try to share how to prep and freeze recipes like this soup, when possible. I personally love to freeze this one in small portions for lunches.

Freeze for Later: Cook and cool the soup completely. Freeze in a freezer bag or container, squeezing out all excess air and sealing tightly.

To Prepare from Frozen: Thaw in the refrigerator. Warm over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Add 1-2 more cups of chicken broth if too thick.

Tip: You can also freeze soup in individual servings in 2-cup Souper Cubes, 2-cup Pyrex containers, or 16-ounce mason jars. Be sure to leave 1 inch of head room for expansion at the top of the jars or the glass may break in the freezer.

Check out our 70+ Best Freezer Meals for more ideas.

FAQs

What wild rice blend do you recommend?

Can I use chicken thighs instead of chicken breast?

Can I use almond milk instead of whole milk in this recipe?

More Freezer-Friendly Soups

Coconut Curry Soup

Cancer-Fighting Soup

Pizza Soup

Vegetarian Tortilla Soup