Avgolemono: Greek Chicken & Lemon Soup Recipe

This recipe is one that I hold near and dear to my heart. It is a recipe that taught me the power of salt and seasoning during culinary school at The Culinary Institute of America. It taught me how difficult it is to make a deliciously seasoned soup, and how to be patient in the kitchen. If I were to go back to culinary school, I am not sure I would choose a soup as one of my practical exam recipes, but in the end school is about learning, and I really learned from this! This recipe has an excellent source of Vitamin C, so it will really help our immune systems in the colder months! Not to mention it is DELICIOUS!

SERVES: 8

INGREDIENTS:
Chicken Stock:

• 1 ea whole chicken

• ½ gallon water

• ½ tbsp black peppercorns

• 1 ea bay leaf

• 1 ea thyme sprig

Soup Vegetables:

• 1 ea onion

• 1 ea carrot

• 3 tbsp olive oil

• 2 cloves garlic

• 2 ea leek (Pro Tip: use the white part in the soup and use the green part in broth)

• 2 ea celery stalk

• 1 cup dill

Egg Mixture:

• 2 ea lemon, zest

• 1 cup lemon, juice

• 3 ea egg

Orzo:

• 1 ½ cup orzo

DIRECTIONS:

1. For the broth: Start by roasting the chicken at 375°F until the internal temperature is at 165°F. Once the chicken is roasted, transfer it to a large pot (pan drippings and all). Once the chicken is in a large pot, cover it with water, peppercorns, leek tops (green part) bay leaf and thyme. Bring to a simmer and cook until about half reduced. Take the chicken out, separate the meat from the bones and shred into bite sized pieces. Strain the herbs out of the broth. Reserve 2 cups of hot broth on the side. 

2. For the veggies: While the broth is simmering, prep the vegetables. Start by cutting the onion into a small dice. Next, peel and small dice the carrot, celery, leeks. Finally mince the garlic and dill.

3. Soup assembly: Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Sweat the onions, leeks, celery carrot and garlic. Add the broth (still saving the 2 cups on the side). Season and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Add the shredded chicken and minced dill to the soup.

4. For the egg: Beat the lemon juice and eggs together. Slowly whisk 2 cups of the warm broth into the egg mixture. This is called tempering the eggs. If you do not do this step, your eggs will immediately cook in the soup and it will resemble more of an egg drop soup. This technique will help to thicken the soup and achieve a creamy texture. Once the 2 cups of broth are successfully mixed into the eggs, whisk that into the hot soup. You should see a cohesive creamy soup. Season the soup with salt.

5. For the orzo: Cook the orzo separately. I like cooking it in water separately from the soup and adding it to the individual bowls so I can save the soup as leftovers without over cooking the pasta. 

6. Add the orzo to a bowl, pour over piping hot soup and garnish with a little olive oil, fresh dill and enjoy!