Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Apr 7, 2025 
Greek Lemon Chicken Soup Recipe is a light and healthy soup with bold Greek flavors, and a great way to warm your belly on cool evenings!
Sommer’s Recipe Notes
Greek Lemon Chicken Soup… For the Soul
Today’s Greek Lemon Chicken Soup is a recipe that my family absolutely loves. We first tasted something similar at a little soup and sandwich shop right outside Kiawah Island in South Carolina. It’s a cozy and healthy Chicken Soup, loaded with Greek flavors like garlic, earthy olive oil, and feta cheese.
This is the kind of soup recipe I make for my kids when they come home, worn from a long day at school. The little orbs of pearl couscous and morsels of cheese swirl to the surface with every spoonful.
A sight that lifts the spirit and warms the belly!
Ingredients You Need
- Chicken Broth – or chicken bouillon. If using low-sodium broth, you might need to add a little extra salt!
- Olive Oil – to sauté the veggies and chicken
- Garlic – freshly minced
- Onion – in small strips
- Lemon Zest – this adds loads of lemony flavor! Serve the soup with the slices of lemon.
- Chicken – chicken breast or boneless, skinless chicken thighs work well
- Pearl Couscous – also known as Israeli couscous, it is larger than regular couscous
- Crushed Red Pepper – for a hint of spice
- Crumbled Feta – for a tangy, savory flavor
- Chives – as garnish, if desired
- Salt & Pepper – to taste
How to Make Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
This soup is pretty straightforward and simple to make! Find the full Lemon Chicken Soup recipe with ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, and video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.
Tips & Tricks
- You can replace the couscous with long-grain white rice, orzo pasta, or acini di pepe pasta balls! Each one will have a different cooking time though, so adjust as needed. If adding rice, you might need more liquid! Rice will lend a more creamy texture!
- Garnish with fresh herbs like chopped chives, or fresh dill or parsley!
- Add additional vegetables! You can add diced carrots and celery for a more traditional chicken noodle soup, with the Greek twist of lemon and feta!
- Use rotisserie chicken for ease! You can skip cooking the chicken and simply add shredded rotisserie chicken if you prefer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use rotisserie chicken instead?Absolutely! If you have leftover chicken on hand, you can definitely make this Greek chicken soup recipe with shredded rotisserie chicken or any chicken you have.
Can I make this soup vegetarian?To make vegetarian greek lemon soup, omit the chicken and use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth!
Is this soup gluten-free?No! Couscous is not gluten-free. If you want to make a gluten free Greek lemon chicken soup recipe, simply omit the couscous or add a gluten free alternative like rice, quinoa, or gluten-free orzo pasta.
What goes good with lemony chicken soup?Dish your lemony chicken soup up on its own or serve it with breadsticks and a Greek salad!
How should I store Greek lemon chicken soup?To store any leftovers, place in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Reheat in the fridge! To freeze, place the cooled soup in a zip bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and warm up in a sauce pan on the stovetop before serving! Or, simply reheat in the microwave!
Looking for More Soup Recipes? Be Sure to Try:
Greek Lemon Chicken Soup Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 10 cups chicken broth
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 sweet onion
- 1 large lemon, zested
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup Israeli couscous (pearl)
- 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
- 2 ounces crumbled feta
- 1/3 cup chopped chive
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Place the olive oil in a large 6-8 quart sauce pot over medium-low heat. Peel the onion. Then quarter it and slice into thin strips. Once the oil is hot, saute the onion and minced garlic for 3-4 minutes to soften.
- Add the chicken broth, raw chicken breasts, lemon zest, and crushed red pepper to the pot. Raise the heat to high, cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium, then simmer for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the couscous, 1 teaspoon salt, and black pepper to taste. Simmer another 5 minutes. Then turn the heat off.
- Using tongs, remove the two chicken breasts from the pot. Use a fork and the tongs to shred the chicken. Then place it back in the pot. Stir in the crumbled feta cheese and chopped chive. Taste and salt and pepper as needed. Serve warm.
I made this for dinner last night and it was a big hit. The flavors were great and best of all, my 4 kids loved it. They each had 2-4 bowls. The only thing I did different, I placed the frozen chicken, 1 can of chicken stock, chopped onions and garlic, salt & pepper in a crock pot for 4 hours. I also used mini pasta shells since that’s what I had and omitted the pepper flakes. The family loved it and it’s been added to our faves! Thank you for this great recipe.
I used rice cauliflower instead of cous cous. Came out great!
I want to try this recipe!
Please clarify – do I add 1 cup of cooked couscous or do I add 1 cup straight out of the package?
Thanks for the help!
Do you cook the raw chicken in the chicken broth and then take it out and sliced it up and place back into the same chicken broth you cook it in? I couldn’t see all of the recipe, thank you
I am curious if you have to cook the chicken first as well. boiling raw chicken for only 10 minutes doesn’t seem like enough but maybe I’m wrong?
Hi Sara,
No, it right! Remember, the chicken is in the broth the whole time the temperature is rising to a boil. So it’s actually cooking 15-20 minutes. If your chicken breast are enormous you might give it a few extra minutes, but if they are average to large, they will cook through.
Delicious, especially cause it’s cold outside.
I used 4 breast cutlets instead of two ( I like a little more substance with 10 cups of water), and I used leftover Mexican rice.
Very tasty! I wanted more lemon flavor so I added the juice of two lemons in addition to the zest. I substituted a cup of brown rice for the couscous for gluten free and also added two thinly sliced carrots. I also added my own pre-cooked leftover chicken at the end. Perfect!
My family loved it.
Just didn’t put as much crushed red peppers because I have little ones but it was delicious.
Oh my goodness! Yum!
Amazing. I squeezed half the lemon into the pot when it was finished for the perfect flavor. 5⭐
Love this. Make it regularly. My husband will eat it as leftovers – high praise from him. I don’t like couscous so I use orzo instead. Less healthy but tasty.
Amazing soup, and perfect comfort food! Added shredded carrots.
This is one of my very fav recipes! I make it on a regular basis and freeze it to make sure we have it on hand. I made two changes to the recipe – I reduced the amount of garlic the recipe called for and exchanged orzo for the couscous and it’s still fabulous! It is very easy to make and is even more delicious the next day!