My favorite soup in the whole world is Avgolemono. Avgolemono soup is a Greek chicken and rice soup that is thickened with eggs, and seasoned with lemon. I have made it so much this past year that I have started to make new versions of it to keep it interesting. My favorite version has been this Cilantro Lime Avgolemono. And my boyfriend even said it was better than the original!
Key Ingredients and Substitutions:
- Chicken thighs – boneless skinless chicken thighs are ideal for this recipe because they stay super moist and shred easily. You can also use chicken breast or a whole chicken if you like!
- Poblano and Bell Pepper – I use these to compliment the lime and cilantro and give it that Southwest feel. You can use any pepper here!
- Jasmine rice – I love jasmine rice in this recipe because it is a fairly neutral rice that doesn’t get too starchy or gummy since it naturally has less starch than a shorter grain rice. Technically you can use any kind of rice in this recipe! Other common rices to use are arborio rice, basmati, or any white rice. You can use brown rice or wild rice, however cooking times will be longer.
- Eggs – In this recipe I just use egg yolks to thicken the soup. I like just the yolks because it results in a silkier texture. You can use the whole egg however! Substitute 1 whole egg for every 2 yolks. ]
- Fresh lime juice – freshly squeezed lime juice is truly the only lime juice that will suffice here. Please for the love of god do not use that nasty lime juice that comes in a yellow bottle! Fresh is always better!
- Corn – corn adds a great texture for this soup! I used frozen corn, but you can also use canned corn.
How to Temper Eggs:
- Whisk eggs or egg yolks in a bowl until very smooth.
- Continue whisking and slowly add the hot liquid, one ladle at a time to incorporate into the eggs. This slowly raises the temperature of the eggs, instead of adding a lot of hot liquid at one time which would scramble the eggs.
- Continue adding ladles of hot liquid until the eggs are above 160*F. This means they have been correctly tempered and are now cooked through and won’t scramble. You can now use the tempered eggs as needed.
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SERVINGS: 6
- PREP TIME: 20 Mins
- COOK TIME: 45 Mins
- TOTAL TIME: 3 Hr
This recipe is going to be your new favorite soup! Check out the above tips on how to temper eggs into soup!
Ingredients:
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- salt and pepper
- olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 1 poblano pepper, diced
- 5 cloves of garlic, minced
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 cup jasmine rice
- 1 cup corn
- 1/3 cup cilantro, minced
- 5 egg yolks, or 3 eggs
- 2 limes, juiced
- Minced cilantro for garnish
Preparation:
STEP 1.
Salt and pepper the chicken thighs and set aside.
STEP 2.
In a pot over medium heat, add olive oil and saute the onion, bell pepper and poblan, until translucent, salting as you go. This should take around 5-8 minutes. Add the minced garlic and saute another 2 minutes.
STEP 3.
Stir in the chicken stock, cumin and bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper and taste to make sure the seasoning is good. Bring up to a low simmer and add the chicken thighs and rice. Top with a lid and simmer for 25 minutes on low, until the chicken is cooked through.
STEP 4.
Remove the chicken and shred with forks. Add the chicken back to the pot. Stir in the corn and cilantro as well.
STEP 5.
Temper your eggs. Do this by whisking the egg yolks and lime juice in a bowl until it is very smooth. Make sure your soup is simmering. Whisk in one ladle of hot soup at a time, adding the liquid very slowly. We want to slowly bring the eggs up to temperature, if you do this too quickly they will scramble! Add 4-6 ladles until your mixture is very hot. Once the egg mixture reaches 160*F you are safe from scrambling. Add the egg mixture into the simmering soup, whisking it in until the soup is combined and thickened.
STEP 6.
Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly. Garnish with cilantro and serve!
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