Sometimes you just need a good chicken soup. Well, in a world of low carb living, chicken noodle soup isn’t really a thing. However, I’ll tell you that this Savory Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Soup completely hits the spot. Loads of chicken, cauliflower rice, and veggies are kept warm and toasty in a broth laced with savory herbs and spices.
Whether you’re planning a dinner party and just want something to warm everybody up or are looking for a great dinner for your meal plan, you should really give this soup a try!
What You Need to Make Savory Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Soup
Ingredients
- Cauliflower Rice – I get the 12-ounce bags when I can find them. If you can only find 10 or 10.5 ounce bags at your grocery store, that’s fine. Just use that.
- Carrots
- Celery
- Onions
- Mushrooms – White Button Mushrooms or Baby Bella Mushrooms
- Herbs and Spices
- Kosher Salt
- Ground Black Pepper
- Onion Powder
- Garlic Powder
- Celery Seed
- Ground Rosemary – Increase the amount as listed in the recipe below if you are just using dried and not ground rosemary.
- Ground Sage
- Savory
- Turmeric
- Ground Mustard
- Salted Butter and Avocado Oil – The butter is for cooking the mushrooms and the avocado oil is for sautéeing the rest of the vegetables. You can use just avocado oil if you prefer. I just prefer the flavor of the salted butter with the mushrooms.
- Chicken Stock or Broth – If you have time, I recommend using my Homemade Chicken+ Broth.
- Chicken – If you want you could also cook the chicken as part of making the Chicken Broth. While I do, in fact, do this when I have a whole chicken to use from our CSA, you can also just buy a rotisserie chicken or the frozen shredded chicken that comes in a bag. Do whatever works for your Time Budget.
Equipment
- Cutting Board – For dicing the veggies.
- Chef’s Knife – For dicing the veggies
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Dutch Oven or Large Pot
- Instant Pot – Optional in place of Dutch Oven or Large Pot
- Rubber Scraper – Or other stirring utensil
- Immersion Blender – (a.k.a. Stick Blender) Optional. See Recipe Notes.
Getting Started with Making Savory Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Soup
Cooking Vessel
Personally, for a dinner party, I like the Instant Pot for this recipe. It enables me to sauté the veggies, bring everything to a boil, simmer it, and then keep it warm without taking up a spot on my stove. Since I usually need all the space I can get, that’s a factor I consider when choosing in what vessel or appliance I’ll cook something. I also like that the insert can go in the dishwasher at the end of the party.
That said, this soup works just as well in a Dutch Oven or Large Pot. The Dutch Oven would be my second choice and the Large Pot my third. While this would also work in a Crock Pot, you’d still need to sauté the veggies on the stove.
Vegetable Prep
We’ll get started by chopping 1.5 cups each of an onion, carrots, and celery. This is about 180 grams each. (I’ve mentioned before how exhausting I sometimes find imprecise measurements. The kitchen scale is your friend; I promise.) Set them aside.
Then you can slice 12 ounces of mushrooms (either White Button or Baby Bella) and set them aside too.
Herbs & Spices
I know that the ingredient list looks long, but it’s mostly herbs and spices. A couple of quick notes on those:
- If you don’t have Savory, it’ll be fine; but I recommend including it if you can find it.
- If you can find Ground Rosemary rather than regular Dried Rosemary, I really recommend it. I’m biased because I can’t stand the little rosemary leaves but appreciate the flavor. (They always seem to get stuck in my teeth.)
While we’re on this topic, you can go ahead and measure out all of the herbs and spices, mixing them, and setting them aside.
You’ll need: 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper, 1 teaspoon Onion Powder, 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder, 1 teaspoon Celery Seed, ½ teaspoon Ground Rosemary (increase to 1 teaspoon if you are just using dried and not ground rosemary), ½ teaspoon Ground Sage, ½ teaspoon Savory, ½ teaspoon Turmeric, and ½ teaspoon Ground Mustard.
Cooking the Savory Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Soup
For the first part of the cooking process, we’ll melt 2 tablespoons of Salted Butter. If you’re using an Instant Pot, turn on the “Sauté” function for this step. If using a Dutch Oven or large pot, you’ll want to do this over medium high heat on the stovetop.
Once the butter begins to melt, you need to add in the sliced mushrooms and sauté them until they release their juices (about 4 – 6 minutes). Then you’ll want to quickly remove the mushrooms from the pot or pan and set them aside.
Next, you’ll need to drizzle in some avocado oil and toss in the chopped onion, carrots, and celery. You want to cook them until they’ve softened (about 6 – 8 minutes) and add in about half of the mixed herbs and spices, mixing thoroughly. Then you can dump in the 3 bags of cauliflower rice and the remaining herbs and spices. We’ll mix them until the seasonings and vegetables are evenly distributed.
Now we can pour in 10 – 12 cups of chicken broth or stock. I suggest starting with 10 cups and waiting on the last 2 cups until after you’ve added the chicken just to make sure it fits in the pot. After that, we’ll bring everything to a boil to ensure that the cauliflower is cooked through and all the flavors have had a chance to meld.
Blending Option
At this point, you have a choice. You can either continue with a brothy soup or choose to make it creamier. If you want to go the creamier route, use an immersion blender (if you have one) and purée the soup for about 3 – 4 minutes or until mostly smooth. See the alternative blending instructions in the Recipe Notes at the bottom if you don’t have an immersion blender but still want the creamier consistency.
If blending the soup, give it a taste test at this point and adjust any seasoning as desired. If not, I’d still give it a taste test.
Now we can drop the heat to a simmer and add in the shredded chicken. If you have space for it, go ahead and add the remaining chicken broth or stock.
Finally, we’ll allow the soup to simmer for another 20 minutes. If you’re using an Instant Pot, change the setting to “Soup / Stew”. After 20 minutes, you can drop the temperature to “Keep Warm”.
That’s it. Serve this cozy soup warm. Perhaps you’ll want to add some biscuits or scones.
Related Recipes
Looking for some other soups? You might want to try one of these:
- Ham and Cauliflower Soup
- Kitchen Sink Beef and Vegetable Stew
- Leek and Cauliflower Soup
- Roasted Tomato Poblano Soup
- Savory Pumpkin Soup
Do you need a menu to go with this Savory Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Soup? Take a look at my Keeping Warm Dinner Party for some suggestions.
Savory Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups Carrots Chopped. 180 grams
- 1.5 cups Celery Chopped. 180 grams
- 1.5 cups Onions Chopped. 180 grams
- 12 ounces Mushrooms Sliced
- 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Celery Seed
- ½ teaspoon Ground Rosemary Increase to 1 teaspoon if you are just using dried and not ground rosemary.
- ½ teaspoon Ground Sage
- ½ teaspoon Savory
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric
- ½ teaspoon Ground Mustard
- 2 tablespoons Salted Butter
- 2 – 3 tablespoons Avocado Oil
- 36 ounces Cauliflower Rice 3 (12-ounce bags. If you can only find 10 or 10.5 ounce bags at your grocery store, that’s fine. Just use that.)
- 12 cups Chicken Stock or Broth
- 1 pound Chicken Cooked and shredded
Instructions
- Chop 1.5 cups Carrots, 1.5 cups Celery, 1.5 cups Onions. Set them aside.1.5 cups Carrots, 1.5 cups Celery, 1.5 cups Onions
- Slice 12 ounces Mushrooms. Set them aside.12 ounces Mushrooms
- Combine 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper, 1 teaspoon Onion Powder, 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder, 1 teaspoon Celery Seed, ½ teaspoon Ground Rosemary, ½ teaspoon Ground Sage, ½ teaspoon Savory, ½ teaspoon Turmeric, and ½ teaspoon Ground Mustard. Set them aside.2 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper, 1 teaspoon Onion Powder, 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder, 1 teaspoon Celery Seed, ½ teaspoon Ground Rosemary, ½ teaspoon Ground Sage, ½ teaspoon Savory, ½ teaspoon Turmeric, ½ teaspoon Ground Mustard
- If using an Instant Pot, add 2 tablespoons Salted Butter to the pot and turn on the “Sauté” function. If using a Dutch oven or large pot on the stove, heat the Salted Butter over medium high heat.2 tablespoons Salted Butter
- Add in the mushrooms and sauté them until they release their juices. About 6 minutes. Remove immediately from the pot and set aside.12 ounces Mushrooms
- Add 2 – 3 tablespoons Avocado Oil to the pot. Then add the chopped carrots, celery, and onions. Sauté until softened. About 8 minutes. Add in the spices and seasonings that you just mixed and stir to combine.1.5 cups Carrots, 1.5 cups Celery, 2 – 3 tablespoons Avocado Oil, 1.5 cups Onions
- Add 36 ounces Cauliflower Rice and 10 – 12 cups Chicken Stock or Broth. (Start with 10 cups and add more if you need more volume or just like a thinner soup.)36 ounces Cauliflower Rice, 12 cups Chicken Stock or Broth
- Bring everything to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 20 minutes. If using an Instant Pot, change the setting to “Meat / Stew” instead of “Sauté”.
- Finally, add in 1 pound Chicken (Cooked, Shredded / Chopped). Serve warm.1 pound Chicken
Equipment
- Cutting Board For dicing the veggies.
- Chef's Knife For dicing the veggies.
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Instant Pot Optional in place of Dutch Oven or Large Pot
- Rubber Scraper Or other stirring utensil
- Immersion Blender (a.k.a. Stick Blender) Optional. See Recipe Notes.
Notes
- Optional Blending with Immersion Blender
- If you would like a creamier soup, you can use an immersion blender after Step 6 (simmering for 20 minutes). Use the immersion blender to purée the soup. About 3 – 4 minutes. Taste and make any adjustments if needed and then blend again.
- Optional Blending without Immersion Blender
- If you do not have an immersion blender, you can use either a food processor or a high speed blender. You will most likely need to work in batches based on the volume of soup.
- In a food processor, process until it is mostly smooth and only a little chunkiness remains (or to whatever your preference is).
- In a high speed blender, I would run it on what is for me the “purée” setting. On my machine, this is speed #4 out of 5 and a step below “liquify”.
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