Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup (Panera Copycat)

I don’t usually post two recipes in a row, but recipes are quicker to put together and besides, who doesn’t want some comfort food right now? We have new snow (and it’s still snowing) so what’s better than a nice bowl of thick, hot soup? And you don’t have to leave home to have it!!

I found this soup recipe several years ago, and I love Panera’s chicken and wild rice soup so I thought it would be fun to see how this compares. I have to tell you, it’s so close to Panera’s, you’d never know the difference. I hope you agree.

I’m giving you a half recipe. Full recipes tend to be way too much for us and while I love leftovers, they aren’t Tim’s favorite.

Because it’s a half recipe, you’ll have to handle the boxed long grain and wild rice a little differently. For the full recipe, you use all the rice and all the seasoning. For this recipe, I use all the rice and half the seasoning. In case you didn’t know, I love thick soup!! But, adding all the rice in this half version does not mean you’ll have too much rice. I actually think it’s just right.

And because the seasoning packets in these boxes aren’t mixed well, I recommend pouring out the contents and giving them a stir. Then using only half.

This makes 6 pretty good-sized bowls but of course, it all depends on how much you put in a bowl!! We had two and a half meals out of this. I had the last bowl for lunch. It warms up great, but I suggest adding more broth (hopefully you have some left) when you warm it up. It does get a little thicker as it cools.

Hope you give this a try one of these cold, snowy days. But don’t feel you have to wait. It’s yummy any day!!

5 from 1 vote

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Cream of Chicken and Wild Rice Soup (Panera Copycat)

Don't you love Panera's Chicken and Wild Rice Soup? Here's a copycat version you should definitely try. Quick and easy and oh so thick and creamy.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword chicken wild rice soup

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings 6 bowls

Ingredients

• 3 c. chicken broth
• 1 chicken breast (cooked and cubed)
• 1 6 oz. package long grain and wild rice blend (quick cooking version)
• 1/4 t. ground black pepper
• 1/4 c. flour
• 6 T. butter
• 1/2 c. diced carrot
• 1/2 c. diced celery
• 1/2 c. diced onion
• 1 1/2 c. half and half

Instructions

1. Open the rice package and set aside the seasoning packet.

2. In a small bowl, combine the flour and pepper. Set aside.

3. In a large pot, over medium heat, combine broth and chicken. Bring to a boil, then stir in the rice. Cover and remove from the heat.

4. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.

5. Add carrots, celery, and onion and saute for about 5 minutes.

6. Stir in half the contents of the seasoning packet and continue cooking the vegetables until softened, about 5 more minutes. (I pour the contents of the seasoning packet into a small bowl first and stir it up. Otherwise, you don't get a good mixture of the spices.)

7. Add the seasoned flour gradually while stirring to form a roux.

8. Saute the roux for 3-4 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.

9. Whisk in the half and half, a little at a time, until fully incorporated. Cook until thickened, about 5 minutes.

10. Stir the cream mixture into the broth and rice mixture.

11. Cook covered over medium heat until heated through and rice is done, about 15-20 minutes.

12. Add extra broth if the soup is too thick for your liking. Also, add salt to your taste.

Recipe Notes

If you can’t find the quick cooking version of the rice, you can put the broth on to boil and cook the 25 minute version according to the directions while you saute the vegetables.  It’s OK if the veggies get a little softer this way.

Original recipe from food.com

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