15 Chicken Soups That Can Warm You Up—and Maybe Ward Off a Cold

Chicken and rice soup fills two white bowls. Two spoons lay beside them. — Serious Eats / Tim Chin

In our opinion, chicken soup is one of those essential dishes that all omnivorous cooks should know how to make—and there are so many versions to choose from. Here, we've collected our meticulously improved recipes for classics, including avglomeno, matzo ball, and chicken and rice soup, as well as some spicier options we're particularly fond of. Whether you're trying to warm up or ward off the sniffles, there's a chicken soup recipe here that should do the trick.

Love any of these recipes? Tap "Save" to add them to MyRecipes, our free tool to save and organize favorites from top food sites.

Homemade Chicken Soup

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Thoughtfully attending to the basics—starting with a flavorful stock and gently poaching the chicken—makes this classic winter warmer better than ever.

Homemade Chicken Soup
The Ultimate Chicken Noodle Soup

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

With just a few extra steps, you can transform your chicken noodle soup from beige and boring to flavor-packed gold. Roasting off two pounds of chicken wings gives the broth of this soup wonderful deep savory notes. Meanwhile, gently cooking the chicken breast ensures moist, perfectly cooked results.

The Ultimate Chicken Noodle Soup
Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt Glaze

This rich, nutty chicken and wild rice soup is a hearty meal ideal for a chilly day. Simmering aromatics with bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs creates a flavorful chicken broth for the soup, and fennel, lemon zest, and lemon juice brighten the soup and complement the earthy wild rice.

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Classic Chicken and Rice Soup

Serious Eats / Tim Chin

The beauty of this comforting classic is all in the details. Charred onion and roasted chicken wings add savory depth to the broth. Cooking the rice separately ensures that it's perfectly cooked and keeps the consistency of the broth nice and light. If you're in a hurry, Tim also wrote up a pressure cooker version of this recipe.

Classic Chicken and Rice Soup

Continue to 5 of 15 below
The Best Matzo Ball Soup

Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt Glaze

We've tested every trick to figure out how to make the perfect matzo balls. (Hint: opt for the schmaltz and seltzer.) For a spicy, pun-inspired spin on this classic Jewish dish, try Daniel's recipe for masa ball soup.

The Best Matzo Ball Soup
Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon-Egg Chicken Soup)

Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt Glaze

Avgolemono is a mixture of eggs and lemon used to thicken soups and sauces in Greece, and here it's used to make a tangy and creamy chicken soup.

Avgolemono Soup (Greek Lemon-Egg Chicken Soup)
Tom Kha Gai (Thai Chicken Soup with Coconut and Galangal)

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

This sour, savory, and creamy tom kha gai is made with chicken stock, chicken thighs, plenty of galangal, and coconut cream.

Tom Kha Gai (Thai Chicken Soup with Coconut and Galangal)
Sopa de Albóndigas de Pollo (Nicaraguan Chicken Meatball Soup)

Serious Eats / Fred Hardy

This soup features flavorful chicken-masa-herb dumplings in a delicate broth flavored with sour orange juice, culantro, and mint.

Sopa de Albóndigas de Pollo (Nicaraguan Chicken Meatball Soup)

Continue to 9 of 15 below
Arroz Caldo (Filipino Chicken and Rice Soup)

Serious Eats / Melissa Hom

This hearty, congee-like chicken soup is topped with eggs and crunchy fried garlic.

Arroz Caldo (Filipino Chicken and Rice Soup)
Khao Soi Gai (Northern Thai Coconut Curry Noodle Soup With Chicken)

Serious Eats / Qi Ai

This rich and creamy soup features tender braised chicken in a coconut-y curry broth with both boiled and fried noodles. For a brothier Northern Thai chicken soup, try Kenji's recipe for yum jin gai.

Real-Deal Khao Soi Gai (Northern Thai Coconut Curry Noodle Soup With Chicken)
Khao Piak Sen (Lao Chicken Noodle Soup)

Serious Eats / Liz Clayman

This delcious Laotion specialty starts by simmering a whole chicken with onion, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, lime leaf, and cilantro stems. The poached chicken is added to soup bowls, along with fresh homemade noodles. The broth is ladled into the bowls, and savory, fragrant toppings are added at the last minute, including crispy fried shallots and little nuggets of fried garlic.

Khao Piak Sen (Lao Chicken Noodle Soup)
Ozoni (Japanese New Year's Soup) With Mochi, Chicken, and Vegetables

Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Every New Year's Day in Japan, families sit down to eat a bowl of ozoni, a soup studded with tender, chewy mochi, and lots of other tasty bites.

Ozoni (Japanese New Year's Soup) With Mochi, Chicken, and Vegetables

Continue to 13 of 15 below
Sopa de Lima (Yucatán-Style Lime Soup)

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

This Yucatecan twist on classic Mexican tortilla soup is brightened up with a combination of lime and grapefruit juice to mimic the flavor of Mexican sour limes.

Sopa de Lima (Yucatán-Style Lime Soup)
One-Pot Pozole Verde de Pollo (Green Mexican Hominy and Chicken Soup)

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

This weeknight version of the hearty Mexican classic comes together in just over an hour—a small time investment if you consider that traditional recipes take the better part of a day.

One-Pot Pozole Verde de Pollo (Green Mexican Hominy and Chicken Soup)
Easy Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

This cheesy, spicy soup is pure comfort on a cold night. Gently poaching bone-in chicken breast just until it's done ensures tender, moist meat, while also adding flavor to the broth.

Easy Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup