Avgolemono: Greek Lemon and Egg Soup with Chicken and Orzo

The use of lemon juice and egg in a soup sounds kinda weird. Well, the eggs not so much (think Chinese egg drop soup or Italian Stracciatella). But lemon juice? Turns out that lemon juice is what gives this simple soup its distinctively fragrant, slightly puckery, and deliciously addictive flavor. My recipe was inspired by Cat Cora's
 https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cat-cora/avgolemono-chicken-soup-with-egg-lemon-sauce-recipe-1939318 
which my sister highly recommended. 

Ingredients:
6 large bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
4 quarts (16 cups) water
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 bay leaves
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into large dice
1 leek quartered, or 3-4 scallions cut in half
32 oz. (4 cups) unsalted chicken stock
3/4 cup orzo pasta or arborio rice
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (3 large lemons)
2 large eggs
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. black pepper
Chopped fresh parsley and/or dill for garnish (optional)

1. Place the chicken in a large pot (I like to use enameled cast iron) and cover with 4 quarts or 16 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the chicken is very tender, skimming off any of the foamy stuff that forms on the top.

2. In the meantime, heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.

3. When the chicken is cooked until tender after 1 to 1 1/2 hours, remove with tongs to a cutting board. Let cool, remove the skin, remove the meat from the bones and shred or cut into bite-sized pieces; set aside.

4. Add the reserved sautéed onion, bay leaves, carrot and leek or scallions and 4 additional cups of chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for another hour.

5. Remove the carrot, leek/scallions, and bay leaves from the pot. Add the orzo (or rice) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 15-20 minutes or until the orzo (or rice) is just al dente. Add the reserved cooked chicken meat.

6. Whisk the eggs and lemon juice together in a small bowl until just combined. Slowly pour 1 cup of the hot broth into the lemon juice-egg mixture, stirring constantly (this is called tempering so you won't end up with scrambled eggs).

7. Pour the egg-lemon juice-broth mixture back into the pot. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the soup has slightly thickened. Taste and season with additional salt and/or pepper if needed. Ladle the hot soup into serving bowls and garnish with fresh chopped parsley and/or dill if desired.

Place the chicken in a pot with 4 quarts of water.  

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the chicken is tender,

skimming off any foam that floats up to the top. 

Fresh bay leaves, scallions (you can also use leek), carrots, lemon juice, and chopped onion.  

Saute the chopped onion in 2 tbsp. of olive oil until softened. Remove and set aside. 

Remove the cooked chicken from the broth. 

Add the sautéed onion, scallions, carrots and bay leaves to the broth. 

Add 4 additional cups of chicken stock to the broth. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer; 

cook for another hour. 

In the meantime, remove the meat from the chicken thighs; set aside. 

Remove the scallions and carrots from the pot.  

Add the orzo and bring the broth up to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and cook another 15-20 minutes until the orzo is al dente.  

Add the reserved chicken meat to the pot.  

Whisk the eggs and lemon juice together.  

Slowly pour 1 cup of the hot broth into beaten egg-lemon mixture and whisk constantly

until well-combined. 

 Pour the egg-lemon juice-broth mixture back into the pot. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, 

stirring constantly, until the soup has slightly thickened. 

Taste and season with additional salt and/or pepper if needed. 

 Ladle the hot soup into serving bowls and garnish with fresh chopped parsley and/or dill if desired.