Vegan lemon orzo soup is loaded with tender artichokes, mushrooms, orzo pasta, sweet carrots, creamy great northern beans, and the most delicious golden lemon broth. This truly satisfying meal is easy to make and it’s ready in less than one hour! Gluten-free options included.
This vegan orzo soup is a veganized version of classic lemon chicken orzo soup and it’s loaded with creamy white beans, satisfying orzo, mushrooms, tender artichoke hearts, lots of vegetables, and the most vibrant golden broth. It’s absolutely delicious and it’s ready in less than one hour!
Soup is one of my favorite meals to cook, not just during the fall or winter season, but all year long! This vegan orzo soup is cozy, comforting, and perfect for dinner on a cool night, but it’s also a bright, lemon-infused, bowl of sunshine that’s great to enjoy during the summer too!
Step by Step Instructions
First, boil the orzo according to package instructions. While the pasta is cooking, saute the onions, celery, carrots, and mushrooms in a 6-quart dutch oven until they start to soften. Add the dry seasonings and minced garlic to the pot and let it cook for a few minutes until fragrant.
Next, add the vegetable broth and the rinsed and drained beans to the pot and increase the heat to a low simmer and then reduce the heat and let it cook until the vegetables are tender. Lastly, stir in the spinach, roughly chopped artichokes, parsley, and lemon juice. Let it cook until the spinach wilts, it should only take a few minutes.
To serve, put a scoop of the cooked orzo noodles in each bowl and pour the hot lemon vegetable soup over it. The hot liquid will help to break up the noodles. Garnish with lemon wheels and more fresh parsley.
How to Cook the Orzo
I prefer to cook orzo in a separate pot because as it cooks it swells up and it will absorb a lot of the broth if you add it dry. It’s also better to store the cooked pasta separately so the noodles don’t sit in the broth and absorb more of the liquid.
How to Keep Orzo From Sticking Together
To keep orzo from sticking together once it has been cooked, you can add 1 tbsp dairy-free butter or a neutral-flavored oil to the pasta in the pot and stir it around to coat the small noodles. Try to time it so the pasta is ready at the same time the soup is ready so it doesn’t have a chance to stick together.
What Goes With It?
I like to serve this vegan lemon soup with a big salad and crusty slices of bread for dipping. A baked potato loaded with dairy-free sour cream (I like Kite Hill unsweetened plain greek yogurt) and green onions would also be delicious to make the meal even more substantial. You could also serve any of the following sides:
- Arugula Avocado Salad
- Roasted Beetroot and Feta Salad
- Creamy Broccoli Salad
- Lemon Tahini Courgette Salad
How to Store it
Fridge: Store the soup and cooked orzo in separate airtight containers in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Freezer: This vegan orzo soup freezes perfectly! I prefer to cook and store the orzo separately so it doesn’t soak up most of the broth, but you can freeze it together if you need to. If you freeze the cooked noodles in the broth, it will defrost as more of a thick stew.
How to Reheat it
When you’re ready to reheat the frozen leftovers, remove it from the freezer and put both containers in the fridge to defrost for 24 hours. To reheat, you can warm up the cooked orzo and vegan lemon soup together in the same bowl or pot on the stovetop because it won’t have that much time for the pasta to absorb too much of the broth, so it won’t really make a difference.
Notes & Substitutions
- Great Northern Bean Substitutions: You can substitute pinto beans, chickpeas, or cannellini beans.
- Orzo Substitutions: You can substitute any type of small pasta, rice, farro, or quinoa.
- Artichoke Substitutions: Instead of artichokes, you can use (1) 14 oz can of rinsed and drained young green jackfruit for the artichoke hearts. Add the jackfruit when you add the cooked beans. You may need to let it cook for an additional 10-15 minutes to make sure the jackfruit is tender. If you’re looking for a chicken replacement, jackfruit is the best option because it looks and tastes very similar.
- Spinach Substitutions: You can use thinly sliced (fresh or frozen) kale, roughly chopped arugula, or collard greens instead of the spinach.
- Gluten-Free: To make this recipe gluten-free, you need to use gluten-free noodles, rice, or quinoa.
Success Tips
- Boil the orzo in a separate pot. If you cook the pasta in the broth with the rest of the ingredients, it will soak up a lot of the liquid and have more of a stew-like consistency.
- Use jarred artichokes that are stored in water, not oil. This recipe doesn’t need the extra oil and I think the texture of water-based artichokes tastes better too.
- Use fresh lemon juice, the stuff in a squeezy bottle does not taste the same as freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- To make the broth extra bright and vibrant, you can add 1/4 tsp turmeric powder if the broth you use is a little dull in color.
- Store the leftover vegan orzo soup in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or freeze it for a future meal.
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Vegan Lemon Orzo Soup
Equipment
- 6-Quart Dutch Oven or Large Soup Pot
- Medium Pot
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked whole wheat orzo
- 3-4 tbsp low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 medium celery stalks thinly sliced
- 4 medium carrots sliced
- 1/2 lb cremini mushrooms sliced
- 4 medium garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1/2 tsp himalayan pink sea salt (add more to taste)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- (2) 14 oz cans great northern beans rinsed and drained
- (1) 9 oz jar of artichoke hearts halved (in water, not oil)
- 2-3 handfuls fresh spinach
- 3-4 tbsp fresh lemon juice (add more to taste)
- 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley roughly chopped
Instructions
- Cook the orzo in a separate pot while you make the rest of the soup.
- (Do this step while the orzo is cooking) In a large dutch oven over medium heat, saute the onions, celery, carrots, and mushrooms in 3-4 tbsp of low-sodium vegetable broth until they start to soften and the onions are translucent.
- Add 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp rosemary, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, and the minced garlic to the pot. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes, it should smell very fragrant.
- Next, add 4 cups of low-sodium vegetable broth and the rinsed and drained canned beans to the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high to bring the soup up to a low simmer, and then reduce the heat to medium-low and let it cook for 15-20 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender.
- Lastly, stir in the roughly chopped artichoke hearts, 2-3 handfuls of fresh spinach, 3-4 tbsp lemon juice (start with 3 tbsp and add more to taste), and 1/4 cup fresh parsley. Stir to combine and let the soup cook for about 5 minutes or until the spinach has wilted but it's still bright green.
- To serve, put a scoop of the cooked orzo noodles in each bowl and pour the hot soup over it. The hot broth will beak up the orzo. Garnish with a lemon wheel and more parsley.
Notes
- Boil the orzo in a separate pot. If you cook the pasta in the broth with the rest of the ingredients, it will soak up a lot of the liquid and have more of a stew-like consistency.
- Use jarred artichokes that are stored in water, not oil. The soup doesn't need extra oil and I think the texture of water-based artichokes tastes better too.
- Use fresh lemon juice, the stuff in a squeezy bottle does not taste the same as freshly squeezed lemon juice!
- To make the broth extra bright and vibrant, you can add 1/4 tsp turmeric powder if the broth you use is a little dull in color.
- To make it gluten-free, use gluten-free orzo, small noodles, rice, or quinoa.
- Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or freeze it for a future meal.
Nutrition
*This vegan orzo soup recipe was originally shared on 12/16/17, but I updated it with better recipe instructions on 7/26/20.
