Avgolemono is one of the most nourishing soups that you will ever try! This is the traditional Greek version of chicken soup. While it appears creamy, it is really made with a mixture of eggs and lemon juice, and no dairy at all.
There is a special trick to not curdling the eggs. You must first temper the egg lemon mixture in a separate bowl before adding it to the soup. You do this by first mixing together the eggs with the lemon juice, ladling in a little bit of broth at a time, while quickly whisking it all together. This helps the egg lemon mixture to come to the same temperature as the soup before you add it to the pot.
I made this traditional Greek chicken soup with homemade chicken stock from scratch. Truly this is how to get the best flavors! Here is the link to my chicken stock recipe.
https://onxeniastreet.com/2021/10/12/chicken-stock/
I used the shredded chicken that I reserved from this recipe and all of the chicken stock. Now we have soup for the week and I was able to freeze the rest in portions for future use. That way, the next time that I am feeling under the weather, I have one of the most nourishing soups in the world at my fingertips!
Traditionally, we add rice or orzo to avgolemono soup. Most also add carrots. I decided to keep the carbs very low and simply omitted this. Instead I opted for very thinly sliced celery and a finely chopped white onion and the shredded chicken from the stock.
Ingredients:
Chicken stock (see recipe link above)
6 celery stalks
1 white onion
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
4 eggs & 2 eggs yolks
Juice of 4 lemons
Zest of 2 lemons
Fresh dill for garnish
Directions:
Finely dice the onion into very small pieces. Put into the pot with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle some salt and let the onion soften on low to medium heat.
Meanwhile slice the celery into small thinly sliced pieces. Add that to the pot and allow to soften for a few minutes. Add in the shredded chicken and chicken broth. Salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil.
In the meantime, whisk together the eggs and lemon juice in a separate bowl.
Turn off the heat from the soup. Ladle in a little bit of the broth into the egg mixture with whisking it quickly. This will temper the egg. Continue to do this four or five times. Then slowly pour it into the pot while stirring to incorporate.
The soup is ready to be served!
I garnished it with a little bit of fresh dill. Just about any fresh herb will do!
Kali Oreksi!
on xenia street 