Ham and Wild Rice Soup

This creamy ham and wild rice soup is made with ham, vegetables, and a mix of white and wild rice in a rich, creamy broth. Ready in just 55 minutes.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Keyword ham, leftover ham recipes, wild rice

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 40

Total Time 55

Servings

Calories 378kcal

6 tablespoons Butter
1 medium Onion finely diced
2 medium Carrots diced (about ¾ - 1 cup diced)
1 Celery Rib diced (about ¼ cup diced)
3-4 Garlic Cloves minced
2 teaspoons Sage minced (about 4 leaves)
¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
⅓ cup All-Purpose Flour
6 cups Chicken Broth
12 ounces Ham cut into bite-sized cubes
2 cups Cooked Wild Rice Mix we used a mix of wild and white rice prepared to package directions
½ cup Half-and-Half
Salt if needed at the end

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. When the butter has melted and starts to foam, add the onions, carrots and celery.
Cook the vegetables gently for 5 minutes until the onions become translucent and start to soften, stirring frequently.
Add the garlic, sage and black pepper to the pot. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Add the flour, stirring constantly until well incorporated. Cook the mixture for 2-3 minutes, stirring almost constantly to cook out the flour taste.
Slowly add in the chicken broth while stirring until it is incorporated. Use a whisk to make it easier to dissolve the flour. If you don’t have one, stir vigorously with a wooden spoon.
Raise the heat to medium-high and bring the broth to a simmer (it will take about 5 minutes).
Next, add the ham and let the soup come back to a simmer.
Then, lower the heat to medium-low, half-cover the pot and continue simmering for 15 minutes, stir occasionally. Keep the soup at a simmer. Raise or lower the heat if necessary.
Add the rice, half-cover and continue cooking for 5 minutes. Stir often to make sure the rice is not sticking to the bottom of the pot.
Take the pot off the heat and add the half and half. Stir to combine.
Return the pot to low heat and warm through. Do not let the soup come to a simmer or boil.
Taste and add salt, if needed. As a reference we did not add extra to ours.

Hold the salt until the end. If you are sensitive to salt, use reduced-sodium ingredients like low-sodium chicken broth, ham and unsalted butter. Taste and add salt at the end if needed.
Start the rice first unless you are using leftovers because it usually takes a while to cook.
Skip the seasoning packet. Some wild rice mixes include a seasoning packet. Prepare the rice according to the package directions, but omit the seasoning packet.
No wild rice mix? If you have leftover white rice, cook about ¼ cup of plain wild rice and add it to the soup along with the white rice.