One Pot Lemon Chicken and Orzo
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Golden brown, juicy chicken with the creamiest lemony orzo + sneaked in greens, all made in ONE SINGLE POT!
Hello lemony creamy goodness. This is certainly my kind of speedy weeknight meal, with juicy chicken thighs (breasts can absolutely be substituted) and the creamiest orzo with just the right amount of lemon of course, which all comes together in a single pot. It’s less dishes for everyone involved.
You can also throw in your favorite kind of greens – kale, spinach, collard greens or even swiss chard. Even the pickiest of eaters will get their share of greens in here, all soaked and swimming in this lovely creaminess.
TOOLS FOR THIS RECIPE
CAN I USE CHICKEN BREASTS?
Yes, chicken breasts can absolutely be used here but chicken thighs have more dark meat and a higher fat content which will yield juicier, more flavorful chicken.
I DON’T LIKE ROSEMARY. CAN I SUBSTITUTE SOMETHING ELSE?
Absolutely! You can substitute oregano (dried or fresh!) or any other herb of your choosing. And because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
WHAT IS HEAVY CREAM?
Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has one of the highest fat contents with about 36-40% fat. Half and half or whole milk are suitable substitutes, but will yield a lighter result.
One Pot Lemon Chicken and Orzo
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 large shallots, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 cup orzo pasta
- 1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves torn into bite-sized pieces
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
- Season chicken with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
- Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Working in batches, add chicken to the Dutch oven in a single layer and cook until golden brown and cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 4-5 minutes per side; set aside.
- Add shallots, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-5 minutes.
- Stir in garlic, thyme and rosemary until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Stir in chicken stock and Dijon, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the Dutch oven. Stir in orzo; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until pasta is cooked through, about 6 minutes. Stir in kale, Parmesan, heavy cream, lemon juice and lemon zest until the kale has wilted, about 3 minutes. Return chicken to the Dutch oven.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
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This has to be one of our most favorite weeknight dishes! It does not look like a weeknight dinner nor does it taste like it – so elevated and yet easy enough I’ve taught both of my boys (17 and 21) to make it. It is a STAR dish. Even better as leftovers the next day at work – I could eat it almost daily. The only change I have ever made is to sub spinach for kale – but it works.
Every time I make this, I love it more! And I don’t even add the cream at the end! 🙂 So delicious!
So so good… used spinach not kale and more lemon juice than the recipe called for. This will definitely go in dinner rotation.
Holy shit. Absolute crowd pleaser. Delicious and satisfying. Saving for the recipe book!
My 15 yr old son and I made this together for our family of six last night – it was amazing! What a special experience to do this together. Absolutely delicious and easy to follow directions. We are super impressed!
Can couscous be used instead of orzo?
Question: The photo shows sliced lemon but the recipe doesn’t say what step to add that in. Help please!
Hi Suzanne! The sliced lemon is simply used as a garnish.
I’ve made this twice now, and I have to say I’m addicted! I LOVE this dish! ❤️❤️❤️
The first time I used frozen spinach and the second time I used frozen broccoli and spinach because I didn’t have enough spinach left. It was amazing either way!
This was an absolute amazing one pot dish! I added spinach instead of kale and added a few mushrooms! Thank you for sharing!
Can something be subbed for the orzo to make it gluten free?
SO delicious! It took a bit longer to get the liquid to reduce than what’s in the recipe, but it turned out restaurant quality! Love the lemon flavor – it did not overpower the dish!
Hello, I want to make this dish to serve to my family on Christmas Eve. I have to cook it at home and transport it to my sister’s house. If I need to reheat it, can you give me some suggestions as how to best reheat for serving? For example, should I bring extra chicken stock, heavy cream and cheese to add for the reheat? Thanks!
Made this last night and it was a hit, my guys liked it and I have a picky teen. I also found it too thick and will skip the flour next time and maybe a bit more broth
Delicious! Fun & easy to make too. So hard to not eat it all in one sitting lol
Really delicious, we enjoyed thoroughly!
This recipe came together quickly and was absolutely delicious and got two thumbs up from my family. I’ll definitely make this again. AND, only one pot to clean!
New favorite dish! Followed almost exactly but substituted peas for kale since I didn’t have any. Came out really good!
We really enjoyed this. My 13 year old likes it but didn’t like the kale in it. I somehow forgot the lemon at the end. I also think I added too much flour as it was really thick. The pasta was burning to the bottom of the pan even with stove on lowest temp. So little issues for me but will try again. May substitute broccoli for kale.
Can you use a regular pot if you don’t have a dutch oven?
Made this today & it was wonderful. Followed recipe except I used 1 can of diced tomatoes with chilies for a little heat. Everyone enjoyed it & will be making again. Thanx for sharing.
Wow ! This is my first time posting a review on this site but this is shockingly and absolutely delicious. I felt like a chef making this !
This is the best dish i have ever eaten
Followed recipe exactly…..wonderful dish!!!
So delicious!! I subbed coconut milk for the heavy cream to keep it dairy free. It’s comfort food at its finest!
Omg. This was so good! Followed recipe exactly and wouldn’t change a thing. Except spinach instead of kale.
Made this last week & it’s definitely going into our regular ration. I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs & used spinach instead of kale. The whole family just loved it.
We had this for dinner 3 days ago and I can’t stop thinking about it. So incredibly flavorful and delicious. Can’t wait to make again!
This was great! I didn’t have shallots or rosemary on hand so I sub’d yellow onion and basil. Skipped the kale because I was making kale salad. Will definitely make again.
Good, easy recipe but I personally didn’t like the flavor the Dijon mustard added so I’ll be leaving it out next time. I also like the suggestion of adding mushrooms instead of kale.
This was so yummy and not too lemony
This was delicious!! I subbed coconut milk for the heavy cream and made it gluten free, but otherwise followed the recipe. It is definitely a keeper!
So you made it dairy- free and gluten-free? What did you sub the flour and orzo with?
I made this last night; an emergency recipe using what I had on hand in my fridge and pantry. It was a homey, yummy surprise! I had three large bone-in chicken thighs that I browned in the butter. I did not have chicken broth, so used water, pan drippings and some Montreal Chicken seasoning. I also substituted Acini de Pepe pasta for the Orzo and stirred in a bag of baby spinach. Loved by the two men in my household and asked to make again! I also subbed half and half for the heavy cream. Really damn delicious!
This is easy and delicious! I used the boneless, skinless chicken thighs, which is the right choice. Next time, I might pound them a little just to get them to an more even thickness. I also substituted spinach instead of kale (just a preference). I used my mini food processor to chop the shallots, garlic and herbs. Easy.
I just made this tonight and it was delicious, minus the kale, because we don’t like kale. Next time I will add mushrooms. Thank you for this great recipe.
Just made this… and it was damn delicious!
It’s a heavy dish, but the lemon helped cut through some of that heaviness. I would make this again.
I made this to the instructions (minus the kale) and it was so good. This will be made again!
Love this, using broccoli and asparagus
Sounds good minus the kale. I would add some sauteed mushrooms instead of the kale.
1 bunch of Kate? That seems like a lot. Think I may just make my lemon garlic Kale salad to go with.
This is great! I might make this for thanksgiving!
I can’t do dairy – do you think I can substitute butter for oil and cream for coconut cream?
let us know if you do!
Made this tonight and it was so good! Accidentally subbed a dairy free heavy cream and it was great. I used chicken breast instead of thighs.