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
Dutch oven
One Pot Lemon Chicken and Orzo: Frequently Asked Questions
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.
Absolutely! But 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.
Spinach, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options to swap out the kale.
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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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!