Lemon Chicken Orzo
This creamy Lemon Chicken Orzo is simple, comforting and full of fresh flavour. You need just one pot and 30 minutes to make this restaurant-quality meal at home. A delicious weeknight dinner for your family, yet impressive enough for guests!
Servings: 4
Calories: 671kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or other neutral cooking oil
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1½ teaspoons salt, divided plus more to taste before serving
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
- 2¼ cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon dried basil can sub Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 cup heavy cream see note 2
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest see note 3
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice see note 4
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 3 handfuls baby spinach
- Optional garnishes: additional parmesan, lemon slices, fresh basil, ground black pepper, or chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Slice each chicken breast in half horizontally to create thin cutlets. Use 1 teaspoon of salt to season both sides of each piece.
- Heat cooking oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sear for 3-4 minutes per side until golden brown and cooked through. Remove from the skillet and set aside on a clean plate or cutting board.
- Reduce the heat to medium and add butter to the skillet. Once melted, add the minced garlic and sauté for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Stir in the orzo and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, until lightly toasted.
- Pour in the chicken broth, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, dried basil and paprika, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Bring to a strong simmer, cover, and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the orzo is tender and most but not all of the liquid is absorbed. Add a splash more broth if you find it's getting too dry.
- Uncover, then stir in the heavy cream, lemon zest and lemon juice. Simmer for about 2 minutes until slightly thickened.
- Add the grated parmesan cheese and baby spinach, stirring until the cheese melts and the spinach wilts. Taste and add salt, if needed.
- Return the chicken to the skillet (slicing first, if desired), nestling it into the orzo. Let it warm through before removing from the heat and serve immediately with your chosen garnishes. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and eat within 4 days.
Video
Notes
- Butter: you can sub salted butter, but reduce the added salt slightly.
- If you want to omit the cream: you can make this dish without the cream as a lower calorie option. If you leave it out, also reduce the lemon juice to just a tablespoon and the lemon zest to 1-2 teaspoons, so that the lemon flavour won't overpower the dish.
- Lemon zest: finely zest only the outermost layer of the lemon. Too much of the pith (the white part) can impart a bitter flavour. You can also omit the zest if you want a more subtle lemon flavour.
- Lemon juice: you can reduce to just 1-2 tablespoons if you want the lemon flavour to be more subtle.
- Chicken: to save time, you can skip cooking the chicken and add sliced rotisserie chicken to the orzo in the last step.
- Reheating: warm it gently on the stovetop over low heat, adding a splash of broth as needed to reconstitute the creamy texture. You can also reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes, or until heated through, but you may find it less creamy this way.
Nutrition
Calories: 671kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 173mg | Sodium: 1301mg | Potassium: 892mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 3639IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 211mg | Iron: 2mg
