An Easy One Pot Chicken Orzo Recipe that is so easy to make! This creamy orzo with chicken is rich and delicious while still being healthy!
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This Chicken Orzo is a quick, one pot meal and is perfect for those busy weeknights.
Tender asparagus, wilted spinach, and juicy bites of chicken are combined with orzo in a light and creamy parmesan sauce for a healthy and satisfying meal that can be on the table in 30 minutes!
If you love orzo, try our Mediterranean Chicken Orzo or Greek Orzo Salad!
We love Creamy Orzo with Chicken
There is a lot to love about this easy orzo chicken recipe. It’s one of our favorite healthy dinners because it’s:
- Easy to Make: This orzo chicken dinner is simple to make and only needs one pan, which means less cleaning up afterward. You can have a tasty dinner on the table in about 30 minutes, which is great for busy nights.
- Delicious Flavors: The creamy sauce, tender chicken, and tasty veggies create a combination that’s hard to resist! Even picky eaters might love it because the flavors are familiar and comforting!
- Healthy Ingredients: Chicken Orzo is made with wholesome ingredients like lean chicken and fresh vegetables, making it a healthy dinner choice!
Chicken and Orzo Ingredients
For this chicken orzo you’ll need:
- chicken breasts
- garlic powder, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes
- olive oil
- onion, garlic
- asparagus
- dry orzo
- chicken broth
- fresh thyme
- half and half
- parmesan
- spinach
You can find substitutions for all of these ingredients below in the green shaded box.
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How to make Creamy Chicken Orzo
- In a small bowl, combine chicken chunks, garlic powder, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, toss to coat.
- In a large pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and brown the chicken. Set aside.
- In the same pan, add the remaining oil. Saute the asparagus for another 2 minutes and remove to the plate with the chicken.
- Saute the onion until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the orzo and garlic and cook until the orzo starts to toast slightly.
- Add in the broth and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover and cook for 7 minutes.
- Stir in the chicken, asparagus, half and half, parmesan and spinach. Heat for one to two minutes more until heated through.
SUBSTITUTIONS FOR CHICKEN ORZO
Olive Oil: You can substitute avocado oil, butter, or ghee.
Chicken Breasts: You can substitute with boneless chicken thighs or chicken tenders. To make this an even faster dish, you can skip the first 2 steps and use pulled or chopped cooked chicken folded in at the end.
Broth: Broth and stock are the same thing! You can use any broth or stock interchangeably. Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, or vegetable broth all work interchangeably. I always use low or no salt broth.
Asparagus: Other vegetables that would be good in this would be zucchini, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms.
Orzo: I have only tried this recipe with orzo pasta. I’m not sure how gluten free pasta will work in this recipe.
Half & Half: You can substitute half and half with whole milk but it will not be as creamy. I haven’t tried this with dairy free milk and I don’t know how it would come out.
Parmesan Cheese: We haven’t tried this with any other cheese and wouldn’t recommend swapping anything for the parmesan! It wouldn’t have the same flavor.
Spinach: I haven’t tried it, but I think you could sub spinach with arugula and it would be just as delicious!
Gluten Free: We only tested this recipe with regular pasta. Gluten free pasta cooks very differently, and we find that it can get very gummy/mushy. It’s hard to know if it will work in this recipe without trying it. Because the orzo cooks in the pan with everything else, the ratios in the recipe would need to change. You could try reducing the broth and cooking it in a separate pot, but I really don’t know how it would come out. If you try it, let me know.
How to serve Orzo Chicken
This Orzo Chicken should be served immediately and is best garnished with chopped parsley and extra grated parmesan. You could also add some lemon zest and freshly ground black pepper.
It’s delicious paired with these side dishes:
- Kale Salad with Lemon Dressing or Kale Quinoa Salad
- Crusty Baguette or Artisan Bread
- Lemon Parmesan Roasted Asparagus
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Parmesan
- A Glass of White Wine
Pro Tip:
There are different sizes of orzo pasta, and they may have different cooking times. The size most commonly found in supermarkets cooks in about 8 minutes. Check the packaging of the orzo for cook times and choose one with a 7-9 minute cook time.
How to store Creamy Orzo with Chicken
This dish is best when fresh. Leftovers tend to be drier, less creamy, and can clump together.
Storing: This will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezing: We don’t recommend freezing this recipe. Frozen pasta can get really mushy when frozen!
Reheating: Reheat in a covered pot on the stove, over low heat, adding some extra broth to loosen it back up.
Chicken Orzo Recipe FAQs
Orzo is a type of pasta, not rice, but can get mistaken for rice because of the similar shape.
In this recipe, you should cover the pot to create a controlled cooking environment and allow the orzo to absorb the flavors of the other ingredients in the recipe and cook evenly.
To prevent the orzo from becoming mushy, make sure you use the right amount of chicken broth, cook it to a tender but firm texture, and stir occasionally.
Other healthy dinner recipes:
Looking for other easy meals? Check out these 40+ Healthy Dinner Recipes. Click here to grab our free healthy 30 minute dinners cookbook.
Chicken Orzo
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders cubed into 1” pieces
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil divided
- ½ cup yellow onion chopped (about 1/2 a medium onion)
- 2 cups fresh asparagus spears cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic about 3 garlic cloves
- 8 ounces dry orzo
- 2 ½ cups chicken broth low or no salt
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme can sub 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- ⅓ cup half and half can sub milk
- ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- Chopped fresh parsley and extra Parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine chicken chunks, garlic powder, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, toss to coat.
- In a large high sided pan over medium high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and add the chicken, browning evenly and cooking until it just reaches 165℉. Set aside.
- In the same pan, add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the asparagus and saute for another 2 minutes, until tender crisp and remove to the plate with the chicken.
- Add the onion to the pan and saute until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the orzo and garlic and cook until the orzo starts to toast slightly, another 3 minutes.
- Add in the broth and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan with a lid and cook for 7 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
- Stir in the cooked chicken, asparagus, half and half, parmesan and spinach. Heat for one to two minutes more until heated through and spinach is wilted.
- Serve immediately garnished with chopped parsley and extra grated parmesan.
Notes
There are different sizes of orzo pasta, and they may have different cooking times.The size most commonly found in the supermarkets around me cook in about 8 minutes. This recipe was made using Barilla orzo. Check the packaging of orzo for cook times and choose one with an 7-9 minute cook time.
This orzo can be made with chunks of boneless skinless thighs, but you may need to adjust the cooking time for the chicken. To make this an even faster dish, you can skip the first 2 steps and use pulled or chopped cooked chicken folded in at the end.
Other vegetables that would be good in this would be zucchini, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms.
Chicken broth can be substituted with vegetable broth.
Jennifer Bartz says
This recipe is one of the best we have every made!!! And we mean any food recipe!!!
Jon says
Wow this was extremely tasty. Previously we made another version of this same recipe but one that was loaded with unnecessary fat and salt. My wife was able to further reduce the fat using tsp. butter while browning the chicken in a non stick pan. The only issue was when to add the sprigs of thyme? The recipe was clear so it went in with the broth.