One Pot Chicken Orzo
An Easy One Pot Chicken Orzo Recipe that is quick to make! this Creamy orzo with chicken is rich and delicious while still being healthy!
Servings: 4 2 cup servings
Calories: 546kcal
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or tenders cubed into 1” pieces
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- ½ cup diced yellow onion about 1/2 a medium onion
- 2 cups chopped fresh asparagus spears cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic about 3 garlic cloves
- 8 ounces dry orzo
- 2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme can sub 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- ⅓ cup milk
- ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- Chopped fresh parsley and extra Parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the chicken, garlic powder, pepper, red pepper and salt. Toss to coat evenly.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken. Cook for 10-12 minutes, until brown on all sides. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside in a bow
- In the same pan, add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the asparagus and sauté for 2 minutes, until slightly tender. Remove the asparagus from the pan and set aside to the plate with the cooked chicken.
- Add the onion to the pan and sauté until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the orzo and garlic to the pan. Stir together and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the broth to the pan and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent the orzo from sticking. Cover the pan with a lid and cook for 7 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed, stirring halfway.
- Stir in the cooked chicken, asparagus, thyme, milk, Parmesan, spinach and thyme. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 1-2 minutes more until heated through and spinach is wilted.
- Serve immediately garnished with chopped parsley and extra grated parmesan.
Video
Notes
Helpful Tips:
- This dish is best when fresh. Leftovers tend to be drier, less creamy, and can clump together. For best quality, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days and reheat in a covered pot on the stove, over low heat, adding some extra broth to loosen it back up.
- 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.
Nutrition
Serving: 2cups cooked chicken, veggies + pasta | Calories: 546kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 123mg | Sodium: 516mg | Potassium: 982mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1878IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 146mg | Iron: 3mg
