Lemon chicken orzo has been cooking on my recipe list for a long time. And I finally made it. The creamiest lemon chicken orzo, which is marinated in tandoori and parmesan cheese. On one spoon you get the taste of salty cheese and spicy tandoori with a few drops of sour lemon. Everything is made in one deep pot. You’re gonna love it.
Ingredients:
Orzo
- 150 g orzo
- 1 l chicken broth or 1 liter of water and 2x stock cubes
- juice of a lemon
- 100 ml cooking cream
- parmesan cheese
- 2 onions
- fresh basil
- 2 garlic cloves
Chicken marinade
- 1 kg boneless and skinless chicken breasts and chicken thighs
- 3 tbsps olive oil
- a pinch of salt
- ⅓ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp tandoori spice
- ½ tsp garlic powder
Lemon chicken orzo is now my perfect dish for a dinner date. It’s creamy, tastes DELICIOUS, it’s easy to eat. It goes well with a bottle of wine and you can still have a slice of cake after.
It’s so easy and quick. You will need whatever (juicy) part of the chicken, orzo, cooking cream, chicken stock (you can use cubes as well), and a good portion of parmesan cheese. Add spices, lemon or whatever you like to that.
How to make orzo:
In Slovakia, we call orzo “Slovak rice”. Orzo is a small rice-shaped pasta. First of all, wash the orzo in water, then boil it in salted water for a few minutes. If you add more water, cooking cream or chicken broth, you get a very creamy consistency like a creamy risotto.
HOW TO MAKE LEMON CHICKEN ORZO:
Prepare a pan deep and big enough for all the chicken to put on. Wash the meat and pat dry. Cut it into smaller pieces. Transfer the chicken meat to the bowl. Add olive oil, and spices for marinating. Cover the bowl. Put the meat into the fridge for as long as possible.
Fry the marinated meat in a deep pan on both sides until they change colour from pink to a little brown. Add a few drops of lemon. Get rid of excess water and fry for a few more minutes. It should take 15 minutes in total.
Chop up the onion and mince the garlic. Take out the meat and in the same pan fry the onion with garlic until soft and yellow – not brown. After, add washed orzo and fry together for 2 minutes, stirring nonstop.
Pour chicken broth into the same pan and bring to a boil on high heat. Decrease the heat, cover the pan and cook orzo for 8-10 minutes.
Add parmesan cheese, cooking cream, and chopped basil leaves to the creamy orzo. Put pieces of fried chicken on top and cover again. Cook for 5 more minutes. I recommend turning off the heat and letting the flavours alone for another 10 minutes to sit. Serve with slices of lemon. Enjoy!
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE MORE DESSERTS?
my tips for the best lemon chicken orzo:
- wash the orzo first (and always)
- use the juiciest parts of the chicken
- use fresh lemon juice
- use A LOT of parmesan because it’s delicious
- if you pat dry the chicken before marinating, you get more crunchy chicken, if you decide to wash the chicken without pat drying, you will need to get rid of the excess water while frying. I chose the second option: I washed the chicken, marinated it, and fried it. In the middle of frying, I got rid of the excess water and just fried it for a couple more minutes until the sides got brown.
If you decide to make this Lemon chicken orzo with crumble at home, please tag me or send me a message on Instagram or Pinterest. ❤️
Lemon Chicken Orzo
Ingredients
Orzo
- 150 g orzo
- 1 l chicken broth or 1 liter of water and 2x stock cubes
- juice of a lemon
- 100 ml cooking cream
- parmesan cheese
- 2 onions
- fresh basil
- 2 garlic cloves
Chicken marinade
- 1 kg boneless and skinless chicken breasts and chicken thighs
- 3 tbsps olive oil
- a pinch of salt
- ⅓ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp tandoori spice
- ½ tsp garlic powder
Instructions
- Prepare a pan deep and big enough for all the chicken to put on. Wash the meat and pat dry. Cut it into smaller pieces. Transfer the chicken meat to the bowl. Add olive oil, and spices for marinating. Cover the bowl. Put the meat into the fridge for as long as possible.
- Fry the marinated meat in a deep pan on both sides until they change colour from pink to a little brown. Add a few drops of lemon. Get rid of excess water and fry for a few more minutes. It should take 15 minutes in total.
- Chop up the onion and mince the garlic. Take out the meat and in the same pan fry the onion with garlic until soft and yellow – not brown. After, add washed orzo and fry together for 2 minutes, stirring nonstop.
- Pour chicken broth into the same pan and bring to a boil on high heat. Decrease the heat, cover the pan and cook orzo for 8-10 minutes.
- Add parmesan cheese, cooking cream, and chopped basil leaves to the creamy orzo. Put pieces of fried chicken on top and cover again. Cook for 5 more minutes. I recommend turning off the heat and letting the flavours alone for another 10 minutes to sit. Serve with slices of lemon. Enjoy!
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