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One-Pan Lemon Chicken Orzo is a comforting, well-rounded meal! Tender, juicy chicken pieces are joined with orzo pasta in a bright lemon sauce, resulting in melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness! Your whole family will adore this tasty dinner!
This one-pan meal comes together so quickly! If you’re looking for more easy recipes with less mess, try these One-Pan Fajita Chicken and Veggies, One-Pan Southwest Blackened Cajun Chicken with Rice or this Chili Lime Chicken and Rice.
Reasons This Recipe is AMAZING
When you have a busy schedule and need a hearty, crowd-pleasing meal, this is the recipe to turn to. It comes together quickly, doesn’t make much mess, and tastes amazing!
- Easy to Prep: This is ready to be cooked in less than 10 minutes with very little chopping, perfect for busy days!
- Comforting Flavors: Tender chicken with creamy orzo pasta with an incredible lemon flavor makes for a deliciously satisfying meal.
- Minimal Cleanup: One-pan cooking means less mess and fewer dishes to wash.
Lemon Chicken Orzo
Lemon chicken orzo is one of those dinners that you’ll want to make on repeat. To begin with, it’s really easy to make; it is all made in one pan. Additionally, it has the best textures and flavors. You will love the vibrant yet savory lemon flavor as well as the creaminess of the orzo (without any heavy cream!) combined with juicy pieces of chicken. As a result, this dish is a favorite with my family. Overall, it’s total comfort food without being overly heavy!
Ingredients in This One-Pan Dish
This lemon chicken orzo recipe takes simple ingredients and transforms them into a bright and savory masterpiece. From well-seasoned chicken pieces to hearty orzo and a sauce that bursts with citrusy goodness, each component makes this one-pan meal taste absolutely incredible. The exact measurements are in the recipe card.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: Cut into pieces, these provide the main protein for the dish.
- Seasoning: The chicken is coated in basil, oregano, paprika, salt, and pepper for a delicious flavor.
- Olive Oil: For searing the chicken.
- Butter: To sauté the shallots and garlic and toast the orzo.
- Shallots: Milder and sweeter than regular yellow or white onions, minced shallots work great in this recipe so as not to overwhelm the other flavors.
- Garlic: For extra savory flavor.
- Orzo Pasta: The base of this chicken dinner is orzo. You can find this short-cut pasta in the pasta aisle of your local grocery store.
- Chicken Broth: Helps cook the orzo and gives it a more robust flavor.
- Lemon: Lemon juice and lemon zest add the perfect amount of acidity, brightness, and fresh flavor!
- Fresh Baby Spinach: Adds color and nutrients.
- Shredded Parmesan Cheese: To garnish the finished recipe and add salty cheesiness.
How to Make One-Pan Lemon Chicken Orzo
This recipe is perfect for busy weeknights because it requires minimal hands-on time and allows you to cook everything conveniently in one pan. As it all simmers together, the flavors meld into a delightful, melt-in-your-mouth dish that everyone will love.
- Prep the Chicken: Cube the chicken breasts into about 1 ½ inch to 2-inch pieces. Evenly coat the chicken with basil, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper.
- Cook the Chicken: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 5-7 minutes. It should be mostly cooked through. Remove the chicken from the skillet.
- Cook the Pasta: Add the butter, shallot, and garlic to the skillet and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the orzo to the skillet, constantly stirring and tossing, until you get an even, light golden brown toast.
- Continue to Cook: Pour in the chicken broth, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Reduce the heat to medium and stir occasionally to evenly cook the orzo without letting it stick to the skillet.
- Add the Chicken and Spinach: Once you cook the orzo through, add the chicken and spinach to the skillet. Stir the mixture and continue cooking until the spinach wilts and the chicken is completely cooked through.
- Garnish and Serve: Garnish with lemon slices and parmesan cheese and enjoy!
Tips and Tricks
These helpful tips will ensure you achieve a wonderful one-pan lemon chicken orzo every time!
- Cut Consistently: When cutting the chicken into small pieces, aim for uniform sizes. This way, they’ll cook at the same rate.
- Adding Liquid: The liquid amount might seem like a lot, but the pasta will soak it all up. If the liquid is completely absorbed and it still needs more moisture, add more chicken broth, a few tablespoons at a time.
- Sautéing Garlic and Orzo: When sautéing the onion and garlic, be sure to stir continually to keep the garlic from burning. The same goes for the orzo. You want it lightly toasted, but don’t let it burn.
Storing Leftover Lemon Chicken Orzo
Orzo makes great leftovers, especially for lunch the next day. Here is how to store it:
- In the Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
More One-Pan Chicken Dinners
If you’re looking for more easy, one-pan chicken dinners, we’ve got you covered! Here are some of my favorite chicken recipes that cook up quickly and my family will gladly eat. They’re all so simple, yet so tasty!
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Lemon Chicken Orzo
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 shallots, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup orzo pasta
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 2 cups baby spinach, chopped
- Shredded parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Cube the chicken breasts into about 1 ½ inch to 2-inch pieces. Evenly coat the chicken with basil, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for 5-7 minutes, the chicken should be mostly cooked through. Remove the chicken from the skillet.
- Add the butter, shallot, and garlic to the skillet and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the orzo to the skillet, continually stir, and toss until evenly toasted and light golden brown.
- Pour in the chicken broth, lemon juice and lemon zest. Reduce the heat to medium and stir occasionally to evenly cook the orzo without letting it stick to the skillet.
- Once the orzo is cooked through, add the chicken and spinach to the skillet. Stir and continue to cook until the spinach is wilted and the chicken is completely cooked through.
- Garnish with lemon slices and parmesan cheese, and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Flavor was good. Followed recipe as written but mine turned out soupy.
Hi Michelle, I’m so sorry it turned out soupy. Maybe the liquid wasn’t reduced enough? I would simmer the orzo a little longer to reduce the liquid before adding the chicken and other things in.
You also might have added extra spinach and it let out a lot of liquid? You could try cooking down their spinach before adding it so they can drain off the excess liquid from that.
I’m not sure what happened, but I apologize that it didn’t turn out. That can be very frustrating when you put in time and effort and it doesn’t turn out how you expect.
Delicious Meal! I just made this for dinner and followed the recipe exactly except increasing the butter to 2T to coat the orzo and I also added mushrooms because we like them. We couldn’t stop eating it so I will definitely be making it again and again. Thanks for a great recipe!
This meal looks amazing. Can this be turned into a freezer meal?
Hi Brenda, are you asking if you can freeze it after you make it? If so I believe that would work. Place it in an airtight container and freeze. It will probably last a couple of months frozen. To reheat, let thaw and warm up on stove top over medium-low heat. If I didn’t answer your question, please let me know!
Made this tonight and I added some mushrooms because my family likes mushrooms in everything. We absolutely loved it unfortunately there was no leftovers!
Thank you for the review Shelly! I’m so glad you all loved it! Great idea to add mushrooms! I’m sorry you didn’t have any leftovers! Ha ha! Double batch next time!