Mediterranean Chicken and Orzo
My family is Greek and I grew up eating food with tons of Mediterranean flavors, especially Kalamata olives, garlic, tomato, lemon and oregano (special shout-out to my Dad’s famous Chicken Oreganata). To my Yiayia’s dismay, I grew up H A T I N G feta cheese. Like to the point where I couldn’t be in the same room as it. One day, around when I was in college, a flip switched and I started loving it. I could now eat Greek salads at our family’s Easter celebrations with the feta…what a concept!
This Mediterranean chicken and orzo incorporates some of those delicious Mediterranean flavors I grew up on, along with one that I didn’t, but that I grew to love (hii, feta!). The orzo turns into this creamy, almost risotto-like texture (no stirring required!) and I love the brightness that the lemon and fresh herbs add.
I’ve been making a version of this dish for a while now – it’s perfect for a week night because it requires minimal time, it only uses one pan AND you don’t need to turn your oven on! I’m excited to share it with you and I hope it becomes a staple in your house too!
Serves 4-6
INGREDIENTS
6 boneless, skin-on chicken thighs (see notes)
Kosher salt
Black pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 shallots, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 cups dry orzo
1/2 cup olives, pits removed and halved (I prefer Kalamatas for this!)
2 sprigs fresh thyme
4 sprigs fresh oregano, divided
2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
2.5 cups chicken stock
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
1/2 cup minced parsley (plus more for garnish)
2 oz feta cheese, crumbled (plus more for garnish)
METHOD
Add the olive oil to a large pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken, skin side down. Once the thighs are brown on the skin side, about 6-7 minutes, flip over and allow to cook on the other side for an additional 2 minutes. Set the thighs aside on a plate. Note: To avoid over-crowing the pan, brown the chicken in batches.
Turn the heat down to low and add the shallots along with a big pinch of salt. Saute the shallots for 2-3 minutes, until softened (but not brown).
Add the garlic and orzo and cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the orzo is lightly toasted.
Add the olives, thyme sprigs, two of the oregano sprigs, most of the tomatoes (reserve 1/2 cup), and chicken stock. Stir and bring the mixture up to a rolling simmer over high heat.
Once simmering, turn down the heat to low and nestle the chicken in the pan, skin side up. Cover the pan with a lid and allow to cook over low heat until the orzo is al dente, 15-18 minutes (cook time will vary based on your stove’s heat, and the size of your pan). It’s important to have your heat on the lowest setting to prevent burning the bottom. By the time the orzo is al dente, the chicken will also be fully cooked and juicy!
Remove the chicken from the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Mince the fresh oregano from the two remaining sprigs.
Add the reserved 1/2 cup of tomatoes, lemon zest + juice, feta, and minced parsley and oregano to the orzo. Stir to combine and add kosher salt and pepper to taste.
Slice the chicken and return to the pan with the orzo. Serve topped with more minced parsley and crumbled feta!
NOTES
If you can’t find boneless, skin-on thighs at the store, you can ask your butcher to remove the bones from bone-in, skin-on thighs. I highly recommend using the boneless, skin-on thighs because 1) the skin renders out when you brown it. That will produce enough fat (and flavor!) to saute your shallots in step two. 2) The skin keeps the chicken moist as it cooks. 3) If you have bones-in thighs, the chicken will take longer to cook and won’t be done by the time your orzo is al dente.
If you can’t find them, you can use boneless, skinless thighs. Just note that you’ll have to add another Tablespoon of olive oil to the pan when you saute your shallots in step 2.
The great thing about this dish is that you can add additional flavors if you want. A couple that come to mind are capers, artichoke hearts, and fresh dill! The one thing I’d say is that if you choose not to use fresh tomatoes, add ~1/4 cup more chicken stock to the orzo in step 4. The fresh tomatoes give off a good amount of liquid when they cook so you’ll need to replace that with more stock.
This can be made vegetarian if you’d like! Just skip the chicken and start with sauteing the shallots in step 2. You can also replace the chicken stock for vegetable stock or even water.