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Say hello to your new favorite dinner — Creamy One-Pot Lemon Feta Chicken with Orzo!
I know I’ve shared a lot of orzo skillet recipes on the blog before, but that’s just because they’re so easy and so delicious. And this one is no exception. It features deliciously spiced chicken served over a brightly flavored orzo that gets its creaminess from crumbled feta. The combination of warm spices, fresh herbs, and tangy feta cheese works so well together. Aside from the flavor, I also love how this is all made in one pot, which makes for super easy clean-up.
ingredients:
- Kosher Salt
- Turmeric
- Smoked Paprika
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Cayenne Pepper
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Shallot
- Garlic Cloves
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- Dijon Mustard
- Dry White Wine
- Orzo
- Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
- Lemon Zest
- Lemon Juice
- Fresh Oregano
- Fresh Parsley
- Crumbled Feta Cheese
- Lemon Wedges
step-by-step:
step one: preheat the oven
Preheat oven to 375℉.
step two: make the spice blend
In a small bowl, combine the salt, turmeric, smoked paprika, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.
step three: season and sear the chicken
Pat the chicken dry, then season both sides generously with the spice mix. Heat the oil in a large, deep oven-safe skillet set over medium-high heat. Working in batches as needed, add the chicken and cook until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the skillet to a separate plate and set aside.
step four: add the aromatics and wine
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the shallots, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the Dijon and wine, stirring and scraping up any brown bits. Cook until the mixture has reduced by half.
step five: add the orzo and cook
Add the orzo, chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, oregano, parsley, and 1/2 cup feta crumbles. Stir to combine, then nestle the chicken (and any juices) into the skillet. Transfer to the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, until orzo is almost cooked through.
step six: top with more feta
Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and top with the remaining 1/4 cup feta crumbles. Transfer back into the oven and continue to bake until the orzo is cooked through and the feta has softened, about 5 more minutes.
step seven: serve and enjoy
Remove from the oven and garnish with more oregano. Serve with lemon wedges.
recipe faqs:
Any sort of dry white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay will work well!
Absolutely! Although I haven’t tested it with anything other than chicken, my readers love to make it with salmon!!
I hope you all love this Creamy One-Pot Lemon Feta Chicken with Orzo!
want more cozy chicken recipes? try these!
One-Pan Roasted Chicken Ratatouille
Spinach, Artichoke, and Chicken Orzo Skillet
One-Pan Roasted Chicken with Lemony White Beans
Creamy Ricotta Chicken and Orzo Skillet
Creamy One-Pot Lemon Feta Chicken with Orzo
Ingredients
For the Spice Blend:
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
For the Chicken:
- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
For the Orzo:
- 1 large shallot, halved and thinly sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup orzo
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- zest of 1/2 lemon
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves, plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, divided
- lemon wedges, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375℉.
- In a small bowl, combine the salt, turmeric, smoked paprika, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.
- Pat the chicken dry, then season both sides generously with the spice mix. Heat the oil in a large, deep oven-safe skillet set over medium-high heat. Working in batches as needed, add the chicken and cook until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer the skillet to a separate plate and set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium. Add the shallots, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the Dijon and wine, stirring and scraping up any brown bits. Cook until the mixture has reduced by half.
- Add the orzo, chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, oregano, parsley, and 1/2 cup feta crumbles. Stir to combine, then nestle the chicken (and any juices) into the skillet. Transfer to the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, until orzo is almost cooked through.
- Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and top with the remaining 1/4 cup feta crumbles. Transfer back into the oven and continue to bake until the orzo is cooked through and the feta has softened, about 5 more minutes.
- Remove from the oven and garnish with more oregano. Serve with lemon wedges.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photography by Eat Love Eats.
I am in love with this recipe and would love to share the love and bring it to others. Do you think there’s a good way to transport this? Could you bring it uncooked with baking instructions? Or just reheat instructions?
making this this week. You never fail me! Question: my husband doesn’t love chicken thigh. If I sub chicken breasts, how would I alter the cooking time. Thanks!
Would parmesan or ricotta be a good substitute for feta?
I would probably go with goat cheese if you like that! But if not, ricotta would like work too. You may like this recipe!
This was delicious and easy to follow – my picky kids gave this a thumbs up!! The chicken got a really nice crisp and color, and the lemon flavor was perfect, even for my kids who don’t love lemon. This is definitely going in the rotation for us! The only thing I did not have was fresh oregano, so I just used less of it in the dry version and did not add extra at the end. My orzo stayed very creamy and saucy, so we also did not add extra lemon juice at the end. It easily fed my family of mom, dad, and three elementary aged kids plus one portion leftover. Also for me having wine on hand for cooking makes a difference in the flavor, so I try to use it and not sub it.
Can you leave out the white wine or substitute for something non-alcoholic?
Just sub in extra broth in place for the white wine!
Can this be adjusted to cook entirely on the stovetop? My oven isn’t working but I was excited to make this!! Thanks 🫶🏼
Yes if you cover with a light simmer and cook until the orzo is tender, it should work well!
This was SO EASY to make and SO delicious! The spice is the perfect amount, although next time i’ll leave out the cayenne so the kids wont complain about the heat. Do not skip out on this one! yum!
This looks amazing! What sized skillet is needed?
I use a 3.5 qt braiser!
Alex’s recipes never fail and this was no different. I love how much flavor is jam packed but without a list of 50 ingredients. Alex, you did it again. Thank you for such a delicious recipe!
Oh boy, this was a WINNER!! So much flavour, the chicken was so moist and tender, and my husband couldn’t stop raving about it! An instant FAVOURITE! ♥️
I am so glad!!!