Greek Chicken and Orzo

5 from 5 votes

This one pan dinner of chicken and orzo cooked in delicious Greek flavours is a great time saver for busy nights.

Prep Time5

Cook Time1 5

Total Time1 10

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Greek

Keyword: chicken and orzo

Servings:

1 tbsp This is an affiliate link.extra virgin olive oil
4 chicken legs
salt and pepper
1 onion
2 This is an affiliate link.bay leaves
2 cinnamon sticks
2 cloves garlic pressed
1 tsp dried oregano
1 red pepper sliced
400g / 14oz This is an affiliate link.crushed tomatoes chopped
500ml / 2 cups This is an affiliate link.chicken stock divided
1-2 tsp salt
300g / 1½ cups This is an affiliate link.orzo
280g / 1 cup jarred marinated or frozen artichokes drained if using marinated artichokes
80g / 1/2 cup feta cheese

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Heat the olive oil in a large pan, which could be used in an oven later, and brown the chicken legs seasoned with salt and pepper until golden but not cooked all the way through. Remove the chicken to a separate plate.
To the same pan add the chopped onion, bay leaves, cinnamon sticks and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, then add pressed garlic, sliced red pepper and dried oregano and cook for 2-3 minutes longer. Then add in chopped tomatoes and half of the chicken stock with a pinch of salt, stir to combine and bring to a boil. Place the chicken legs on top of the sauce, cover with a lid or aluminium foil and put in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
Take the pan out of the oven, uncover and remove the chicken legs to a separate plate. To the sauce add the remaining chicken stock, orzo and artichokes, stir, then bring the chicken back to the pan, cover and cook for 20 minutes longer. Then uncover and cook for 15 minutes giving the chicken legs some time to develop crispy skin. You might still have some liquid by the end of the cooking time but it will get absorbed by the orzo in 10 minutes or so. Serve topped with feta cheese.

Since this recipe is designed to go from a stovetop to oven, it's best to use a pan that is made for it. Ideally you should have a lid for that pan as well or you can cover it with aluminum foil. My cast iron casserole pan is what I use for such dishes.
I am using whole spices like cinnamon stick and bay leaves here to add flavour to the dish. If you can't find cinnamon sticks you can use 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon instead.
I used whole chicken legs but you can replace them with chicken thighs or drumsticks. If you want to use chicken breasts instead eliminate the first 20 minutes of cooking in step 2.
I love using marinated artichokes but you can safely omit them or replace with kalamata olives for extra flavour.
Let the dish rest for 10 minutes before serving. This will allow the remaining liquid to be absorbed by orzo.