Lemon Chicken Orzo
Lemon chicken orzo bake with olives and Cavolo nero, ready in three simple cooking stages and wildly flavoursome.
Servings: 6
Equipment
- This is an affiliate link.Cast iron casserole dish
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp This is an affiliate link.olive oil
- 6 skinless boneless chicken thighs
- salt
- 2 large shallots or 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 100g/ 1/2 cup basil pesto
- 1 lemon
- 1.25 litre/5 cups This is an affiliate link.chicken stock
- 50g/1/4 cup pitted green olives
- 1 tsp salt
- 120g/4 oz Cavolo Nero/Kale, rib removed or spinach
- 500g/17 oz This is an affiliate link.orzo
- 50g/1/2 cup This is an affiliate link.Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Season the chicken thighs with salt and brown them in 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large and deep pan over medium heat until golden but not cooked all the way through. Remove to a plate.
- To the same pan add the chopped onion and cook over low heat for 5-7 minutes, then add the minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer. Stir in basil pesto, juice of 1/2 lemon, chicken stock and salt, bring the liquid to a simmer.
- Once it’s bubbling add the chopped cavolo nero, Parmesan cheese, olives and orzo, stir to combine, then top with the chicken thighs, cover with a lid and cook in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then uncover and cook for 5-10 minutes longer. Serve with additional grated Parmesan and lemon wedges.
Nutrition
Calories: 669kcal | Carbohydrates: 76g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 121mg | Sodium: 1227mg | Potassium: 822mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 2470IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 224mg | Iron: 3mg