Welcome to another episode of “How can so few ingredients make such a delicious meal?!” One-pot meals are a miracle, my friends, and this Lemon Pepper Chicken with Orzo is the perfect example. This dish is packed with flavor thanks to a hefty dose of lemon pepper, chicken broth, juicy chicken thighs, and a pop of feta at the end. Plus, it’s fast, easy, and barely anything to clean up afterward. :)
What’s in Lemon Pepper Chicken with Orzo
For this skillet meal, I liberally seasoned some bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs with lemon pepper, then combined it with some orzo, chicken broth, and parsley. Everything gets cooked together in one pot so that orzo soaks up all the flavor from both the chicken thighs and the broth, and not a drop of flavor is lost. It’s so simple, yet so good. Add a quick little side salad with fresh greens and you’ve got a five-star dinner (and very few dishes to clean). Victory!
Can I Use Boneless Chicken?
I used bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe, but you can use boneless thighs or breasts if you prefer. The chicken will cook a little faster if you use boneless and you might miss out on a little bit of the flavor that comes with bone-in chicken. Also, be aware that chicken breasts do tend to dry out faster than chicken thighs, so the end product won’t be quite as juicy.
Tips for Cooking One Pot Pasta
Getting one pot pasta meals to cook just right can take a little practice, but here are a few tips to make sure your pasta cooks evenly and all the way through without leaving too much liquid behind:
- Use a heavy or thick-bottomed piece of cookware. Thin cookware doesn’t cook evenly and can leave some pasta undercooked and some pasta overcooked. A deep skillet or Dutch Oven will work well for this recipe.
- Use a burner that is close in size to the bottom of your pot or pan. If the burner is a lot smaller than the width of the pan, you may have trouble getting the outside edges to cook evenly.
- Make sure the broth is simmering the whole time. Heat settings on ranges can vary, so you may need to adjust the heat up or down slightly to maintain a simmer in the broth.
One Pot Lemon Pepper Chicken with Orzo
Servings 4Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs* ($3.74)
- 2 Tbsp lemon pepper seasoning ($0.60)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 2 cups chicken broth ($0.26)
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley ($0.20)
- 1.5 cups orzo ($1.29)
- 2 oz. feta, crumbled ($1.25)
Instructions
- Blot the chicken thighs dry with a paper towel, then season both sides liberally with lemon pepper seasoning (about 2 Tbsp lemon pepper total).
- Heat a large deep skillet over medium. Once hot, add the cooking oil. Add the seasoned chicken thighs, skin side down, and let them cook undisturbed until browned (about 6-8 minutes for bone-in skin-on thighs). Flip the chicken thighs and cook until browned on the second side. The chicken will be cooked most of the way through at this point but will finish cooking when simmered with the orzo. Remove the chicken to a clean plate.
- While the chicken is browning, roughly chop about 1/4 bunch of parsley and mince two cloves of garlic. After removing the chicken from the skillet, turn the heat down to low, add the minced garlic, and sauté the garlic in the residual fat for about a minute.
- Add 2 cups of chicken broth to the skillet and stir to dissolve the crispy browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Add the orzo and half of the chopped parsley. Stir to combine. Finally, return the chicken to the skillet, skin side up.
- Place a lid on the skillet, turn the heat up to high, and let the broth come to a full boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low. Let the skillet simmer on low for about 15 minutes, or until most of the broth has been absorbed. Make sure it’s simmering the whole time. If it stops simmering, increase the heat slightly until it just starts to simmer again.
- After about 15 minutes the orzo should be tender and most of the broth absorbed but there will still be a little sauce in the skillet.
- Fluff the orzo around the chicken a bit with a fork, then top with the remaining parsley and the crumbled feta. Serve and enjoy!
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make One Pot Chicken and Orzo – Step by Step Photos
Start by blotting four chicken thighs dry with a paper towel. Drying them helps the seasoning stick and helps them brown better in the skillet. I used bone-in thighs with skin, but you could use boneless, skinless if desired. Just keep in mind that boneless and skinless thighs are usually a bit more expensive and will cook faster. Season both sides of each thigh liberally with lemon pepper seasoning (about 2 Tbsp total).
Heat a large deep skillet over medium. Once hot, add 1 Tbsp cooking oil. Add the seasoned chicken thighs, skin side down, and let them cook undisturbed until browned (about 6-8 minutes for bone-in skin-on thighs). Flip the chicken thighs and cook until browned on the second side. The chicken will be cooked most of the way through at this point but will finish cooking when simmered with the orzo. Remove the chicken to a clean plate.
While the chicken is browning, roughly chop about 1/4 bunch of parsley and mince two cloves of garlic. Turn the heat down to low, add the minced garlic, and sauté the garlic in the residual fat for about a minute.
Add 2 cups of chicken broth to the skillet and stir to dissolve the crispy browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
The broth will turn a deep brown color as the drippings are dissolved into the mixture.
Add about half of the chopped parsley and 1.5 cups of orzo. Stir to combine.
Finally, return the chicken to the skillet, skin side up. Place a lid on the skillet, turn the heat up to high, and let the broth come to a full boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low. Let the skillet simmer on low for about 15 minutes, or until most of the broth has been absorbed. Make sure it’s simmering the whole time. If it stops simmering, increase the heat slightly until it just starts to simmer again.
After about 15 minutes the orzo should be tender and most of the broth absorbed but there will still be a little sauce in the skillet.
Fluff the orzo around the chicken a bit with a fork, then top with the remaining parsley and the crumbled feta. And that’s all it takes to make this simple Lemon Pepper Chicken with Orzo. I could seriously eat this orzo all day long. ALL. DAY. LONG.
This recipe was so easy and delicious! It cost pennies to make and fed my family of 4, who all ate it quickly. Everyone loved it! Even my very picky 7 year old.
sooo good and a perfect weeknight meal! i made it a one pot deal by just putting some sliced zucchs on top everything towards the end.
This recipe looks delicious and I am planning to make if tonight. I like to have some vegetables at dinner and had been thinking that I would steam or saute some broccoli to go along side this–but then I thought, maybe I could cook the broccoli in the pan and get some of the lemon pepper goodness in it!? Any thoughts, ideas or advice on how I might be able to make this the ultimate one-pot dish?
thank you!
Yep, you’re on the right track! You could probably mix in some frozen broccoli florets or sliced zucchini. The only issue is that the simmer time might be a little too long for some vegetables, so you risk making them a bit limp or over cooked. (And you have to have a skillet big enough for all of it!)
I made this last night with a few tweaks. No parsley on hand so we used spinach. I also skipped the feta since we were out. At the very end I threw in a cup of frozen peas cause I love them. this was a great dish we will be adding to our rotation. Thanks for sharing!
I’ve been wanting to try a couple recipes on here but I’m worried my skillet isn’t deep enough. How big are the skillets you use for recipes like this?
It’s labeled as a 3 quart skillet on the bottom and I just measured the dimensions as 10″ diameter and 2.5″ deep. :)
This recipe is another winner. Thank you so very much for what you do Beth. I love food, and I love to cook, but sometimes I have no inspiration. Those days I check out budget bytes. I can always rely on you for a great dinner. I know I would have eaten alot more takeout if it weren’t for your great work. Thank you.
This looks awesome! My boyfriend really isn’t a fan of parsley no matter what its in. Do you think that basil would work as well? Could I cook the basil/oregano in the dish the way you did with the parsley or would it not work that way? He’s not a big cilantro lover either so basil and oregano have become our go to herbs around here. Thanks!
Oh, yes, basil would be great! I think basil and oregano would work just fine with the lemon pepper.
Did you boil the orzo before adding it to the broth? or did you add it straight from the box
Straight from the box. :) It boils in the broth and that’s how it cooks.
I made this last night for dinner. It was delicious. Doubled the recipe since I have two teenagers. It re-heated nicely for lunch today too! One of the commenters said they added spinach. I was too chicken to add it directly to the pot, but I put the whole dinner on top of a bed of spinach and the boys ate it all. Thanks!
Hey Beth, this looks amazing, can’t wait to try it.
I am in Europe and I have never seen anything like the lemon and pepper seasoning. Would it work to use pepper and lemon juice? What quantities would you recommend?
Thanks!
You can just coat the chicken with a generous amount of pepper and a pinch of salt. Then I’d add sliced lemons to the skillet with the broth and parsley, so they simmer with the orzo and add flavor. It won’t be exactly the same, but hopefully you’ll still get that flavor. Lemon pepper seasoning is unique because you get concentrated lemon flavor without the liquid of lemon juice, so it grabs onto food better.
Good idea, I had been wondering about this too. Thanks.
I made this last night with my 8 year old helping. Used boneless thighs because that was what I had on hand. It turned out delicious! Another hit from Budget Bytes. Finally easy meals that my kids like. Thank you!
Whats a good substitute for the feta? This sounds so good but no one in my family likes feta
Parmesan would also be nice. If you want something tangy, you can try goat cheese.
This was fantastic! Thanks for the recipe.
How would the recipe differ if i used boneless thighs?
The thighs will brown a little faster in the skillet, so just keep that in mind (and there might not be any fat to drain off after browning). Other than that, you can do everything else the same. The broth in the skillet will prevent the thighs from drying out even though they’ll cook faster than bone-in thighs.
This looks fantastic! Will be making next week- adding it to my weekly dinner menu! ;)