By Sarah Copeland
- Total Time
- 35 minutes, plus marinating
- Rating
- 4(2,467)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Chicken and orzo is timeless combination, simple and satisfying. In this recipe, you could use chicken thighs, but drumsticks make this dish super family-friendly. Of course, if you have a crowd that doesn’t love the classic feta-dill pairing, feel free to change the toppings. Mint or parsley work just as well for the herbs, and any salty, crumbly cheese is lovely here. You can dress this up as you like with cucumbers or cherry tomatoes, or green olives, served alongside or pitted, chopped and tossed in instead. Besides the obvious perk of its being a one-pot dinner, this recipe yields great leftovers. For the next day’s lunch, pull any remaining chicken off the bone, chop it, skin and all, and toss with the remaining orzo, vegetables and cheese. Know that the orzo — a very small pasta, not rice — soaks up all the liquid and flavor as it sits and cools, so you may need a drizzle of oil and lemon juice over the top to serve it the second day.
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 2lemons
- 5tablespoons olive oil
- 3garlic cloves, smashed
- 1teaspoon kosher salt
- 1teaspoon black pepper
- 2pounds chicken drumsticks or bone-in thighs
- 1yellow onion, peeled and chopped
- 2cups orzo
- 3cups chicken broth or water
- 2small or 1 large thin-skinned (English) cucumbers, chopped
- 5ounces feta, crumbled (about 1¼ cups)
- 2tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- Castelvetrano or other green olives, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
1093 calories; 69 grams fat; 21 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 32 grams monounsaturated fat; 11 grams polyunsaturated fat; 61 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 11 grams sugars; 57 grams protein; 1467 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Cut one of the lemons into wedges and set aside. Juice the remaining lemon and combine with 3 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, in a large resealable plastic bag or in a bowl, along with the chicken pieces. Seal and shake the bag (or stir in the bowl) to coat. Set aside for 30 minutes, or refrigerate up to overnight.
Step
2
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the chicken from the marinade, letting the excess drip off, and cook until lightly golden all over, turning when the chicken releases easily from the pan, about 12 minutes total. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.
Step
3
Add the onion to the pan and stir to coat with the remaining fat. Decrease heat to medium and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in the orzo and the broth or water. Cook until the liquid is partly absorbed, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Top with the chicken legs and cover with a lid or foil. Continue cooking until the orzo is tender, most of the liquid is absorbed, and the chicken is cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes more, depending on the size of your drumsticks or thighs. Remove from the heat and scatter the cucumber, feta and dill over the top. Serve from the skillet with lemon wedges and olives.
Tip
- Some cast-iron skillets come with a matching lid, which is useful for making the skillet operate a bit like a mini stove-top oven, cooking evenly and basting the food with flavor and steam. If you don’t have one, use a lid from another pan, or two layers of thick foil, folded at the center and large enough to cover your pan.
Ratings
4
out of 5
2,467
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Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Margaux Laskey, Staff Editor
so good, so easy! i made with boneless chicken thighs b/c i have squeamish children. watch the heat level. if you're not careful, the orzo will stick to the bottom of your pan.
Stacey
After a previous note about the cook time taking longer than the recipe indicated, I browned the chicken very well in the first step and kept it covered with foil until I was ready to add it back to the pan. It was done right on time. I'll make this again!
Charlie Henss
To clean discolored Le Creuset, try one part chlorine bleach (e.g. Clorox) to five parts water; soak until stains disappear (you will see some results almost instantly, but may have to wait a couple of hours for the full effect).
Margaux Laskey, Staff Editor
Thanks for your notes, all! Based on your feedback, we increased the range of cooking time for the chicken to 15 to 20 minutes.
Lorraine Fina Stevenski
Don't forget the lemon zest! Add the zest when cooking the onion. Zest is more lemony than the juice and adds great flavor.
Veronica Jordan
I substituted rice for orzo. I put the chicken in a ziplock with the marinade before work, and had someone flip it for me half way through the day. I baked the chicken on a sheet pan at 425 for 35 minutes and it was delicious! While the chicken cooked, I made Mark Bittman's green rice pilaf, and as this recipe suggests, waited until the rice cooled before tossing it with feta, cucumbers, olives and dill. BIG hit with my family, and previously they claimed they didn't like feta!
anna
Really tasty and easy. I used skinless, boneless thighs and they were delicious. I added lemon zest to orzo, because we just love lemon. This is a keeper.
Christopher C
I just made this again, sixth time maybe. Add 1/4 cup more water, take opportunity to scrape bottom of pan to clear crispy orzo. This dish makes me excited to eat. Every time.
Brooke
Use boneless thighs to speed things up a bit.
Riley park
bake chicken 425 degrees 30-35 minutescook orzo , cool, toss with cheese/arugula/olives
Virginia
Very good, simple recipe. Following others' advice I cooked the drumsticks a bit longer than the initially said. Also, this *needs* salt. I probably added 1/2 tsp after the orzo was done cooking.
guavajelly
I made this in the instant pot to speed it up-sautéed the onions and then added broth and marinated chicken thighs (boneless) and olives into pot for 7 min. Quick release and then added orzo and cooked for 3 min -natural release for 4 min then manually release rest of pressure. I waited about 5 minutes to let it thicken before adding the feta, cucumbers and dill. It was fast and delish! Alternatively, cook chicken for 10 min, remove and shred and set aside while orzo cooks and return to pot.
Aron
Didn't marinade the chix b/c I wanted a nice crisp exterior. First seasoned chix thighs w/ S&P & herbes de Provence. Then dredged in flour and browned them well. Added 4-5 cloves of garlic to onions. Added 1/2 cup of lemon juice to the chix broth. After cooking the onion/garlic mix added 3/4c of sliced olives. Covered cast iron skillet finished in oven at 350F for 30 mins. Serve cucs, feta and dill on the side and let your guests do the honor. Enjoy!
V
Cooking it in non-stick pan a great idea, but the crunch that accompanies orzo when it’s stuck on the pan is a good thing
coyoteboo
Used thighs as that was what I had. Aborrio rice instead of Orzo - to keep it gluten free. Was very filling.
what to do with orange peel ?
This was just tasteless. Maybe I didn’t add enough salt? The lemon and herbs just feel like afterthoughts sprinkled on top, not fully integrated. I only marinated for 45 minutes, maybe that’s an issue. But meh, 2 stars. And I have way too many leftovers
Elaine
Added diced mushrooms, minced garlic, coarsely chopped lemon zest, and chopped spinach. Fabulous meal. My Yiayia would be proud!
Cnb
Would not make this again. Too much effort for the bland taste of the dish. I give it a 2 of 5
Leslie
I stirred the feta and dill into the pan half way through cooking the chicken. This makes a nice cheesy sauce.
Kristina B.
I love this recipe, but realized there is one issue after making it tonight, after not making it for a while. When you cover the pan, I think you should turn the heat to medium low. My orzo burnt to the bottom of my cast iron and left an unpleasant burnt flavor. It took 20 minutes for the chicken to cook after all the other steps. So if I had turned the heat down, it may have taken 25 minutes.
BB
So fresh, easy to follow directions, prepped all other ingredients while waiting for chicken to marinade. Followed the timing to a tee and it came out so well. I had all ingredients in my pantry and fridge and so happy I found this recipe last minute! Received many good comments on it. Honestly, all the recipes from NY Times have bee. Winners thus far!
Sharon
Made this tonight and it was fab! The orzo did stick on some but we love a fond in our paellas and this was similar. Just scraped it up and enjoyed it. Someone mentioned putting some lemon zest in with the orzo while cooking so did that. Good. Did 8 drumsticks (closer to 3 lbs) and we ate half - and we are not big eaters. So, this would be perfect for 4 people. (Or, for us, a wonderful left over meal!) My husband - a foodie - said this would be a great “company” meal. Great compliment.
Simon
I have made this brilliant recipe twice. I might be addicted. The first time I made it with orzo per the recipe. The second time with farro. Infinitely more delicious with farro - and much more nutritious! Check it out…
Frank
I cooked it as directed. I used 1c water and homemade 2c chicken stock . The dish was tasty but it did need additional seasoning. I added fresh ground black pepper. The bone in chicken is not easy to eat. It gets sloppy so I pulled the meat from the bones before we had seconds. Also, the orzo absorbed any moisture in the pot really quickly while sitting and got very thick and heavy. I warmed a little stock and stired it in with a splash of lemon juice. I will make it again with boneless thighs.
Emily
This is my favorite weeknight chicken recipe! I no longer worry about the olives and use boneless, skinless thighs instead of bone-in for overall easier eating/cooking. I add an additional cup of stock as many other commenters suggest and make it with whole wheat orzo. You definitely have to stir intermittently to ensure the orzo doesn't stick. Super quick, flavorful, and filling.
Nanzee
This was great. I took some tips from others. Did not marinate chicken. Used 3 cups of liquid (broth and juice of two lemons). Browned 5 drumsticks, added lemon zest to onion/garlic saute. Added 1/2 cup olives with after onion saute and used only 1 cup of parboiled rice. Sprinkled a little dried oregano in and covered with a pan lid and slipped into convection oven at 400 for about 45 minutes. We loved it!
Jen
Delicious and easy meal, pleased everyone in the family. I cut the orzo in half, and it was better proportions of meat to pasta, and pasta to sauce, I thought.
Andrea
I followed this recipe to the letter (though I used my homemade Turkey stock) and it was outstanding. Both my husband and son want this again tomorrow… good thing we have leftovers. I’ll add that it tasted exactly as I had imagined it would when reading the recipe, which is a rarity. Bravo NYT! Highly recommend!
Madeline
Seriously delicious! Definitely use chicken stock, the orzo becomes so flavorful. I also seared the chicken longer and I’m glad I did because it would not have been ready at the same time the orzo was. Only addition was spinach which I would highly recommend! Went great with the dish and made me feel like a better person for eating my vegetables!
LES
Subbed in rice for the orzo as I'm gluten free and subbed in kalmata olives as I had them in the pantry. Tasty
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