This lemon chicken orzo dish is made in one skillet in less than 30 minutes! Juicy, seared chicken thighs are nestled into perfectly cooked, lemony orzo alongside thinly sliced lemons and fresh thyme. It’s an elevated weeknight dinner that the entire family will love!
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This recipe is…
This lemon orzo and chicken dinner is divine, y’all. It’s a simple dish (done in less than 30 minutes) that will, quite literally, knock your socks off! Plus, any dinner made in ONE skillet is a win in my book because it makes clean-up an absolute breeze.
Looking for more easy dinner ideas? We’ve got a BUNCH. These sheet pan curry chicken thighs are flavorful and always a home-run in my house, this baked chicken marinara is a simple, show-stopping dish, and this beef teriyaki sheet pan dinner is a delicious Asian-inspired spin on the classic sheet pan dinner.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s made in one-skillet – one skillet dishes are always a huge win in my house. My family gobbles them up, and I’m always super grateful for the easy clean-up.
- It’s flavorful – the ingredients are simple, but WOW, the flavor is not! Fresh lemon, thyme, and red pepper flakes make this recipe unbelievably delicious.
Lemon Chicken Orzo Recipe Ingredients
You don’t need a whole lot to make this easy one-skillet dinner. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- Chicken thighs – we used chicken thighs here because they stay nice and juicy once cooked, but you can totally use chicken tenders or chicken breasts, if you’d prefer.
- Orzo – we used a grain-free cassava orzo for this recipe, but you can use regular, wheat orzo if that’s what you have on hand.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Variations and Modifications
- Use rice – if you don’t love orzo (or don’t have it on hand), feel free to use rice instead. If you decide to go this route, we suggest using this lemon chicken and rice recipe as a go-by instead.
- Make it dairy-free – this recipe is dairy-free as-is!
- Make it grain-free – as long as you use a grain-free orzo (we used Jovial’s cassava orzo) like we did, this recipe is totally grain-free.
- Make it gluten-free – similar to above, if you use a gluten-free orzo (or grain-free, like we did), this recipe is gluten-free.
How to Make a Lemon Chicken Orzo Skillet
One-skillet meals are as easy as it gets! Follow along below for the full how-to.
Step 1: In a large bowl, toss the chicken thighs with the chopped thyme, minced garlic, olive oil, 1 teaspoon sea salt, red pepper flakes, and lemon zest.
Step 2: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add the chicken thighs to the pan, nestle the lemon slices into the pan, and sear the chicken on one side for 6-7 minutes, or until it develops a nice brown crust. Remove the chicken and lemon slices from the pan and set aside.
Step 3: Add the butter to the pan and stir until it melts. Add the dried orzo and stir for 2 minutes to toast the orzo.
Step 4: Carefully pour the broth and lemon juice into the pan, stirring to deglaze the bottom of the pan.
Step 5: Add the chicken, seared side up, lemon slices, remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, and thyme sprigs to the pan.
Step 6: Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook fro 15 minutes over medium heat. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Tip
Let the orzo sit for a few minutes – after the orzo simmers for 15 minutes, know that there’s a REALLY good chance that there will be some extra liquid in the pan. If that’s the case, let the dish sit for 10 minutes so that the orzo can fully absorb the liquid, and then serve.
How to Serve
Serve your lemon chicken and orzo skillet as is (it’s a complete meal all on its own!) or, if you’re looking for a couple of sides to serve with it, alongside crusty bread (our cheesy garlic bread would be divine) and a simple arugula side salad.
How to Store and Reheat
Store any leftover lemon chicken and orzo in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
To reheat, simply pop a serving or two into the microwave for 1-2 minutes, until warmed through.
Frequently Asked Questions
Orzo is shaped like rice, but it’s actually pasta! Because of it’s unique shape, though, it finds its way into a lot of dishes that would typically call for rice (like this one-skillet meal!) vs. pasta.
You’ll know the orzo is done when it’s soft but still has a bit of a bite to it. Because it’s pasta, it’ll become mushy if it’s overcooked.
More Favorite Skillet Recipes
If you tried this Lemon Chicken Orzo or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Lemon Chicken Orzo Recipe
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1½ teaspoons salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 lemon, zested then sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1½ cups (or 1, 8-ounce box) dried orzo
- 2¼ cups chicken broth
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
Instructions
- In a large bowl, toss the chicken thighs with the chopped thyme, minced garlic, olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, red pepper flakes, and lemon zest.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add the chicken thighs to the pan, nestle the lemon slices into the pan, and sear the chicken on one side for 6-7 minutes, or until it develops a nice brown crust. Remove the chicken and lemon slices from the pan and set aside.
- Add the butter to the pan and stir until it melts. Add the dried orzo and stir for 2 minutes to toast the orzo.
- Carefully pour the broth and lemon juice into the pan, stirring to deglaze the bottom of the pan.
- Add the chicken, seared side up, lemon slices, remaining ½ teaspoon of salt, and thyme sprigs to the pan.
- Bring to a simmer, then cover and cook for 15 minutes over medium-low heat.
- Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Awesome recipe!
Mods:
air fried chicken breast pieces instead of thighs
lime instead of lemon(what I had on hand)
added chopped asparagus, bell pepper, and mild chili pepper
I sautéed the veggies and then the orzo all in one pan, then added the liquid and chicken. I did coat the chicken with all the spices before I air fried it.
It was really so good. My husband agreed. Lots of flavor without being too tart or salty. The orzo comes out perfect. I turned it off and let it sit for more than 15 minutes because I had to step away but when I came back everything was soaked up nicely. Will definitely make again!
Woah! That is amazing, Kelly! Mouth is watering just reading this! We are so happy y’all enjoyed it!
I’m all about lemon and pasta, so this was the perfect dish and tasted fantastic! It comes together quickly – ideal for a weeknight dinner!
You and me both haha! Lemon and pasta is my love language! We are so happy you enjoyed it, Laurie!
This was delicious and SO easy! It didn’t require a lot of ingredients but it was packed with flavor. I love a lemony dish and this one delivered.
Yay! We are so happy you loved it, Maggie!!
This was absolutely delicious 10/10!!
So easy, minimal fresh ingredients and simple to make! This will definitely be a repeat on rotation in my kitchen. Thank you!
Woohoo!! We are so so glad you loved it, Nicole! You are so welcome!!
This is a great weeknight meal. The lemon in this dish was a perfect balance. Thank you!
Awe yay! We are so so happy you enjoyed it, Emilee! And you are so so welcome!
I love lemon in savory dishes and this one was simple and so delicious. We actually ended up using a rotisserie chicken that we shredded to make it even quicker! (It did cause me to need to add more broth).
Leftovers were super tasty too!
But it was delicious and we will definitely be making it again!
Love anything that speeds up the process haha!! Rotisserie chicken is a great idea! We are so happy you enjoyed it, Kaitlyn!
Very tasty! This recipe was easier to make than I thought it would be. My kiddos thought it was too lemony so next time I’ll reduce the amount of lemon juice but I personally liked it. This was my first time using orzo and it turned out great!
Yay!! We are so happy it was a hit with the fam, Crystal! AND so so happy you were able to try orzo!
This was really delicious! I had never made orzo before, but I am definitely going to do it again! Thank you for introducing it to me with this delicious recipe and for the chance to join the cooking challenge this month!
Oh my goodness we are so happy you were able to try orzo, Jessica!! It is really just so so good! Thank you so much for taking a moment to share!
this was so delicious! I didn’t have orzo on hand so I used rice. It worked out well and the flavour is amazing!
Great idea using rice, Angela! We are so happy you enjoyed it!!
Overall loved the flavor and one-dish cleanup. Toasted orzo with lemon and thyme was such a yummy combo. Next time I will try making it with chicken breast and maybe not searing the lemon as that part had a slightly bitter taste and the chicken thighs ended up tough but I’m sure that was user error on my part. Love following Fedandfit recipes as a busy household.
We loved this recipe! It’s easy to prepare and is packed with flavor. This is such a great one for a busy weeknight dinner. I will be keeping this one in the rotation.
Aww yay! We are so so glad y’all loved it, Kim!!
First of all, the entire house smelled SO good when this was cooking! We loved it – my husband said toasted orzo may be his new favorite thing! Pretty sure we both had too much because we couldn’t stop eating it. It is easy to prepare and we’ve already made it a second time to share with friends.
Awww we love that, Holli! Nothing beats a good-smelling house!! We are so so happy y’all love it! Thank you so much for taking a moment to share!
Let’s be honest: I think I’ve only made one recipe from this site/the cookbooks that hasn’t been a hit. But this one? One of the best. We had orzo in a recipe before and no one was a fan. I was told not to make orzo ever again. But I’m so glad I took a chance and tried this one. I made it almost exactly as stated (left out the fresh thyme simply because I wasn’t sure how the family would feel about that). It was SO flavorful, the chicken was juicy, and everyone ate it (with 6 of us, and 2 more particular eaters, this is rare). Plus it was inexpensive since it used orzo and chicken thighs. I served it with broccoli on the side and that was perfect. Easy, flavorful, and even good as leftovers. Definitely recommend giving it a try.
That is so so incredibly kind, Debbie! This is just amazing! Brought the biggest smile to our faces! So so happy you and your family enjoyed it!!
amazing! the perfect amount of flavor and my family loves lemon!
Woohoo! We are so happy y’all enjoyed it, Stephanie!