Creamy Lemon Chicken & Spinach Orzo Bake

  • Serves: 6
  • Prep time: 20 mins
  • Cook time: 45 Mins

One dish. One oven. Hardly any washing up. This creamy lemon chicken and spinach orzo bake is the perfect midweek family dinner. Tender chicken thighs, creamy lemon-infused orzo and plenty of Parmesan come together to create a comforting meal that's rich, satisfying and incredibly easy to make. It's one of those recipes you'll find yourself coming back to again and again.

  • Chicken
  • Dinner

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 185°C.
  2. In a large baking dish, combine the orzo, chicken stock, cream, lemon zest and juice. Stir until well combined.
  3. Scatter the whole baby spinach leaves over the top.
  4. Arrange the chicken thigh fillets over the spinach.
  5. Drizzle with the olive oil, then sprinkle over the salt, garlic powder, onion powder and Italian seasoning.
  6. Cover the dish first with a sheet of baking paper, then seal tightly with aluminium foil.
  7. Bake for 40 minutes.
  8. Carefully remove the foil and baking paper. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly over the top.
  9. Return to the oven, uncovered, for a further 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted, golden and bubbling.
  10. Leave to stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Chrissy Rob Foodie Tip

Don’t get too caught up on using orzo. Any small pasta will work beautifully, especially the wonderful artisan varieties you’ll find at Pasta Social Club at the Adelaide Farmers’ Market. Even leftover dried fettuccine can be snapped into small pieces and added to the dish. Use whatever you have in the pantry—the pasta choice is really up to you. Try Alexandrina Cheese Romano instead of Parmesan. 

This is one of those recipes that looks like you’ve spent hours in the kitchen, when in reality it takes just minutes to put together. The oven does all the hard work, and the end result is a rich, creamy, comforting meal that tasted absolutely amazing.

By: Chrissy Rob Foodie