One Pan Chicken & Orzo #Recipe @PegCochran

One Sunday, when it was too rainy to grill (I will grill until the last possible minute and even then I'll shovel the snow off the grill), I went looking for something that a) didn't require a trip to the grocery store and b) was easy to make and c) was a complete, one pan dinner.  I found a recipe for chicken with orzo. 

Of course I changed a few things (what else is new, right?)  I thought the proportions of orzo to chicken were way off--we would be overwhelmed with orzo.  I cut down on the quantity and correspondingly cut down on the broth.  I also increased the tomatoes because I hate having 1/4 of a can sitting in the refrigerator until mold grows on top and I can throw it out!

And I added the olives because I like them and I had them!  I thought they added a nice briny touch to the dish.

Ingredients

4 to 6 chicken thighs—with bone or boneless/skinless—whichever you prefer
a glug of olive oil – about 1 tablespoon
1 cup orzo pasta
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. Italian seasoning or a blend of
oregano/thyme/basil
1 cup chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes
several grinds of fresh black pepper
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
a handful of Kalamata olives, cut in half

Heat olive oil in sauté pan and add chicken thighs, skin side down (if using thighs with skin.)   

Saute until skin is nicely browned (skinless thighs won’t brown as much and will take less time.)

Remove chicken and place on a plate.  Add orzo to pan and sauté until golden.

Add onion and garlic to pan and sauté until onion softens.

Put chicken back in pan, add broth, tomatoes, seasonings and olives.  Bring to a simmer and cook over low heat until chicken is done (approximately 20 minutes) and broth has been absorbed and orzo is al dente.

 Out Now!

One Pan Chicken Breast Dinner

Where is the quinoa, please? I'm certain I bought it but I don't see it anywhere. Don't you hate it when that happens? So the interesting quinoa recipe that I found will have to be another week. In the meantime, I tried this one pan dinner by Jaime Oliver.

I have to admit that this is the way I like to eat. Quick, easy, fresh ingredients with a simple sauce. Elegant in its simplicity, colorful, and even healthy. I was drawn in originally because of the way he cut the chicken breast. Instead of pounding it (which I never like to do), he makes two slices in the thick portion so that it cooks as fast as the thinner end. I never saw anyone do that before and had to try.

My concern was that it would be easy to overcook the chicken. Chicken breasts are a staple in my life so I know there's nothing worse than dried out chicken. It turned out fine but don't walk away and ignore it. The chicken cooks quickly. I suspect I didn't have the heat up quite high enough. Start at medium high and turn it down if necessary.

I used thin stalks of asparagus. If you find that your asparagus isn't cooked enough for your taste, remove the chicken to a plate when it's done and let the asparagus cook a few minutes more.

There's bacon in the recipe, which was interesting to me. You're supposed to place a piece of raw bacon over each piece of chicken after it's browned. Now, I happened to have leftover bacon, so I cheated a little and used two slightly undercooked pieces. I also added a teaspoon of bacon grease to make up for the loss of that flavor. In the end, my bacon just became soft. So the raw bacon would probably fare better.

The recipe also calls for basil leaves. It's not quite that season here yet, so I substituted a fine herb blend. Remember to watch the chicken so it doesn't dry out. Oh, and we're carb people so I served it with rice.

One Pan Chicken Breast Dinner

by Jaime Oliver

olive oil
2 chicken breasts
salt and pepper
2 slices raw bacon
asparagus (two handfuls)
16 cherry tomatoes
12 Kalamata olives
a few basil leaves or 1/2 teaspoon of fine herbs
1/4 cup white wine
1 tablespoon butter

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large pan at medium high. Slice the thick ends of the chicken breasts into three roughly equal pieces so they will cook as fast as the thin ends. Salt and pepper the meat. Brown on one side, 2-3 minutes.

Flip the chicken breasts with tongs and lay the raw bacon on top of the breasts. Add the asparagus, tomatoes, herbs, and olives. When the bottom side is browned, flip the breasts again so that the bacon is underneath the chicken breasts. The bacon should crisp up. Flip again, moving the veggies around so that they cook.

Pour the white wine in the pan, scraping up any bits of bacon. Remove from heat and place the chicken on plates. Add the butter and swirl the pan to incorporate it into the sauce. Plate the veggies and pour the sauce over top of the chicken.

Slice the thick ends into three equal parts so they cook as fast as the thin part!

After browning, place raw bacon on top of the chicken. (Mine was cooked.)

Add the asparagus, olives, tomatoes, and herbs and . . .

. . . flip the chicken so the bacon crisps underneath it.

Flip back and add white wine.

Drizzle with the sauce.

So colorful!