Chicken Orzo Pasta Bake
Chicken Orzo Pasta Bake is a comforting, oven-baked dish featuring tender chicken thighs, savory vegetables, and orzo pasta, all combined in a creamy lemony sauce and topped with parmesan cheese. This hearty, flavorful casserole is perfect for a satisfying weeknight dinner and makes great meal prep!
Lemon Chicken Orzo
We can’t get enough chicken recipes in our home and this one fits the bill. It’s fairly simple and uses basic ingredients easily found in most grocery stores, is unbelievable delicious, and the leftovers are even better!
If you’ve made our Chicken Piccata with Pasta, you’ll notice similar flavors. But they are prepared far differently and include varying ingredients. Both are fantastic!
I particularly love lemon flavors in main dish recipes, including our Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad, Baked Lemon Garlic Chicken, Grilled Greek Chicken, and Healthy Tzatziki Sauce
Why This Recipe Works:
- ONE POT – This entire recipe gets made in just ONE pot! I love it when clean-up is simple.
- FULL OF FLAVOR – The tender chicken and pasta, the salty parmesan cheese, and the lemon-flavored sauce is everything I need in a main dish.
- PERFECT WEEKNIGHT MEAL – This dish comes together rather quickly and makes a perfect weeknight meal. You can some of the ingredients in advance to make it even quicker – chop the veggies, prep the lemons, and season the chicken.
- MAKES GREAT MEAL PREP – My hubby enjoys leftovers for lunches every day of the week. He always looks forward to this one!
What You’ll Need:
- Olive Oil – or you can use avocado oil
- Chicken Thighs – We love using chicken thighs because they are more forgiving in this dish. However, if you prefer using chicken breasts, those will work as well.
- Onion – Use either white or yellow onion.
- Garlic Cloves
- Unsalted Butter – Adds great flavor to this pasta bake.
- Orzo – One of our favorite types of pasta. We use it often – like in our Lemon Orzo Pasta Salad and Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup.
- Lemon – the zest and juice from two lemons
- Chicken Broth – we use lower sodium broth
- Spinach
- Parmesan Cheese – freshly shredded
How to make Lemon Chicken Orzo Pasta:
Step 1
Prep chicken. Add salt and pepper to chicken thighs.
Step 2
Prep lemons. Zest and juice two large lemons. This adds a lot of lemon flavor so you can use less, if preferred.
Step 3
Brown chicken. Add olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs and brown on both sides – about 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove chicken to a clean plate.
Step 4
Sauté onion and garlic. To the same skillet, add more olive oil and then the chopped onions. Sauté until softened, about 2-3 minutes, scraping up some of the brown bits as you go. Then add the minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
Step 5
Brown orzo. Add the butter, ground mustard, and orzo. Stir for a few minutes to toast the orzo slightly.
Step 6
Add liquid and spinach. Then add chicken broth, lemon zest, and lemon juice – and use a spatula to stir up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add spinach and half of the parmesan cheese – and stir again.
Step 7
Add chicken back. Add the browned chicken thighs back to the pan, nestling them into the orzo. Then add the remaining parmesan cheese to the top of the dish. Finish with some extra black pepper to taste.
Step 8
Bake. Bake chicken bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 30-35 mins, or until chicken is done.
NOTE: Chicken thighs are done when the internal temperature registers between 165-175 degrees F on a digital thermometer.
Store leftover pasta bake in an airtight container in your refrigerator for 3-4 days. You can also add it to individual meal prep containers for lunches on the go.
What to serve with Chicken Pasta Bake:
- Start with a glass of simple white wine, some Rose Sangria with Vodka, or Frozen Vodka Slush.
- A slice of bread or two. Try our Italian Herb Bread, Italian Focaccia Bread, or Everything Bagel Rolls.
- A simple salad with one of our favorite dressings. Try our Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette, Creamy Italian Dressing, or Spinach Salad Dressing.
Recipe FAQs:
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are preferred for their tenderness and flavor, but chicken breasts can also be used if desired. If using breasts, you’ll need to bake for less time to avoid drying them out.
We used onion, garlic, and spinach. Feel free to customize based on your preference.
Yes, if you don’t like lemon, feel free to skip it in this recipe.
The bake usually takes about 30-35 minutes in a 375°F oven, or until the chicken is golden and cooked through
Other Delicious Chicken Recipes:
We use chicken breasts and thighs in many of our recipes. Try one of the recipes below next!
xoxo ~Sue
Chicken Orzo Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 cup onion – chopped
- 3 cloves garlic – minced
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons ground mustard
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste
- 1 pound orzo
- 3 cups baby spinach
- 4 cups lower-sodium chicken broth
- 2 large lemons – zested and juiced
- 4 oz. parmesan cheese – freshly shredded
- red pepper flakes and/or chopped cilantro – to serve
Instructions
- Prep chicken. Add salt and pepper to chicken thighs.
- Prep lemons. Zest and juice two large lemons. This adds a lot of lemon flavor so you can use less, if preferred.
- Brown chicken. Add olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs and brown on both sides – about 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove chicken to a clean plate.
- Sauté onion and garlic. To the same skillet, add more olive oil and then the chopped onions. Sauté until softened, about 2-3 minutes, scraping up some of the brown bits as you go. Then add the minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
- Brown orzo. Add the butter, ground mustard, and orzo. Stir for a few minutes to toast the orzo slightly.
- Add liquid and spinach. Then add chicken broth, lemon zest, and lemon juice – and use a spatula to stir up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add spinach and half of the parmesan cheese – and stir again.
- Add chicken back. Add the browned chicken thighs back to the pan, nestling them into the orzo. Then add the remaining parmesan cheese to the top of the dish. Finish with some extra black pepper to taste.
- Bake. Bake chicken bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 30-35 mins, or until chicken is done.
Notes
- NOTE: Chicken thighs are done when the internal temperature registers between 165-175 degrees F on a digital thermometer.
- Store leftover pasta bake in an airtight container in your refrigerator for 3-4 days. You can also add it to individual meal prep containers for lunches on the go.