High Protein Chicken Orzo
This high-protein chicken orzo is one of our favorite weeknight meals—simple, satisfying, and packed with flavor! Made with creamy orzo, asparagus, and tender chicken, it’s an easy one-pot dinner that’s both hearty and nutritious. Perfect for busy nights when you need a quick yet delicious meal!
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- 1tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
- ½ cup chopped yellow onion
- 2 cups fresh asparagus, cut into
- 1-inch pieces
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 8 oz dry orzo
- 2½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or ¼ tsp dried thyme)
- ⅓ cup half-and-half (or whole milk)
- ⅓ cup freshly grated parmesan2 cups fresh spinach
Instructions
- Season & Cook the Chicken: In a bowl, toss chicken with garlic powder, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Cook chicken for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Remove and set aside.
- Sauté the Veggies: In the same pan, add the remaining oil. Sauté asparagus for 2 minutes, then remove and set aside.
- Toast the Orzo: Add onions to the pan and cook for 3 minutes until softened. Stir in orzo and garlic, cooking for another 3 minutes until orzo is slightly toasted.
- Simmer: Pour in chicken broth and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover and cook for 7 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Combine & Serve: Stir in cooked chicken, asparagus, half-and-half, parmesan, spinach, and thyme. Cook for 1-2 minutes until heated through and spinach is wilted.
- Enjoy! Serve immediately with fresh parsley and extra parmesan
Notes
- This dish is best when fresh. Leftovers tend to be drier, less creamy, and can clump together. For best quality, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days and reheat in a covered pot on the stove, over low heat, adding some extra broth to loosen it back up.
- There are different sizes of orzo pasta, and they may have different cooking times.The size most commonly found in the supermarkets around me cook in about 8 minutes. This recipe was made using Barilla orzo. Check the packaging of orzo for cook times and choose one with an 7-9 minute cook time.
- This orzo can be made with chunks of boneless skinless thighs, but you may need to adjust the cooking time for the chicken. To make this an even faster dish, you can skip the first 2 steps and use pulled or chopped cooked chicken folded in at the end.
- Other vegetables that would be good in this would be zucchini, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms.
- Chicken broth can be substituted with vegetable broth.Did you make this recipe?
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