Italy: Creamy Courgette and Chicken Orzo
So somehow I managed to pretty much neglect orzo when it comes to my cooking. Not sure how this happened, but probably has something to do with the fact that I haven’t spent a lot of time in North-East part of Italy, where this pasta is from. Who knows.
In either case, I decided to finally break my abysmal cycle of culinary avoidance. Armed with some combination of inspiring and drool-worthy cooking videos, I have forged together a one-pan (one if you estimate your portions and pan sizes right… Two if you’re like me are overly ambitious about how much food your smaller pan can fit) recipe for a summery orzo. I think the lemons and fresh herbs give it the lighter flavors, while the cheeses give it that indulgent velvety texture.
Timings and Portions:
This recipe will take about 45 minutes to make, depending on how much time you spend with your ingredients, prepping them. On stove it cooks within 10 minutes and then another 15 or 20 in the oven.
You will need an oven-safe frying pan.
This will serve a lot more people than I expected, but that is entirely on me. I cooked for one, but I’d say this can easily feed 4 very hungry adults.
What you will need
2 Courgettes
2 Shallots
4 Garlic cloves
250g Orzo
Chicken meat
200ml Chicken Stock
Salt/Black Pepper
Olive Oil
150ml White Wine
1 Lemon
200g Parmigiano
50g Creme Fraiche
Fresh Oregano
Fresh Parsley
Fresh Thyme
Step 1
Chop up your shallots, garlic and slice up your courgettes.
I actually use the wide section of that stand-up grater to quickly get through the courgettes and it works a treat.
At this time I also prepped the chicken meat. I portion it out and like to remove any access fat or cartilage.
Step 2
Preheat your oven to 160C.
Heat up some olive oil on your pan and fry up the chicken, until it has a nice golden coating around it. Remove it from pan and set aside for now.
In the same pan, add your shallots and garlic. Fry them up until they are golden and deglaze with the white wine. Cook the whole thing down a bit for a few minutes.
Once the liquid is reduced to about half, add in your orzo and your chicken stock.
Add your creme fraiche and parmigiano and mix well. Once blended, you can add in your courgettes (this is when I personally panicked and realized I needed to switch pans)
Add the juice of your lemon, salt, pepper and fresh herbs. There should still be a bit more liquid in there then you’d want in the final dish, this will cook absorb into the pasta in the oven.
Mix well and pop the whole thing in to the oven.
step 3
The dish really just does its own thing in the oven and does not need to be mixed. You can test the orzo about 10 minutes in to see how its progressing, but as with any pasta - you’re aiming for el-dente.
Serve pretty much immediately. I served with fresh parmigiano on top as well as fresh black pepper and season with fresh basil.
I paired it with a rose from Provance (specifically, Miraval) which I thought stood up nicely to the flavors in the dish but still kept that summer theme.
ENJOY!