“Marry Me” chicken orzo pasta is a delectable creamy one-pan dinner featuring tender chicken and hearty orzo in luscious sun-dried tomato cream sauce. It’s a take on the classic “Marry Me Chicken” recipe. Impress your family and friends with this easy-to-make, comforting dinner!
Try this creamy garlic parmesan orzo for an effortless one-pot comfort dish that’s perfect for a busy weeknight dinner.
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An irresistible cozy dinner that’ll lead to a proposal
- A perfect cozy weeknight dinner that’ll win hearts.
- Quick and easy to make in 30 minutes.
- This creamy, rich chicken orzo recipe is packed with amazing flavors, not just for date night, but it’s also a great weeknight dinner.
- Irresistible dish. Try it once it’ll surely become a staple in your home. It will become your family’s favorite weekly meal.
- Easy to customize. Use other types of pasta, substitute chicken breasts for thighs, and use white wine, such as peach wine, to deglaze the pan, which’ll make the sauce sensational.
Ingredients
- Orzo – Dry orzo pasta. It’s a rice-shaped pasta.
- Chicken – Use boneless chicken breasts or chicken thighs cut into bite-sized cubes. Note- chicken thighs will take a slightly longer time to cook compared to chicken breasts.
- Olive oil – Use good-quality extra virgin olive oil. Feel free to use the olive oil from the sun-dried tomato jar.
- Aromats – shallots and garlic. You can substitute shallots with yellow onion, red onion. Use fresh garlic; do not recommend garlic powder.
- Paprika – I love smoked paprika; it adds a wonderful smoky flavor to the chicken.
- Salt & pepper – add it according to taste to season the chicken.
- Sun-dried tomatoes – I recommend using sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil.
- Oregano. You can also use Italian seasoning to enhance the flavor of the sauce.
- Chicken broth – use low-sodium chicken broth. Follow this recipe to make instant pot bone broth. at home
- Heavy cream – it provides a rich, creamy, velvety base for the sauce.
- Baby spinach – packs nutrients into the chicken tortellini dish. You can use chopped regular spinach.
- Fresh basil – optional. Adds lots of flavors to the dish.
- Parmesan – always use block cheese and grate it fresh before use. Freshly grated Parmesan cheese adds a finishing touch of savory flavor. For best results, use aged Italian Parmigiano.
Additional Ingredients and Substitutions
Flavor enhancers – to enhance more flavor in the dish, use flavor enhancers such as Worcestershire sauce and ¼ teaspoon of dry mustard powder.
Make it spicy – you can use hot sauce such as buffalo hot sauce or sriracha hot sauce. Hot sauce not only adds mild heat (depending on the amount you add), but it also adds umami. You may also use spicy sweet chili sauce or schezwan sauce.
Feel free to use red chili flakes in place of hot sauce.
To make the sauce richer, use dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, or Sauvignon Blanc works great.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Heat olive oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes. Sauté shallots until translucent.
Step 2: Sauté garlic until fragrant.
Step 3: Add cubed chicken, salt-pepper, paprika, and oregano (or Italian seasoning).
Step 4: Cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken changes color on all sides.
Step 5: Add dry orzo pasta to the pan and roast it in oil.
Step 6: Continue stirring until lightly toasted and it begins to change color to light brown.
Step 7: Add drained sun-dried tomatoes and add them to the pan. Mix well and cook for 30 seconds.
Step 8: Pour chicken broth, stir well.
Step 9: Once broth begins to boil, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan with a lid, and allow it to simmer for 8-10 minutes.
Step 10: Remove the lid, gently stir the orzo pasta.
Step 11: Pour heavy cream and add spinach. Mix until combined and cook till the spinach begins to wilt.
Step 12: Remove pan from heat, grate Parmesan cheese. Mix until the cheese blends with the sauce.
Serve hot immediately.
Serving Suggestion
Marry Me chicken orzo pasta is a dish that can be served as it is for a great weeknight meal. Pair it with simple chopped salad, oven-roasted broccoli, and cheddar drop biscuits on the side for a balanced, complete meal.
Best Tips
- Use fresh ingredients for the best flavor and taste.
- Don’t overcook the chicken.
- Gentle stirring. Stir with gentle hands to avoid breaking of orzo and chicken.
- If the sauce seems thick, add a splash of chicken broth or water to adjust the consistency.
- Reduce the heat before adding heavy cream to prevent the sauce from splitting.
- Always buy a Parmesan cheese block and grate it yourself. Pre-grated cheese from the store usually has chemicals to keep it from lumping together, and it does melt well.
Storage & Reheating
Storage: Cool any leftover Marry Me chicken orzo completely, then transfer to an air-tight container and store refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Reheating: leftovers can be reheated on a stovetop over low heat. Add a splash of milk to bring back the creaminess of the sauce. Stir gently and occasionally; do not stir the dish too much, as it may result in breaking orzo.
You can also microwave it in microwave microwave-safe bowl covered with a lid to retain moisture. Reheat until warm and serve immediately.
Freezing: Orzo is best eaten immediately. I don’t recommend freezing as orzo pasta can become very stodgy, and there is a possibility of cream sauce splitting when frozen and reheated.
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📋Marry Me Chicken Orzo Pasta
Ingredients
- 9- ounces orzo pasta
- 6 ounces sun-dried tomatoes soaked in olive oil
- 1 lb boneless chicken cut into small cubes
- 2 ¾ cups chicken broth
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- 4 ounces baby spinach or regular spinach, chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil I used olive oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes
- ¼ cup shallots diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ⅓ teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon pepper adjust to taste
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 2 ounces Parmesan cheese freshly grated
Instructions
- Heat olive oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes. Sauté shallots until translucent.
- Sauté garlic until fragrant.
- Add cubed chicken, salt-pepper, paprika, and oregano (or Italian seasoning).
- Cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken changes color on all sides.
- Add dry orzo pasta to the pan and roast it in oil.
- Continue stirring until lightly toasted and it begins to change color to light brown.
- Add drained sun-dried tomatoes and add them to the pan. Mix well and cook for 30 seconds.
- Pour chicken broth, stir well.
- Once broth begins to boil, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan with a lid, and allow it to simmer for 8-10 minutes.
- Remove the lid, gently stir the orzo pasta.
- Pour heavy cream, add spinach. Mix until combined and cook till the spinach begins to wilt.
- Remove pan from heat, grate Parmesan cheese. Mix until the cheese blends with the sauce.
- Serve hot immediately.
Video
Notes
- Use fresh ingredients for the best flavor and taste.
- Don’t overcook the chicken.
- Gentle stirring. Stir with gentle hands to avoid breaking of orzo and chicken.
- If the sauce seems thick, add a splash of chicken broth or water to adjust the consistency.
- Reduce the heat before adding heavy cream to prevent the sauce from splitting.
- Always buy a Parmesan cheese block and grate it yourself. Pre-grated cheese from the store usually has chemicals to keep it from lumping together, and it does melt well.
Nutrition
Created by Jyothi Rajesh
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I’m Jyothi Rajesh (Jo for short) and i’m the founder of the food blog, Curry Trail where I share my culinary Adventures. I live in Bangalore, India. I’m a mom of two beautiful kids. My passion is creating and sharing delicious and easy recipes for the home cook. I have been blogging since 2007 and many of my recipes have appeared in both online and print publications over the years. Learn more about Jyothi Rajesh.
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