Preserved lemon is one of those powerhouse ingredients where you add a little to a dish and it completely transforms and makes the whole meal sing.
This one-pan chicken and orzo recipe is mighty flavoursome with zingy lemon, earthy olives and crumbly, salty feta, mixed through the bite-size orzo and meaty chicken pieces.
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Yields:
6 serving(s)
Prep Time:
20 mins
Cook Time:
55 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 15 mins
Cal/Serv:
611
Ingredients
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1kg chicken thighs and drumsticks, skin on
pinch of saffron
500 ml hot chicken stock
2 leeks, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
100 ml white wine
300 g orzo
4 preserved lemons, washed, pips removed and chopped
75 g pitted green olives, halved
75 g feta, crumbled
small handful dill, roughly chopped
Directions
Step 1Heat 1tbsp oil in a large, deep frying pan (that has a lid) over medium heat and brown the chicken pieces well all over (do this in batches if needed). Meanwhile, add saffron to the hot stock and set aside to infuse. Transfer browned chicken to a bowl.
Step 2Lower heat under pan, add remaining oil and fry the leeks until softened and golden brown, about 8-10min, making sure to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Add garlic and fry for 1min, then stir in wine and bubble for a few minutes. Add orzo, preserved lemons, olives and infused stock.
Step 3Lay chicken pieces (skin-side up) on top of orzo, season and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 20-25min until orzo is tender and the chicken is cooked through. Scatter over feta and dill and serve with a salad, if you like.
Can I make this without wine?
Totally, just replace it with an equal amount of stock.
Could I add more veggies?
You could throw in some frozen peas, stir them in with the orzo at step 2. Or add some handfuls of spinach, stir them until they start to wilt in the hot stock before moving on to step 3.
Per serving:
Calories: 611
Protein: 41g
Fat: 29g
Sat fat: 8g
Carbs: 39g
Sugars: 3g
Fibre: 6g
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The GH Kitchen Team are Good Housekeeping’s resident recipe developers and all-round food obsessives. GH Kitchen Director Sarah Akhurst is our resident hosting pro and loves nothing more than putting on a foodie feast for friends. Our GH Kitchen Manager Linzi Pucino is our very own Italian food expert (originally hailing from the North East of Scotland!) and can be found working her way through midweek recipes that cover all bases, from haggis to ragu! Our Kitchen Editor Nadine Brown loves digging into the stories behind her favourite foods and enjoys applying her eclectic tastes to more modern, flavour-forward recipes - just don't give her too much chilli! Our Junior Food Content Produce Frankie Prichard combines a love of beautiful presentation and flavour-led, seasonal cooking in her recipe development, along with a passion for bringing people together through food. With a wealth of professional kitchen experience between them, they’re dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work every single time
