Simple One-Pan Tomato & Herb Chicken Orzo
The gentle one. Orzo cooked risotto-style straight in the pan, no cream, no butter — quick, cosy, and very kind to a stomach that's had a rough couple of days.
why it works
Around 420–480 kcal for close to 40g of protein and only 5–6g of fat, almost none of it saturated. Orzo is tiny and rice-shaped so it cooks fast and sits light, which is exactly what you want when you're recovering rather than training.
Ingredients
- 60–75g dry orzo
- 100–150g cooked chicken breast, diced or shredded
- 2 tbsp tomato purée, or half a cup of passata
- 250ml low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ tsp dried Italian herbs or oregano
- a handful of baby spinach, optional
- 1 tsp olive oil
Method
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Heat the olive oil in a small pan over medium and add the minced garlic and dried herbs, stirring for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
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Add the dry orzo straight to the pan and stir for a minute to coat and lightly toast it. This is what stops it going gluey and gives it a faint nuttiness — worth the extra minute.
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Stir in the tomato purée and the stock, and bring to a gentle simmer.
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Heat low, covered, for 8–10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes so the orzo doesn't catch on the bottom.
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Stir in the cooked chicken and the spinach for the last two minutes, until everything's hot and the sauce has gone thick and glossy around the orzo.
remix
- Doubles cleanly for two
- A handful of baby spinach stirred in during the last two minutes
- Passata instead of purée gives a looser, brighter sauce
- A squeeze of lemon at the end if it tastes flat
- Grated parmesan is not remotely necessary but nobody's watching