I see chicken mince in the grocery stores more and more these days and yet I rarely cook with it. Lemon Oregano Chicken Orzo is the perfect use for ground chicken. It’s easy, delicious, quick to make and full of flavour with only a few ingredients. In short it’s a great recipe to have handy any time you need to whip up something fast!
If you can’t find chicken mince easily try substituting turkey mince or even the meat from chicken sausages removed from the casings. Alternatively you could use chicken breasts or thighs chopped up or ground into mince with either a meat grinder attachment for a stand mixer if you have one or a food processor. That said, sausages or turkey would work just fine and would still be quite easy.
This makes a reasonable quantity of food. If you have a side dish or two, you could absolutely feed four people with this dish. It is also an excellent option as a starter if you’re having a dinner party, dished out into smaller quantities. Otherwise two very hungry people could easily demolish this, perhaps with a little left over for lunch the following day. Let’s get started!
Serves 2 – 3 as a main or 4 as a starter
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Zest & juice of 1 lemon
- Pinch of dried chilli flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 500g chicken mince
- Salt & pepper
- 250g orzo pasta
- 750ml chicken stock
- Chopped fresh oregano to serve
Method
- In a large, heavy-based pot with a lid such as a cast iron casserole, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the lemon zest, chilli flakes and dried oregano and stir in the sizzling oil for a few seconds. Add the chicken mince and salt & pepper to season. Break up the meat as it browns using a wooden spoon and continue to cook until it’s all browned.
- When the chicken has lost all traces of rawness, pour in the lemon juice and deglaze the pan, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom.
- Pour in the pasta and toss to combine and then add the chicken stock. Bring to a boil and once it’s bubbling, reduce the heat to low, clamp on the lid and leave it to cook for 10 to 12 minutes or until the pasta is cooked al dente. Make sure to stir it once or twice during the cooking time so it doesn’t stick to the bottom.
- The dish is done when most of the liquid has been absorbed into the pasta and it’s fully cooked to an edible texture. Give it a stir and ladle into pasta bowls.
- Before serving, sprinkle over some freshly ground black pepper and chopped fresh oregano. Serve hot.
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