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Lemon Cream Sauce Smothered Chicken and Orzo: Lightly seasoned chicken seared until golden with nutty browned butter, garlic, thyme, and fresh basil. The chicken is finished in a yummy lemon pan sauce with orzo pasta and fresh parmesan. This cozy skillet dinner is delicious and simple to make!
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I set out to create a warming, but light dish—something comforting for the colder days most of us are still experiencing but a little lighter and fresher for the longer spring days ahead.
For the sauce, I used a mix of chicken bone broth, dry white wine, and, of course, fresh lemon juice! Whole milk and parmesan cheese make this sauce deliciously creamy.
The idea here is you want the orzo to sit in the lemon cream sauce, and you want the sauce to thicken up just enough so that the chicken can really be “smothered” in it. It’s so delicious this way!
This dish feels cozy yet light. Perfect for upcoming spring days!
These are all the Details
Ingredients
- thinly sliced chicken breasts or small chicken thighs
- all purpose flour
- paprika
- dried thyme
- salted butter
- garlic
- Chili flakes
- chicken broth
- white wine – or you can use additional broth
- chopped kale or baby spinach
- dry orzo pasta
- whole milk – or use canned coconut milk
- parmesan cheese
Special Tools
If you have one, I highly recommend a cast iron oven-safe skillet!
Steps
Step 1: season the chicken
Before you begin cooking, season and flour the chicken. Start by seasoning the chicken with salt and pepper. Then, dredge the chicken through a mix of paprika, half of the dried thyme, and a scoop of flour. Press the flour mix onto the cutlets to fully coat.
If you need to be gluten-free, be sure to use gluten-free flour or an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend.
The flour creates a coating that allows the sauce to thicken and become crisp.
Step 2: sear the chicken
Find a big skillet. I always use cast iron. Cook the chicken with a sliver of butter. Pan-sear the chicken until the crust is golden and the butter browns around it.
Add more butter, garlic, dried thyme, and chili flakes. Cook until you can really smell that garlic.
Step 3: make the lemon pan gravy
Next, add the wine. Cook for a few minutes, then add the broth. Next, add the kale or spinach and season with salt and pepper.
Let the broth simmer for 5 minutes.
Step 4: add the orzo
Add the orzo and milk to the pan. Cook for 5 or 10 minutes, then stir in the lemon juice and parmesan. Top the dish with basil.
Step 5: bake and finish
Take the skillet off the burner and put it in the oven to finish cooking and melt the cheese even more. When the cheese has melted, remove the dish from the oven.
You should hopefully have some sauce surrounding the chicken and the orzo. Add lots of fresh basil. It’s going to look delish and smell even better.
All will enjoy the simple skillet chicken and orzo – it’s such a crowd-pleaser!
Looking for other simple dinners? Here are my favorites:
Crockpot Thai Short Ribs with Coconut Rice
Baked Chipotle Cheddar Sweet Potato Chowder
One Skillet Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken and Orzo
Herby Buttered Balsamic Mushroom Ravioli
Smothered Chicken in Mushroom Wine Pan Sauce
Lastly, if you make this Lemon Cream Sauce Smothered Chicken and Orzo, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Lemon Cream Sauce Smothered Chicken and Orzo
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds thin-cut chicken breasts
- salt and black pepper
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- chili flakes
- 2 cups broth
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1/2-1 cup whole milk
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 2 cups chopped kale or spinach
- 1 cup orzo
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh basil
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F. 2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place the flour, paprika, and 1 teaspoon thyme in a shallow bowl. Dredge the chicken through the flour and toss to coat, using most of the flour.3. Arrange 1 tablespoon of butter and the chicken in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Sear on both sides until golden, 3-5 minutes per side. Add 2 more tablespoons of butter. Allow the butter to brown around the chicken. Add the garlic, 1 teaspoon of thyme, chili flakes, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.4. Add the wine and the broth. Mix in the kale. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the milk and orzo. Cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice. Sprinkle over the parmesan and basil. Bake for 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is thickening. Top with fresh basil. 5. Serve the chicken, orzo, and sauce with crusty bread for mopping up all that delicious creamy sauce. YUM!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Hello Tieghan,
This is a great dinner during the week as you have said. Not difficult at all, and I loved the lemon flavor. I did not have basil, but did not really miss it. We had broccoli with ours to try something different with it. It was very complimentary with the lemon I thought. Thanks for another wonderful dish!!
Hey Christine,
Happy Friday!🌺 I appreciate you making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it turned out nicely for you!
Great recipe! Quick and delicious!
Hey Jenna,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, love to hear it was a hit! Happy Tuesday!
This was amazing and super fast to make! A+
Hey Steven,
Awesome! Love to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! xx
Can I use risotto instead of orzo?
Hey Karen,
Sure, that should work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
I loved it…. I did use risotto and spinach. Delish, as i find your recipes are.
Thanks so much, Karen:)
This was really delicious!!
Thanks so much, Lisa!!
Quick question. If i use thighs do I leave bone in? Does the breast if boneless dry out or should i use bone in? Or take out after browning to put in later?
Thank you again i love your recipes
Hi Beth,
I like to use boneless chicken, but you can totally use bone-in I would just increase your cook time. I hope you love this recipe! xx
This is one of the best recipes I’ve made of yours! Didn’t experience any issues with sauce or orzo consistency and followed the instructions as written. Definitely going in the rotation!
Thanks so much, Jordan! So glad to hear you loved this dish, thanks for making it! xT
Absolutely delicious. Amazing flavor and easy to make.
Hey Christian,
Yay!! So glad to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks a bunch for giving it a try!!
This was very good! I used chicken thighs. I took the extra flour/spice blend and added it to chicken and pan while it was searing. No leftovers!
Hey Deanna,
Yay!! So glad to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks a bunch for giving it a try!!
I followed the recipe exactly and I thought all the flavours of lemon and wine were perfect. Definitely one to add to my favourites!
Hey Jessica,
Yay!! So glad to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks a bunch for giving it a try!!
This was absolutely delicious!!
Hi Rebecca,
Wonderful! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for making it! Happy Sunday! xxT
Just made this for dinner. Thumbs up from me, my husband and adult son. However, the sauce didn’t thicken up enough in the oven, so I had to make a cornstarch slurry and stir it into the sauce and simmer on the stove. And next time I make it, I’m going to throw a Parmesan cheese rind into the sauce as it’s cooking to add a more salty flavor.
There’s an error in your cooking instructions. In the body of the article, you say to first put in the wine and let it simmer for a few minutes, THEN put in the chicken broth. However, in the recipe instructions, you say in step 4 to pour in the wine and the broth and let simmer 5 min. Which way would be best?
Hey Melanie,
Happy Sunday! Thanks so much for trying this dish and sharing your feedback, I’m so glad it was enjoyed by your family! You can follow the directions exactly as written:) In the blog portion I just give a play by play of how the recipe works, not always the exact directions. I hope this helps! xx
Made this tonight with my mum, we both loved it! Often, if presented with a recipe with quite a few ingredients, my mum will not want anything to do with it. We worked together, I measured everything out ahead of her needing it, though i may have been a little over-zealous with the chilli flakes 😆 and it went smoothly. Afterwards, she quickly said she’d like me to make that again, a big success as she rarely complements anything! 😁
Hey Nicola,
Yay!! So glad to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks a bunch for giving it a try!!
Tested your recipe, just gone down the hatch, absolutely delicious. Certainly to be repeated!!👌👍☘️😎
Thanks so much, Michael!! Love to hear this dish turned out nicely for you! Have a great week ahead! xx
Hello, I don’t see the amount of lemon juice required in the ingredient listing. Can you tell me how much to add? Thank you!
Hi Shelley,
This recipe calls for 1/3 cup of lemon juice. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
I just made this for my family. It was amazing. Everyone rated it 5 out of 5 stars. Another winner!
Hi Brianna,
Happy Sunday!! Love to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for making it and your comment! XxT
This was so delicious! The depth of flavor matches all your recipes – so, so good! A little extra prep work that may detour people, but it is SO worth the extra effort it takes to make this!
Hey Rebecca,
Happy Sunday!! Love to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for making it and your comment! XxT