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4.9 from 78 votes

One Pot Italian Chicken & Orzo / Risoni Pasta

RECIPE VIDEO ABOVE. A super tasty and quick meal all made in one pot! Chicken infused with Italian flavours and a rich tomato basil orzo / risoni pasta. Refer to the notes for how to skip the marinating time and also how to cook the chicken WITH the risoni. Feel free to add or substitute the capsicum / bell peppers in this! 

Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
35 mins
Servings: 4
Calories: 530 kcal
Course: Main Course , Dinner
Cuisine: Italian , American

Ingredients

Marinade
  • 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp Italian herb mix (or make your own with basil, parsley, oregano)
  • 1 garlic clove , minced
  • 1/2 tsp salt + black pepper
Chicken
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 x 110 - 120g/4oz chicken breasts , skinless and boneless (Note 1)
Risoni
  • 1/2 tbsp olive oil (if required)
  • 1 small onion , finely chopped (brown, white, yellow)
  • 1 garlic clove , minced
  • 1 red capsicum / bell pepper , chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups risoni / orzo pasta (Note 2)
  • 400 g / 14 oz can crushed tomato
  • 3 cups chicken stock / broth
  • 1 tsp Italian herb mix
  • Pinch of red pepper flakes (chilli flakes) (optional)
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/4 cup (3 tbsp) grated parmesan cheese (optional)
  • 1 cup basil leaves

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Mix Marinade ingredients together in a large bowl. Add chicken and mix to coat. Marinate for 1 hour - 24 hours (See Note 3 to skip marinating).
  2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and cook for 4 minutes on each side, or until cooked. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm while resting.
  3. Turn heat up to medium high. Add oil if required.
  4. Add onion and garlic, cook for 2 minutes. Add capsicum and cook for 1 minute or until onion is translucent.
  5. Add risoni, tomato, chicken stock, Italian herbs, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Mix and bring to simmer, then lower heat to medium low or so it simmers gently.
  6. Cook for 9 - 10 minutes, stirring frequently (otherwise it will stick).
  7. Take it off the stove when the risoni is just cooked (touch under is ok, finishes cooking in residual heat very quickly). It should still be saucy (see video).
  8. Stir through parmesan and basil - excess liquid will evaporate in this step.
  9. Spoon risoni into serving bowls, top with chicken. Serve with extra parmesan and basil.

Notes

  • As you can see in the recipe video, the breast fillets I used were very small - perfect for a single serving. If you can only get larger ones, cut them in half horizontally to make 2 steaks (per breast) and cook for 2 - 3 minutes on each side. Go by weight - aim for around 120 - 150g/4-5oz of chicken per serving.
  • Risoni / orzo pasta is the rice shaped pasta. You can find it in the pasta section of supermarkets.
  • To skip the marinating, just cut the chicken breast in half horizontally to form two thin steaks, or slice into strips. If the steaks are much thicker than 1cm/2/5" thick, pound to even thickness. Then coat with Marinade and proceed with recipe without marinating (though even 5 minutes of marinating time helps!), but cut down the chicken cook time to 2 - 3 minutes per side. Also see Note 4 below.
  • Cooking chicken with risoni: In this recipe, I cooked whole chicken breast to place on top of the risoni. The other option is to cut the chicken into bite size pieces, marinate briefly. Then heat skillet on high, cook onion and garlic, then add chicken with the capsicum. Cook until outside is browned (inside still raw), turn heat down to medium low, follow recipe to cook risoni. This method is actually faster too - the whole recipe will be done in around 25 minutes.
  • Nutrition per serving (4 servings). The serving sizes are very generous!

Nutrition Information

Serving 515g Calories 530cal (27%) Carbohydrates 55.8g (19%) Protein 39.5g (79%) Fat 15.8g (24%) Saturated Fat 3.8g (19%) Cholesterol 87mg (29%) Sodium 1316mg (55%) Potassium 618mg (18%) Fiber 4.2g (17%) Sugar 8g (16%) Vitamin A 1300IU (26%) Vitamin C 44.6mg (50%) Calcium 250mg (25%) Iron 3.1mg (17%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 4Serving

Amount Per Serving

Calories 530

% Daily Value*

Serving 515g
Calories 530cal 27%
Carbohydrates 55.8g 19%
Protein 39.5g 79%
Fat 15.8g 24%
Saturated Fat 3.8g 19%
Cholesterol 87mg 29%
Sodium 1316mg 55%
Potassium 618mg 13%
Fiber 4.2g 17%
Sugar 8g 16%
Vitamin A 1300IU 26%
Vitamin C 44.6mg 50%
Calcium 250mg 25%
Iron 3.1mg 17%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.