If you need a one pot meal recipe that honors spring flavors while still giving you cozy vibes (why is March so weird!?!?) this is that dish! I feel like leeks are extremely underrated as an allium and we need to be celebrating them and cooking with them more. So instead of a cream of spinach or a spinach artichoke situation, I thought, “you know what? how about cream of leeks!!!” with this one pot dish. And then I added chicken because we need a well rounded meal with a carb, protein and veg. If you want to make this more well rounded, serve it with a vibrant arugula salad with a squeeze of lemon juice and drizzle of olive oil.
If you want to make this gluten-free, use gluten-free orzo. If you don’t eat chicken, you could serve this with shrimp or scallops for a delicious seafood pairing!
One Pot Cream of Leek and Chicken Orzo
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 boneless skin-on chicken breasts
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 4-5 leeks white and light green parts, sliced (reserve 2 of the dark green tops for later)
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 16 oz box orzo (about 2 ½ cups)
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 ½ tsp Dijon mustard
- Juice of 1 large lemon
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream or half-and-half, added at the end
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese or to taste
- 3-4 fresh thyme sprigs
Directions
- Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken skin-side down for about 5-6 minutes until golden and crispy. Flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes before removing them from the pan and setting them aside.
- Lower the heat to medium and add the butter and sliced leeks. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and they reduce in size by about half. Season with a generous pinch of salt. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant.
- Pour in the white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the pan, and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes until reduced by half. Stir in the orzo and toast it for 1-2 minutes for a nuttier flavor.
- Add the chicken stock, Dijon mustard, and lemon juice along with another pinch of salt. Stir well and bring to a simmer. Add half of the cream and stir until combined. Return the chicken breasts to the pan, skin-side up. Nestle in the fresh thyme sprigs and reserved dark green leek tops on top. Cover and let everything simmer on low heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the orzo is tender and the chicken is cooked through (internal temp 165°F).
- When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the pan. Stir the rest heavy cream into the orzo along with Parmesan cheese, a little more lemon juice and black pepper. Adjusting seasoning if needed. If the sauce is too thick, add a bit more stock or cream.
- Slice the chicken breast and serve it on top of a plate of orzo. Garnish with black pepper and parmesan.
Rate & Review
WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THIS RECIPE?
made this for family dinner and it was amazing. thank you.