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One Skillet Lemon Butter Dijon Chicken and Orzo with Feta Sauce, the perfect winter dinner…quick, easy, colorful and delicious! Pan-seared dijon chicken with lemon butter, cooked together with orzo pasta for an all-in-one dinner. Go that extra step and serve drizzled with a delicious creamy feta sauce. A dinner that everyone at the table will love.
I think the day I got my first Staub skillet was the day I created the “one skillet” dinner. Not saying I invented the one skillet dinner by any means. Just that that I invented it for myself that day. It was many, many years ago. But ever since then I’ve made countless one skillet dinners in my Staub pan. It’s a method of cooking I fall back on weekly.
Throwing everything in the same skillet just makes sense. For one, you’re saving dishes by avoiding using multiple pans. But even more importantly, you’re creating a dish that’s full of so much flavor. When you cook everything together, the flavors are able to blend, making every element of the recipe delicious.
Of course, with this recipe I created one extra step with that feta sauce. But trust me, it’s worth it!
The process – cook the chicken
Season the chicken with Dijon, garlic, shallots, a bit of rosemary and some paprika. I like to sear the skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs to give it a nice crisped base. Then I toss it in a little butter, add some lemon slices, and let everything cook up along side the chicken. The butter browns and everything smells delicious.
Next, pull the chicken and lemon out out of the skillet, then add the orzo and broth. Stir in the kale…or you could also use spinach. Then slide the chicken into the orzo and throw the whole skillet into the oven to finish cooking.
Make the feta sauce
I couldn’t share this recipe without including a sauce. You all know how it goes around here, never enough sauce. Enter my feta sauce. It’s whipped feta cheese with a bit of yogurt, lemon, and if you have some fresh herbs on hand, toss those in too.
The salty feta creates an addicting sauce. Every spoonful is delicious, but it adds the best taste over this dijon chicken.
It’s a real crowd pleaser, and comes out of the oven looking pretty and smells even more delicious. I threw some fresh dill on top for color and served the chicken and orzo right out of the skillet.
Perfect for easy weeknight dinners or even entertaining. It really brightens the table on a cold winter day! Leftovers can easily be stored in an airtight container.
Looking for other easy weeknight dinners? Here are some favorites.
Easy Greek Sheet Pan Chicken Souvlaki and Potatoes
Browned Garlic Butter Creamed Corn Cheese Ravioli
One Skillet Cheesy Broccoli Cheddar Orzo Bake
Lastly, if you make this One Skillet Lemon Butter Dijon Chicken and Orzo with Feta Sauce, 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!
One Skillet Lemon Butter Dijon Chicken and Orzo with Feta Sauce
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 683 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 small shallots, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 pounds boneless chicken breasts or thighs
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 lemon, sliced
- 1 1/2 cups orzo pasta
- 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups chopped kale
- chopped fresh dill, for serving
Feta Sauce
- 4-6 ounces feta cheese
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- juice from 1 lemon
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 400° F. 2. In a bowl, mix 2 tablespoons olive oil, Dijon mustard, 3 cloves garlic, 1 shallot, rosemary, paprika, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Add the chicken and toss well to combine.3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken. Sear on both sides until golden, 3-5 minutes. During the last 2 minutes of cooking, add the butter and lemon slices. Remove everything from the skillet.4. Add the orzo, 1 shallot, and 1 clove of garlic. Cook until the orzo is toasted, about 2 minutes. Add the broth, kale, and 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat. Slide the chicken, lemon slices, and any juices left on the pan back into the skillet. Bake, uncovered for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.5. Meanwhile, make the feta sauce. Combine the feta, yogurt, garlic, and lemon juice in a blender and blend until creamy. Stir in the paprika, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. If desired, thin with additional lemon juice.6. Serve the chicken and orzo topped with the feta sauce and dill.
This post was originally published on January 12, 2022
This was awesome! I did another pan of it with snapper and just cooked it with the scallions and garlic and lemon and didn’t add it back to the pan until after the orzo/kale came out of the oven. And the feta sauce was a must. Good on raw veggies too 🙂
Hi Carey,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that you enjoy this recipe, I so appreciate you giving it a try! xxT
Trying this tonight! Can’t wait!
I hope you love the recipe Desiree!
I’m not a fan of feta cheese. Can you please suggest a substitute? Love all your recipes!
Hi Kathleen,
Goat or ricotta cheese would both be great options. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Hello! This looks amazing! I want to try it! There are no lemons where i am from, can i use limes?
And what can i use instead of kale?
Thanks!!
Not sure about the limes…that might make this dish a little funky. Tieghan…what do you think? As for the kale, you could substitute baby spinach.
Yeah, I really don’t know how the limes would work, but if that is all she has access to it’s worth a shot:)
I ended up using lime but skipped the part where you cook the slices and it worked! And i used spinach, thanks melanie!
Awesome!!
Hi Milena,
If you do limes, I would probably reduce the amount you use, just due to the flavor. You can use spinach in place of the kale. I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
I just made this recipe tonight, and it’s another winner!! Very straightforward and incredibly flavorful.
I didn’t have kale, so I substituted spinach. I also had some white wine in the fridge that I didn’t want to go bad, (hate throwing out wine!) so I subbed one cup of broth for one cup of wine.
Hi Elena,
Wonderful! I really appreciate you giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
I don’t like orzo so much but I definitely need to try it this version !
Miki x
https://www.littletasteofbeauty.com/
Let me know if you give the recipe a try!
So delicious! Can’t believe how quick and easy this was. Love how lemony this was. Will def make again!
Hi Sarah,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that you enjoy this recipe, I so appreciate you giving it a try! xxT
This dish and the feta sauce are soOoOo GOOD!! I followed the recipe except I…
-Browned the chicken breasts for longer than 5 minutes (the chicken was thick so I wanted to make sure they had more cooking time)
-Substituted shallots with red onions (I didn’t have shallots)
-Substituted fresh rosemary with dried rosemary, but reduced it by 1/2
-Substituted orzo with penne (I didn’t have orzo). Since penne is bigger, I used more chicken stock to cover/cook the pasta in the cast iron skillet.
We had this for dinner and as leftovers for lunch the next day — still delicious! It’s an explosion of flavor and the kale adds a nice texture to the bite!
Hi Mindy,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that you enjoy this recipe, I so appreciate you giving it a try! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you. xxT
Do you think it would be possible to sub cumin for the paprika and red pepper flakes ? I can’t have nightshades , therefore no pepper derived spices ….
Hi Kelli,
Yes, that will be fine to do. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
This sounds delicious! How thick of chicken breasts do you recommend using? I’ve been having issues with my chicken taking waaaay longer than recipes say. Thanks!
When my chicken breasts are too thick, I slice them in half. Put them in the freezer first for about 20 min so they’re easier to slice.
Hi Shannon,
You can use chicken breasts or thighs for this recipe, I would just make sure they aren’t super thick, you can always pound them out a bit. Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
The entire family loved this! With 2 toddlers, we have difficulty finding recipes that everyone likes but this hit the spot. Definitely will be making this again and again 🙂
Hi Misty,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that you enjoy this recipe, I so appreciate you giving it a try! xxT
We made this last night for dinner and it was DELICIOUS! The orzo was the best – soaking up all of the different flavors while cooking. The feta sauce put it over the top. We used spinach instead of kale – so yummy! Thanks for the great recipe!
Could I adapt with a whole chicken somehow?
Hi Kristin,
Sorry, I have nor tried this with a whole chicken, it would obviously take much longer to cook and would probably affect the outcome of the orzo. Please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Hi Mary,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that you enjoy this recipe, I so appreciate you giving it a try! xxT
How long would you cook if the chicken is bone in? Can you use a dutch oven?
Hi Nancy,
You will just need to increase your cooking time until your chicken reaches an internal temp 160F. Yes, a dutch oven will work. I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
Can I use spinach instead of kale?
Hi Alina,
Totally! I hope you enjoy the recipe, let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
How would the recipe be altered if I used bone-in and skin-on chicken thighs?
That is all I had on hand and made it the same as written except I increased the oven time a bit since the pieces were thicker with the bone. Turned out great!
Hi Mary,
Happy Friday!! Love hearing that you enjoy this recipe, I so appreciate you giving it a try! xxT
Hi Kaitlyn,
You would just need to increase your cooking time until your chicken thighs are cooked through. I hope you love the dish, let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
If I don’t have An oven safe skillet can I use a Dutch oven?
I’m wondering this, too!
Hi Lindsay,
You can transfer to an oven safe baking dish to finish the dish. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi Lauri,
Yes, that will work or just transfer to an oven safe dish. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan