Chicken Souvlaki And Orzo Recipe
We're always craving dishes that taste good, require minimal effort, and can be easily whipped up regardless of the season. This type of evergreen meal is exactly what recipe developer, Patterson Watkins, brings us with this recipe for chicken souvlaki and orzo.
"This dish is one I keep in my 'quick fix' recipe repertoire," Watkins says. "It is an evergreen kinda meal ... When you need some fresh veggie infusion over the winter months, boom, skillet souvlaki with Greek orzo salad. If you're tired of Fall tubers, squashes, and root veggies, this recipe will perk your meal rotation right up." Of course, this dish is also tasty in the fall, spring, summer — you really can't go wrong with such a timeless recipe. With the flavorful marinade, hearty orzo pasta salad, charred chicken, and the creamy sauce, there are enough components of this dish to appeal to the masses, or at the very least to your hungry family.
Gather your ingredients for chicken souvlaki and orzo
To make this chicken souvlaki and orzo dish, you can start by gathering your ingredients. For this recipe, you will need lemon juice, olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, garlic, dried oregano, salt, pepper, chicken breasts, Greek yogurt, sour cream, dill, mint, cooked orzo, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, feta cheese, and kalamata olives.
Make the marinade/dressing
One of the brilliant hacks about this recipe is that the orzo salad dressing is the same as the chicken marinade, so you'll whip up one sauce that will perform double-duty. In a medium bowl, add the lemon juice, olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. Whisk up the ingredients until a smooth dressing is created. Pour half of it over the diced chicken and reserve the other half for the salad. Transfer the marinated chicken into a large zip top bag and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Create the dill yogurt sauce and toss orzo salad with remaining dressing
In the meantime, you can whip up the dill yogurt sauce. In another medium bowl, add the yogurt, sour cream, dill, and mint. Using a large spoon, stir it all together to combine. Then, add in 2 tablespoons of the reserved dressing to the yogurt mixture and stir again. Next, pour the remaining dressing over the cooked orzo, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, feta, and olives. Then, toss this salad and store in the fridge until ready to eat.
Cook the chicken and plate the servings
Lastly, it's time to cook up the chicken. Add oil to a hot cast iron skillet. Cook up the marinated chicken cubes in a thin layer. Allow to cook for at least 10 minutes, about 5 minutes on each side, or until the minimum internal temperature reaches 165 F. Then, serve up the plates with orzo salad, cooked chicken, and dill yogurt sauce.
"If you're looking to robust out this meal, I like adding some toasted pita or warm garlic naan to the mix. You really don't need much in the way of additions," Watkins says. "It has much of the food guide pyramid covered ... oodles of veggies, lean protein, zesty cheese, good-for-you fats, and crave-worthy carbohydrates (orzo pasta)." Sounds like a complete and fulfilling meal to us.
- 1 lemon, juiced (about ½ cup)
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
- ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, divided
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
- 1 cup cooked orzo
- 1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup diced cucumber
- ¼ cup sliced red onion
- ⅓ cup feta cheese
- ¼ cup chopped kalamata olives
- Place the lemon juice, ⅓ cup of olive oil, red wine vinegar, honey, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Divide the marinade in half, setting ½ aside to use later.
- Using the ½-portion of marinade remaining in the bowl, add the chicken pieces and toss to coat. Transfer the chicken and marinade to a large plastic bag, seal, and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to overnight.
- While the chicken is marinating, place the yogurt, sour cream, 1 tablespoon of dill, and mint in a separate bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of the reserved marinade and whisk to combine. Keep this sauce refrigerated until ready to serve.
- Place the cooked orzo, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, feta, olives, the remaining dill, and the remaining marinade in a large bowl, stirring to combine. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chicken, spreading out in an even layer, being sure not to overcrowd the skillet (work in batches if necessary). Sear for about 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, or until browned and cooked through.
- Divide the chicken, orzo salad, and sauce between plates to serve.
| Calories per Serving | 526 |
| Total Fat | 32.8 g |
| Saturated Fat | 7.7 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 121.3 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 20.7 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 2.5 g |
| Total Sugars | 5.0 g |
| Sodium | 844.6 mg |
| Protein | 37.2 g |
