This packed-with-flavor, 30-minute ginger chilli chicken orzo recipe will satisfy even the pickiest eaters. It’s made in one pot for a mess-free clean-up, loaded with delicious Asian-style flavors, and drizzled with chili oil and sweet chili to make a super satisfying, easy weeknight meal the whole family will love.
Anything that can be made in one pot is always a bonus – less washing up and minimal mess is never a bad thing! This makes a wonderful quick weeknight meal and uses mainly cupboard staples, plus it can be easily tweaked for kids.
The inspiration for this beauty of a one-pot meal comes from Hainanese chicken rice, a classic Chinese dish. That’s a whole poached chicken, served with rice cooked with chicken fat and chicken stock, plus a few different flavor-packed condiments (ginger and scallion sauce, chili sauce and some kind of soy sauce). That dish takes multiple hours to make, whereas this one takes all of 30 minutes, and celebrates very similar flavors.
I’ve used orzo rather than rice because it cooks really quickly, and when you cook it in one pot like this, it creates its own super silky sauce.
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs. These are important because we want to take advantage of the lovely chicken fat to cook the aromatics – chicken breasts are too lean. But, you could use chicken breast if you like, you’ll just need to add extra oil to the pan when you cook your garlic, ginger and scallions.
- Ginger. Use fresh ginger ideally, or you can use ginger paste. I like to grate fresh ginger when I use it – that way there’s no need to peel it. You’ll need about a 1″/2.5cm piece of fresh ginger.
- Orzo. This wonderfully versatile rice-shaped pasta cooks quickly and is perfect for one-pot meals. It’s also called risoni in some places (primarily Australia and often New Zealand).
- Fish sauce. This is optional (I know it’s divisive) but it adds a beautiful savory depth to the recipe so I’d really recommend giving it a try.
- Chicken stock. Ideally, use low-sodium stock. Different brands have different salt levels and we’re adding soy sauce and fish sauce to the recipe, so you don’t want to use stock that’s too salty. Or, make your own stock so you can really control the salt level.
- Cilantro (coriander). Use mint, Thai basil or flat-leaf parsley if you’re not a fan.
How to make it
Cook your chicken thighs in a large, high-sided skillet or pan, until golden brown on both sides and cooked through.
Remove from the pan and cover loosely with foil to keep warm. Add the ginger, garlic and scallions to the same pan (keep all that lovely chicken fat in there!) and cook for a couple of minutes, until starting to soften.
Pour in the orzo and stir it through the aromatics, before adding all the stock, soy sauce and fish sauce.
Cook the orzo for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it’s al dente (firm to the bite but cooked through). At this point, nestle the chicken thighs into the orzo, then drizzle with chili oil, sweet chili jam, cilantro and more scallions. I also often add a good spoonful of ginger scallion sauce on top!
Watch how to make it
Got a question?
You can, but I do really recommend chicken thighs. Thighs are fattier, which is key for creating that delicious chicken flavor in the orzo itself. If you use breasts, you’ll need to add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to cook the ginger, garlic and scallions.
This very much depends on the heat of the chili flakes you use, and how much chili oil you add at the end. If you’re making this for kids, skip the chili flakes and serve the chili oil and sweet chili on the side. If you’re worried, just reduce the amount of chili flakes you use.
Yes! It’s a great one for meal prep and will keep well for 4 days stored in the fridge in a covered container. You can easily reheat it in the microwave – add a splash of water to the orzo when you do – it will have absorbed a lot of the sauce as it sits in the fridge.
While this is definitely a meal in itself, I’ll often add chopped broccoli, asparagus, bok choi, pak choi, spinach or cavolo nero too. You can add them when you add the stock and they’ll cook as the orzo does. If you’d like something on the side, a crunchy Asian slaw or green goddess salad would work really well, as would a dollop of ginger scallion sauce.
Like this recipe? Here are more easy one-pot meals
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One Pot Ginger Chilli Chicken Orzo
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Diet: Low Fat
Description
This packed-with-flavor, 30-minute ginger chili chicken orzo recipe will satisfy even the pickiest eaters. It’s made in one pot for a mess-free clean-up, loaded with delicious Asian-style flavors, and drizzled with chili oil and sweet chili to make a super satisfying, easy weeknight meal the whole family will love.
Ingredients
- 1lb/500g chicken thighs (skinless, boneless, free-range)
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 6 scallions (spring onions), sliced finely, white and green parts separated
- 1” piece of ginger, grated (or use ginger paste)
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes
- 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1.5 cup orzo
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons chili oil
- 2 tablespoons sweet chili jam
- A handful of fresh cilantro (coriander) leaves
Instructions
- Cook the chicken thighs. Toss the chicken thighs with 1 teaspoon of salt in a small bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large, high-sided pan set over high heat. Add the chicken thighs and cook for 5 minutes on each side, under super charred and golden. Don’t be afraid to really let them take on some color! Remove them from the pan and keep them covered and warm while you make the orzo.
- Make the orzo. Reduce the heat to medium then add the white parts of the sliced scallions, and all the ginger, crushed garlic and chili flakes. Stir them through the reserved chicken cooking juices for 2 minutes. Add 1.5 cups of orzo, and stir for another minute. Then add 3 cups of stock, 1.5 tablespoons of soy sauce and 1/2 tablespoon of fish sauce. Stir to combine, then bring to a simmer.
- Simmer the orzo. Once simmering, turn the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally to stop the orzo from sticking to the bottom of the pan, for roughly 10 minutes, or until the orzo is al dente (cooked, with a little bite to it) and the sauce is lovely and thick.
- Add the chicken, garnish and serve. At this point, nestle the cooked chicken thighs back into the orzo, then drizzle over 2 tablespoons of chili oil and 2 tablespoons of sweet chili jam. Finish by scattering over the reserved scallions and the cilantro leaves. Divide between plates and serve.
Notes
STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Once cooked, it will keep well for 4 days, stored in a covered container in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave, adding a splash of water to the orzo to loosen it up (it will keep absorbing liquid as it sits in the fridge).
SUBSTITUTIONS: Swap cilantro for mint, Thai basil or flat-leaf parsley. If you’re worried about spice (or making this for kids), skip the chili flakes and serve the chili oil and sweet chili on the side.
ADDITIONS: To bulk out the meal and add more greens, you can throw in chopped broccoli, or asparagus, bok choi, pak choi, spinach leaves or cavolo nero when you pour in the stock. The greens will cook in the stock with the orzo. I love to serve this with ginger scallion sauce too (also great if you’re not a fan of chilies!)
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: pasta
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: asian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 493
- Sugar: 5.3g
- Sodium: 1283.6mg
- Fat: 18.7g
- Saturated Fat: 3.6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 13.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 43.9g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 36.1g
- Cholesterol: 122.9mg
This was soo delicious and easy!! I think it will become a regular staple. Thank you Kate!
I can’t find the proper ingredients to create the sweet chili jam, is there anything I can substitute?
Sweet chilli sauce would be the best swap x