Working with leftover food is an essential part of food preparation when you want to save some money and maybe do something good for the environment. Just throwing stuff away the next day because you do not want to eat the same thing twice is stupid (sorry if I say that so bluntly). You can always change things up and make something new with what you had the day before. The best example here – this One-Pot Orzo with leftover Roasted Chicken. An easy recipe that is ready in no time and absolutely delicious!
We’ve all been there. You cook something or order something for dinner and for most of us the eyes are normally bitter than the stomach. This means there are often leftovers. We try to avoid that but happens to us every now and then. Throwing that stuff away has never been an option. Just re-heat it or re-use (at least some of it) in a dish the next day!
In my case here we had half a grilled chicken from the night before we did not want to just reheat and eat it plain the next day. So what do you do? Well, you cook yourself some pasta, make some sauce, add the chicken and minutes later you got a nice meal. It’s simple. With leftovers from that dish, you can make the next one the day after… right? Just kidding. It’s not a sourdough you can reuse for years and years ;P Well… reheating it the next day is actually fine here. Just in case. Or adding leftovers here to a soup. Also working well ;P
Anyway. We like Orzo (also known as Risoni or Kritharaki) a lot. An easy pasta to create delicious dishes. You can serve them “plain” with a sauce or prepare, for example, a casserole dish (with minced meat and feta). Both are very easy options. Here, you throw everything you need for the dish into one pot and cook it. That’s it. You do not need to prepare a “classic sauce” separately for this dish. The parmesan and the pasta water do the work for you here and coat the pasta with a creamy emulsion. Similar to a risotto. Very easy and you get a very delicious result that way ;)
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
some olive oil for frying
1 medium onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
17.6 oz. (500g) dried orzo
1/2 cup (120ml) dry white wine
2 cups (480ml) vegetable stock
2 cups (480ml) hot water
1.8 oz. (50g) parmesan cheese, grated (plus some more)
the meat of 1/2 rotisserie chicken, shredded
3.5 oz. (100g) baby spinach leaves
7 oz. (200g) cherry tomatoes, halved
salt, pepper
etwas Olivenöl zum Anbraten
1 mittelgroße Zwiebel, gehackt
2-3 Knoblauchzehen, gehackt
500g Orzo (Risoni)
120ml trockener Weißwein
480ml Gemüsebrühe
480ml heißes Wasser
50g Parmesan, gerieben (plus etwas extra)
das Fleisch von 1/2 gegrilltem Hühnchen, zerschreddert
100g Babyspinat
200g Kirschtomaten, halbiert
Salz, Pfeffer
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Heat up a large dutch oven or pot with some olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until soft and glossy. Add the orzo and cook while stirring constantly for a minute or so to toast it a bit. Deglaze with the white wine and let cook while stirring often until the wine is mostly gone. Add the veggie stock and hot water. Bring to a boil and let cook for about 9-10 minutes (once again, stir often) until most of the liquid is absorbed and the orzo is “al dente”.
3. Reduce the heat, add the grated parmesan, shredded chicken, and spinach and mix in. Cook while stirring constantly and let the spinach wilt for a minute or two, then add the halved tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Serve immediately.
2. Einen großen (gusseisernen) Topf mit etwas Öl erhitzen. Zwiebel und Knoblauch dazugeben und kurz anschwitzen. Den Orzo (Risoni) dazugeben und unter ständigem Rühren kurz mit anschwitzen. Mit dem Weißwein ablöschen und den Wein fast komplett einkochen lassen, dann Gemüsebrühe und heißes Wasser dazugeben. Alles wieder zum Kochen bringen und dann für etwa 9-10 Minuten köcheln lassen. Immer wieder umrühren, damit nichts anbrennt. Die Flüssigkeit im Topf sollte weitestgehend von der Pasta aufgesogen worden sein und die Nudeln “al dente” sein.
3. Die Hitzezufuhr reduzieren, den Parmesan, das Hühnchen und den Spinat dazugeben und untermischen. So lange rühren und köcheln lassen, bis der Spinat zusammengefallen ist – etwa 1-2 Minuten. Dann die Tomaten dazugeben nach Belieben mit Salz und Pfeffer würzen. Sofort servieren.
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Creamy One-Pot Orzo with Leftover Chicken
- Prep Time: 00:10
- Cook Time: 00:15
- Total Time: 00:25
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Pasta
- Cuisine: Italy
Description
A pasta dish that works well in summer (and winter, of course): Creamy One-Pot Orzo with Leftover Chicken. So easy to prepare and extremely delicious!
Ingredients
some olive oil for frying
1 medium onion, chopped
2–3 garlic cloves, chopped
17.6 oz. (500g) dried orzo
1/2 cup (120ml) dry white wine
2 cups (480ml) vegetable stock
2 cups (480ml) hot water
1.8 oz. (50g) parmesan cheese, grated (plus some more)
the meat of 1/2 rotisserie chicken, shredded
3.5 oz. (100g) baby spinach leaves
7 oz. (200g) cherry tomatoes, halved
salt, pepper
Instructions
1. Peel the onion and garlic and chop finely. Clean, wash and drain the spinach. Wash the tomatoes and cut them in half. Remove the meat from the chicken and shred – set everything aside.
2. Heat up a large dutch oven or pot with some olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until soft and glossy. Add the orzo and cook while stirring constantly for a minute or so to toast it a bit. Deglaze with the white wine and let cook while stirring often until the wine is mostly gone. Add the veggie stock and hot water. Bring to a boil and let cook for about 9-10 minutes (once again, stir often) until most of the liquid is absorbed and the orzo is “al dente”.
3. Reduce the heat, add the grated parmesan, shredded chicken, and spinach and mix in. Cook while stirring constantly and let the spinach wilt for a minute or two, then add the halved tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Serve immediately.
Notes
Enjoy cooking!
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I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
