Fresh and light with asparagus, mushrooms, lemon and basil this orzo with chicken and vegetables is perfect for summertime meals.
Author: Shumaila
Recipe type: side, main
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
1 onion, sliced
1 whole garlic- 7-8 cloves, chopped
2 red bell peppers, diced
½ bunch asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into 1-inch slices
1 small broccoli, chopped into bite sized pieces
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1-2 cups fresh basil
Juice of 1 lemon
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
for marination:
2 chicken breasts, cut into small bite sized pieces
2 tbsp piri piri sauce (you could use vinegar, use less in that case)
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp (or more) red pepper flakes
1 tbsp steak rub
1 tsp herbs de provence
1 16 oz (454 gms) packet orzo pasta
Instructions
Marinate the chicken pieces with the piri piri sauce, oil, steak rub and herbs de provence and keep for an hour.
Boil a pan of salted water. Cook the orzo according to package instructions. Drain and drizzle with some olive oil and set aside.
In a large pan, or cast iron skillet, add 1 tbsp oil and 1 tbsp butter. Add the chicken and cook the chicken for a few minutes, till its cooked. Remove from pan.
In the same skillet, add 1 tbsp olive oil. Add the garlic.
Add all the veggies- onion, asparagus, mushrooms, broccoli, red bell pepper. Add in balsamic vinegar, season with salt and pepper and cook on high for 2-3 minutes. I like my veggies to have some crunch so I only cook them for a 2 minutes or so.