Chicken with Orzo
It’s been over a month of quarantine already. We don’t have the luxury of going out to grab groceries that we want, whenever we want to. We plan our groceries for two weeks to minimize our trips outside the house. This means I have to use up whatever’s left in our fridge before we go and buy some stuff again. I mean, the recipe is pretty straightforward and easy. Sear the chicken, roast the veggies, add some butter and cheese in the pasta. Viola! Dinner is served. As I am cooking tho, the thing that's bothering me is why didn't we grab more alcohol? Yes, I know first world problems. This recipe would have been good with some wine.
4ea Chicken Thighs
Salt
Pepper
Vegetable Oil
Pat dry the chicken thighs with a paper towel. Season both sides with salt and pepper. On a cold pan, lay down the chicken with the skin side down. Start the pan in low heat to start rendering the chicken skin. Use a little vegetable oil if needed. Make sure the chicken is not overcrowding the pan. Once the skin side is crispy and golden brown, flip the chicken and finish off cooking on the other side.
2C Sweet Potato, medium cubed
3C Broccoli, small florets
1/2C Onion, small diced
1T Garlic, minced
2C Kale, rough chopped
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Lemon Juice
In two separate bowls, toss sweet potato and broccoli with olive oil, salt, and pepper. In two separate sheet trays, line them with parchment paper. Lay each vegetable in one layer making sure the pieces have enough space from each other. The two vegetables will cook at a different time. Roast them at 400F until they are tender and have some char on them. Check them every 5 to 10 minutes. While the sweet potato and broccoli are roasting, heat some olive oil in a pan. Saute the onion and garlic until the onions are translucent and the garlic starts to brown. Add the kale and season with salt and pepper. Cook the kale until it starts to wilt. Once the roasted veggies are done, add them to the pan and squeeze a little bit lemon juice to the veggies. Adjust seasoning if needed.
8oz Orzo
4T Butter
Pecorino
Salt
Pepper
In a big pot, boil water and add salt until it tastes salty enough to season the pasta. Cook orzo until al dente. Check the doneness in 7 to 8 minutes. Once the pasta is done, save 1 to 2 cups of pasta water and then drain the orzo. If the pasta water is too salty, dilute it with plain water. In a pan, melt the butter and add the orzo with a little bit of pasta water. Toss until butter sauce is emulsified. If it looks dry, add more pasta water or plain water and a little bit of butter to adjust the sauce. Add some grated pecorino cheese. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Keep in mind that pecorino cheese can be salty so only add salt if necessary. Toss everything until the cheese is melted. Mix the roasted veggies with the orzo and serve the chicken on the side.
