Chicken cacciatore orzo bake
Prep time: 20 minsTotal time: 
Chicken cacciatore orzo bake
Chicken cacciatore is a rustic Italian dish featuring chicken braised with tomatoes, onions and peppers. We’ve added orzo here to soak up all the delicious flavour
Prep time: 20 minsTotal time: 
Spencer Lengsfield
Spencer Lengsfield
Ingredients
- 750g (approx. 4) skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
- 2 sweet pointed peppers, sliced
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 2 tbsp sundried tomato paste
- 250g baby plum tomatoes, halved
- 85g nocellara pitted olives (drained weight)
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 300g dried orzo pasta
- 500ml chicken stock
- ¼ x 30g pack flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, to serve
Step by step
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Preheat the oven to 220°C, fan 200°C, gas 7. Season the chicken thighs then place in a cold ovenproof pan, skin-side down. Place over a medium heat and cook until the chicken easily releases from the pan and the skin is golden brown, around 6-7 minutes; remove the chicken and set aside. Add the peppers and onion and sauté, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan, for 2 minutes or until just starting to soften. Add the flour and sundried tomato paste and cook for a further 2 minutes, then turn off the heat.
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Add the tomatoes, olives and balsamic vinegar. Stir to combine, then pour in 100ml water and season. Nestle the chicken on top, skin-side up, then transfer to the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, take the chicken out, then stir in the orzo and chicken stock. Place the chicken back on top, then return to the oven for a further 20-25 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the orzo is cooked through.
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Remove from the oven and leave to stand for 5 minutes if you prefer a thicker sauce, then give the orzo a stir. Scatter over the parsley and serve.
