This Simple, Satisfying Chicken Meatballs with Orzo Recipe Is a Weeknight Dinner Dream
theSkimm
We aspire to be the kind of person who can throw together a perfectly roasted chicken on a random Monday night à la a Nancy Meyers movie (ideally, in one of those kitchens, too). But since our dinner-making situation is typically more Fast & Furious than The Holiday, it’s good to have a few easy and reliable recipes in our rotation. Like Food by Maria’s Chicken Meatballs and Orzo. In the one-pan wonder, meatballs loaded with sundried tomatoes and parsley are baked alongside seasoned greens, fluffy orzo, and a lifetime supply of herbs — all of which is smothered in a wildly delicious dressing. Plus, the leftovers (should any survive) are excellent for lunch the next day.
The Time Commitment: 50 minutes, though the dish is in the oven for at least half of that. You’re welcome.
Key Tips: We can all agree there are few things sadder than a dry meatball, right? So Maria Koutsogiannis (aka Food by Maria) says to mix the meatball ingredients until just combined and to pull them out of the oven as soon as they’re cooked through. Also, this dish can be tailored to your taste or what you have on hand: sub rice for orzo; swap ground chicken with ground turkey; and replace sundried tomatoes with artichoke hearts.
Other Takes: For more antidotes to your eating-dinner-over-the-sink proclivities (just us?), try..
Lemony Pasta With Chickpeas and Parsely. We’ll make anything Melissa Clark, the Patron Saint of Weeknight Dinners, tells us to — especially a quickie recipe that clears your pantry.
This Easy Chicken Enchilada recipe. Not only is it cheesy, saucy, and kid-friendly, but you can also use store-bought rotisserie chicken and enchilada sauce.
