Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Chicken & Orzo
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This Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Chicken and Orzo is creamy, comforting, and incredibly easy to make in the crockpot. It’s an easy, no-fuss crockpot meal with hearty flavors that will please the whole family.
If you love using your crockpot as much as I do, you’ll really enjoy my Slow Cooker Creamy Beef Stroganoff, and saucy Slow Cooker Chicken Marsala. If creamy, cozy dinners is your love language, I’ve got you covered with my one-pot creamy Garlic Chicken and Potatoes, Creamy Tuscan Parmesan Chicken, and Creamy Mushroom Garlic Chicken.
Why This Recipe Works
Great cold-weather recipe — It’s feeling very fall-ish around here. The air has definitely cooled off, the leaves are every shade of red and orange you can possibly imagine, and a huge rain storm just rolled through over the past couple of days…and all I can think about is this slow cooker parmesan herb chicken and orzo. It is the quintessential fall dish — hearty, warm, easy, comforting — all in one.
Simple ingredients — Chicken breasts, some seasoning, chicken broth, orzo, a few mushrooms and onions, that’s basically all you need to create this delicious chicken and orzo dish.
Easy — I’m a little bit obsessed with this simple crockpot meal. Chicken and buttery orzo made all together in your slow cooker with herbs and garlic and melty parmesan cheese?? It just doesn’t get better than this. Plus, this dish is as easy as putting it all in the slow cooker, cooking on low for a few hours, and then shredding the chicken and adding cheese. Talk about no muss, no fuss!
Parmesan — Is there any dish that can’t be made better with the addition of parmesan? I didn’t think so! So nutty and buttery, topping this slow cooker chicken dish with parmesan is the perfect way to round out its delicious flavor.
Ingredients
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts — You can also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs if you like.
- Italian Seasoning — A dash of Italian seasoning is all you need, or you can substitute Herbs de Provence if you like as well (my personal favorite swap for Italian seasoning).
- Low Sodium Chicken Broth — Use low-sodium, then add salt later to taste. Much easier to add salt than remove it.
- Orzo Pasta — I love orzo in this dish but you can also use a larger pasta if you like, see below for note.
- Butter — Melt the butter ahead of time to pour right into the slow cooker.
- Mushrooms — I LOVE mushrooms and think they add so much amazing flavor and texture to this orzo chicken in the slow cooker. But you can eliminate them if you wish.
- White or Yellow Onion — Finely chop an onion to add to the slow cooker.
- Minced Garlic — Mince the garlic by hand or scoop it from a jar — either way, it’d delish!
- Salt & Pepper — Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Shaved or Finely Shredded Parmesan Cheese — Add that delicious parm at the end for a yummy, cheesy topping.
- Freshly Cracked Black Pepper And Herbs — I am a garnish girl. For this slow cooker parmesan herb chicken and orzo dish, I finely chopped thyme and parsley to sprinkle over, along with a few cracks from my pepper mill.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Orzo
This recipe is so easy! All you have to do is:
- Season chicken with a bit of the Italian seasonings and salt and pepper on both sides. Then cook in a large nonstick skillet on the stove over medium-high heat 1-2 minutes on each side until browned on the outsides.
- Next add the chicken to a prepared slow cooker, and add on top of it the chicken broth, butter, mushrooms, onions, garlic, remaining Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper.
- Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for about 1-2 hours or low for 3-4. Stir in the orzo (see note if using something other than orzo) and cover and cook for an additional 30-45 minutes on high.
- Take the lid off and use a fork or tongs to remove the chicken breasts. Give the orzo a good stir, then add the chicken back to the slow cooker, right on top of the orzo.
- Sprinkle the top of the dish with the parmesan and cover one last time for a few more minutes to let it melt and get all gooey and cheesy on top. Serve with fresh herbs and fresh cracked black pepper.
FAQs
You do not have to cook pasta first before you put it in a slow cooker, however you should wait till the rest of the ingredients are nearly done cooking before adding it, otherwise it will get way too mushy.
Another key is to make sure there is enough liquid in the crock for the pasta to cook in. If not, add some water or chicken broth when you add the pasta as well.
Generally speaking, it’s better to cook chicken in a slow cooker at a lower temperature for a longer period of time because low-and-slow cooking results in a more tender and juicy meat.
However, if you add liquid to the slow cooker and cook it on high then it will still be pretty tender and tasty as the liquid helps keep the chicken from drying out as it cooks.
Expert Tips for Perfect Crockpot Chicken Orzo
- If you’re worried about “mushy” orzo from adding it to the slow cooker, you can cook the orzo separately and simply stir it in at the end of your cooking time, when you add the chicken back in. If you are cooking the orzo separately, you should only add 2 cups of chicken broth in the crockpot with the chicken and throw out any remaining broth at the end.
- Pro tip: Cooking the orzo in chicken broth gives it much more flavor than cooking it in water.
- This slow cooker parmesan herb chicken and orzo dish will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.
More Orzo Recipes to Try
- Orzo is such a versatile kitchen staple! I love this variation for One Pot Greek Chicken and Orzo, it somehow feels bright and comforting at the same time.
- This Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup is the perfect light and fresh soup for Spring and Summertime.
- Creamy Parmesan Spinach Orzo is one of my favorite side dishes – ever! It goes great with any cozy chicken dish to make a delicious, complete meal.
When you make this recipe, snap a photo and tag me on social – I love connecting with you and seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!
Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Chicken & Orzo
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, OR 4-6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 3 teaspoon Italian seasoning, divided
- 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 ½ cups orzo pasta , (see note)
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 cup sliced, mushrooms
- 1 medium white or yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt , (or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper , (or to taste)
- ½ cup shaved or finely shredded parmesan cheese
- freshly cracked black pepper and herbs (such as thyme or parsley) for garnish
Instructions
- Season chicken with a bit of the Italian seasonings and salt and pepper on both sides. Cook in a large nonstick skillet on the stove over medium-high heat 1-2 minutes on each side until browned on the outsides.
- Transfer chicken to a greased slow cooker. Add chicken broth, butter, mushrooms, onions, garlic, remaining Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper to slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on high for 1-2 hours or on low for 3-4 hours. Stir in orzo, cover and cook for another 30-45 minutes on high.
- Uncover and use a fork or tongs to pull chicken out of the slow cooker. Stir contents of slow cooker, then return chicken to slow cooker, on top of the orzo mixture.
- Sprinkle parmesan cheese over chicken. Cover and cook until cheese is melted, about 5-10 minutes. Serve with fresh herbs and cracked black pepper if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was sooo good! It turned out perfectly and looks just like the photo! I only added about 1.5 cups of broth and cooked on low. I added a few black olives at the very end. This is a keeper!
We loved it! Made recipe exactly as directed and it was warm and yummy
Outstanding. After reading the reviews, I made 1 change, the cheese. I had some onion cheddar in my fridge from a trip to NY. It was outstanding… Anything BUT bland. Most grocery stores sell onion cheese in the specialty cheese section. Worth it.
Not a hit for me. My chicken breasts were large so I cooked them in the slow cooker for two hours on high. The chicken came out tough so I don’t know what I will do with that. I cooked the Orzo separetely then placed in the crock pot for a few minutes. The Orzo was delicious. Too bad about all that chicken.
I’m sorry this happened. It seems like you may not have had enough liquid in your slow cooker. You can shred the chicken and put it back in the slow cooker with some broth or sauce. Cook on low for another 1–2 hours to let the meat relax and absorb moisture. Or you can do it on the cooktop and simmer gently covered with added broth for 20–30 minutes.
Unfortunately my husband and I found this recipe to be very bland. I followed the recipe to the letter except for cooking the orzo separately in chicken stock. It tasted like boiled chicken over plain pasta. We had high hopes, but sadly, will not be making this recipe again.
This is one of our favorite recipes to make again and again. I do not add mushroom and never found the orzo to be mushy when cooked this way. Guessing it comes down to personal preference.
My husband loved it but did say after supper when I asked for a review that he felt the orzo was mushy, as was “warned.” I did not add mushrooms, wondering of others who found it mushy also did not?
All told, great, easy, tasty recipe!
Thank you,
Sue
It was fabulous. I substituted olive oil for the butter. Cholesterol healthy substitute !