French Onion Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Onions & Orzo
Nov 16, 2023, Updated May 20, 2024
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If you love an easy one-pan dinner, you’ve come to the right place. My French Onion Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Onions & Orzo might be my favourite one-pan meal I have made in months. It’s loaded with jammy caramelized onions, flavourful chicken thighs, and orzo. This recipe is easy to make, and requires only a few simple ingredients, making this a perfect dinner idea when you need to get something delicious and nutritious on the table.
Looking for more chicken dinners?
I have a ton of Chicken Dinners that you need to check out while exploring the blog, a few personal favs are:
- Mushroom Chicken with Parmesan and White Wine
- Marry Me Chicken Pasta
- Sheet Pan Rosemary Chicken and Potatoes
- One-Pan French Onion Chicken Thighs
- Lemon Garlic Tahini Chicken & Rice
- One-Skillet Chicken Thighs with Roasted Tomatoes and Ricotta
- Chicken Thighs with Jalapeno Popper Creamed Corn
Let’s stay connected
Keep in touch with me on Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest! Also, if you do make this recipe (or any recipe of mine for that matter) be sure to tag #sammymontgoms so I can see your re-creations!
Recipe at a glance
Taste: So comforting! The caramelized onions add such an incredible depth of flavour to this recipe.
Time: About an hour. But, the majority of this time the onions are caramelizing/sautéing a pan.
Effort: Minimal effort here! The hardest part will be slicing up those onions.
Difficulty: ANYONE can make this one-pan French Onion Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Onions & Orzo recipe. It’s simple, quick, and the best part is, you only have one pan to clean at the end.
Ingredients
Here is a quick overview of the ingredients you’ll need to make my French Onion Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Onions & Orzo. For the exact detailed measurements and ingredients, scroll to the bottom of this page to review my recipe card.
- Olive oil
- Butter
- Garlic
- Chicken thighs: bone in, skin on. This will help achieve the most flavourful chicken thighs.
- Chicken broth: you can substitute for vegetable broth if thats your preference.
- Heavy cream: you can remove this and add more stock should you not want the cream, although it does provide a nice creamy and rich texture to the overall dish. Alternatively, feel free to use any of your favourite plant based milks in replacment.
- Orzo: if you don’t have orzo you can substitute for rice, which also tastes great.
- A few simple seasonings.
Tips before getting started
- Slice your onions into similar sized pieces so they achieve an even cook while they are caramelizing. If you notice that the onions are becoming dry and sticking to your pan you can deglaze with 1 tablespoon of water at a time throughout the cooking process.
- Marinade your chicken while the onions are cooking. The onions are going to take about 20 to 25 minutes to get nice and golden in colour, so I recommend letting your chicken marinade while you wait for the onions.
- Nestle the chicken thighs on top of the broth and orzo base, cover with a lid or foil, and let bake in the oven until fully cooked. About 20 minutes. Don’t worry if the chicken is not fully covered by the liquid either.
- Once the orzo is fully cooked, no liquid remains, and your chicken has reached an internal temperature of at least 165°, you are ready to enjoy.
Storing & reheating
Storing: if you have leftovers, add the French Onion Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Onions & Orzo to an airtight container and this will keep fresh in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Oven: to re-heat, simply add your leftover French Onion Chicken Thighs with Caramelized Onions & Orzo to a baking dish with a splash of chicken stock, cover and let bake for 10-15 minutes or until heated throughout.
Microwave: you can add your leftover to a plate and re-heat in the microwave for 35-55 seconds.
Substitutions & FAQ’s
- Does this recipe freeze well?
I don’t recommend freezing this recipe as I find the orzo becomes too dry. - Can I use a vegetable stock instead of chicken stock?
Of course, and it still tastes great! - Can I substitute for a dairy free milk in place of the heavy cream?
You sure can and it tastes great, so use whatever dairy free creamer/milk you enjoy. - Does this recipe work with chicken breasts instead of thighs?
It does! The thighs have a lot more flavour, but the breasts will also work if thats more your vibe.
Watch the recipe video
Watch the recipe video on Instagram
French Onion Chicken with Caramelized Onions & Orzo
Ingredients
Onions:
- 1 tbsp olive oil, for frying the onions
- 1 tbsp butter, for frying the onions
- 2 large yellow onions, sliced
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Chicken Thighs:
- 6 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
- 3 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp for frying the chicken, and 2 tbsp for the chicken marinade
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Remaining Ingredients:
- 1.5 cups orzo, uncooked
- 2 cups chicken stock, salted
- 1 cup heavy cream
- green onions, chopped, optional for topping
Instructions
- Bring a large oven safe pan to low medium heat. Preferably cast iron if you have.
- Add 1 tbsp of butter and 1 tbsp of olive oil, and add your sliced onions. Cook low and slow for at least 20 minutes, stirring often.
- While your onions are cooking, prepare your chicken. Grab a large bowl and add your chicken thighs, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, dried thyme, salt and pepper. Mix to combine, ensuring all pieces of chicken are coated evenly. Set aside until ready to use.
- Once your onions are golden in colour, add your balsamic vinegar, dried thyme, salt and pepper. Cook for an additional minute. Remove onions from the pan, and set aside.
- To the same pan, set to medium/heat, add a tbsp of olive oil. Pan fry your chicken thighs on each side for 1-2 minutes, or until golden. *Don't worry about cooking the chicken all the way, it will finish cooking in the oven.
- Remove chicken from the pan, add in your orzo and lightly toast for 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Add back your caramelized onions, chicken stock, and heavy cream.
- Nestle in the chicken thighs, cover and cook in a 425 °F oven for 20-30 minutes, or until orzo and chicken are fully cooked.
- Top with fresh green onions if using, and enjoy!
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I know thighs are a juicer meat but my family prefer chicken breasts.
Can I substitute?
Love your recipes !
You sure can!
Can’t wait to make this! Do you have a substitution for balsamic vinegar? It’s the only thing I don’t have on hand.
Thanks!
You can remove it all together if you don’t have any!
I have not cooked with chicken thighs until this meal. It was absolutely delicious! This has become a regular on the family menu!
I have some boneless, skinless thighs to use. Would they work? Thanks!
Absolutely!
Just made this. AMAZING. Thank you for this recipe!!
So yummy! I’d like to make this for an upcoming dinner party about 15 people. Any recommendations on making this that many? What other noodle could I use besides orzo?
Hi! You can certainly make this for 15. If you have a second pan, I would recommend doing them in the oven at the same time. Or use a super large baking dish. As for other noodles, you can use rice or any other really small pasta. Hope this helps.
Sammy
Delicious! Worked well with coconut milk as a sub for cream.
Hi Krista! Thanks for sharing, very glad you made your own substitution to make this recipe work.
Warmest,
Sammy
I loved it! And my hubby, who is VERY stingy with compliments, said it was great. I only had boneless skinless on hand, but next time I will go with bone-in skin on to elevate it to its highest potential. The orzo was addictive!
I saw this on Instagram and had to make it. The only change I made was that I put the onions along with the salt, pepper, thyme and balsamic in a slow cooker on high for five hours to caramelize the onions first. I put the caramelized onions in the cast iron pan over a medium/low heat for about a half hour to get the fond started, then I followed the recipe to a T after that and would not change a thing.
This truly was a rare instance where a recipe looked and sounded good, but the finished product was beyond our expectations. Five big stars 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
I’ve made this more than once, it’s a family staple now; even my toddlers love it & ask for 2nds.
This is so awesome! Thanks for sharing, Bri!
I love to cook and try new recipes. I’ve never left a comment before but this was FANTASTIC! Not a ton of ingredients but maximum flavor! My husband and I both loved it! Will make again and again!
We made this tonight and it was AMAZING! Even the toddler approved ❤️
Absolutely delicious! I didn’t alter anything and was pleasantly surprised. Your recipes haven’t failed me yet!
That makes me so happy!
Made this tonight and it was AMAZING!!!!
This was so delicious and easy! I will make it again for sure!
Definitely one of my favourites! So quick and easy! Practically foolproof!
It’s so delicious!
This has become a regular family menu.
Sometimes we use chicken breast, chicken thighs etc. It’s always good 😊
Hi Cathleen! That’s so awesome. So happy this one has become part of the rotation. Thanks for sharing! -Sammy
oh. My. God. Sammy. This was amazing.
I just typed in chicken and orzo because that’s what I had on hand (and I know you use Orzo in a lot of your recipes, something I’ve NEVER used!) and this recipe came up. It was delicious, flavorful, and satisfying.
Thanks for me look like a cooking goddess to my husband! 😂 This is not the first recipe I’ve made from your site and it absolutely won’t be the last.
Hi Raylene! THIS MAKES ME SO HAPPY! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review – I am also happy you enjoyed the recipe! xo – Sammy
Can you use something other than orzo
rice also works!
Just finished this. Wow, such a yummy warm cozy meal. Paired it with some braised carrots. Chicken thighs are perfect for this recipe. They’re small enough and can handle the time and heat in the oven. I used fresh thyme because I had a lot on hand. That orzo onion cream thing, just delicious. My new favorite thigh recipe. Thank you!