One pot Lemon and Oregano Chicken with Pilaf

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Nothing transports me back to my childhood quite like food. The flavours, smell and texture of dishes that shaped my earliest food memories help me feel connected to my family and bring me total comfort through home cooking. 

This dish combines a combination of flavours and ingredients recognisable by any Greek/Cypriot family, and it’s coming together is very much based on intuition rather than precise measurements and instructions. It’s a quick way to feed a family (coming together within 30 minutes), and is relatively low maintenance and low mess. My favourite! 

I like to serve this simply with a Greek salad on the side, which I’ll post below. 

Enjoy! 

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Lemon & Oregano Chicken with Pilaf (and a Greek Salad!)

Serves 4

Ingredients 

Chicken and Pilaf

• 4-6 skin on, bone in chicken thighs 

• Extra virgin olive oil

• 1 lemon 

• 1 tbsp dried oregano 

• 20g butter 

• 3 tbsp short vermicelli pasta (like this) 

• 1 cup long grain rice, rinsed until the water runs clear 

• 2 cups vegetable or chicken stock 

• Fresh parsley to serve 

Greek salad

• 2-3 large very good tomatoes 

• 1-2 Lebanese cucumbers 

• Half red onion

• Large handful of pitted Kalamata olives 

• Handful of fresh oregano leaves (or marjoram) 

• 75g feta 

• Extra virgin olive oil 

• White wine vinegar 

• Dried oregano to serve 

Method 

Chicken and Pilaf

1. Start by marinating the chicken - in a large bowl add the chicken thighs, a few tablespoons of olive oil, the juice of half a lemon, 1 tbsp dried oregano and a very generous seasoning of salt and rub to coat each thigh. Set aside for at least half an hour or as long as you have available (you can also do this the day before and store in the fridge). 

2. Heat a large frying pan or skillet and add a drizzle of olive oil. Sear the chicken thighs skin down until golden and slightly crispy - around 7 minutes. Turn the chicken thighs over and allow the bottoms to brown for a few minutes before removing from the pan and setting aside. 

3. Add the butter and vermicelli to the same pan and sauté until the pasta turn golden. Add the rinsed rice, vegetable stock, a pinch of salt and stir to combine. 

4. Nestle the chicken thighs skin side up on top of the rice, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 12 minutes or until the stock has been absorbed by the rice. Turn off the heat and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes. 

5. Serve with the other half of the lemon cut into quarters, and a sprinkling of chopped fresh parsley. 

Greek Salad

1. Cut the tomato, cucumber and olives into random shapes and pieces - don’t worry about uniformity. Add to a large bowl. 

2. Slice the red onion as finely as possible so you have half rings. Place these into a sieve and rinse under cold water for a minute. Drain and add to the bowl with the other bits. 

3. Add the oregano leaves and a good pinch of salt. Dress by eye - I typically go with a ratio of 3:1 olive oil and white wine vinegar. Mix well to combine. 

4. Serve topped with a piece of feta, drizzled with olive oil and dried oregano. Break the feta upon serving.