French Onion Chicken Orzo Casserole

French Onion Chicken Orzo Casserole–an easy Instant Pot dinner with tender chicken and creamy orzo with savory caramelized onions, Parmesan cheese and crispy French fried onions.

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French Onion Chicken Orzo Casserole

This such an easy and flavorful dinner! I went to Costco today so I used rotisserie chicken for this dish. It worked so well since orzo only needs a 1 minute pressure cooking time the chicken just gets a warm through while the orzo cooks. You may be wondering why baking soda? It’s a fun little trick I learned. A little baking soda helps the onions soften and brown quickly, so you get lots of that yummy French onion flavor without standing at the stove forever. The orzo gets nice and creamy…it only needs a little splash of cream at the end. Don’t skip the crispy French fried onions on top. They add the perfect amount of crunch! Enjoy!

Ingredients/Substitution Ideas

• Butter–or olive oil (butter gives the onions the best flavor)
• Yellow onion
• Baking soda–helps the onions soften and brown much faster
• Garlic–fresh or jarred
• Water
• Worcestershire sauce
• Balsamic vinegar–or red wine vinegar
• Better Than Bouillon beef base
• Orzo
• Rotisserie chicken–any cooked and cubed or shredded chicken works
• Dried thyme
• Black pepper
• Heavy cream–or half and half
• Mozzarella–or provolone or Gruyère
• Parmesan cheese–or Asiago or Romano
• Crispy French fried onions–to add a crunchy element

Steps

Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. When display says HOT add in the butter and let it melt. Add in the onions and the baking soda. Toss in the butter until the onions get softened and they turn yellow. Stir in the garlic.

Pour in the water and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking. Stir in the Worcestershire, balsamic and beef base until it dissolves. Turn off Instant Pot.

Sprinkle in the orzo. Add chicken, thyme and pepper on top.

Cover and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set manual/pressure cook button to 1 minute. When time is up let pot sit for 5 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid and stir.

Stir in the heavy cream, mozzarella and parmesan.

Scoop onto plates and top each portion with a couple tablespoons of french fried onions. 

Notes/Tips

• Serve with steamed green beans and a slice of garlic toast.
• Don’t stir after adding the orzo. I would sprinkle the orzo evenly into the liquid and then layer the chicken and seasonings on top. This helps reduce the chance of the orzo sticking to the bottom.
• I cut this recipe in half because I was only serving Greg and me for dinner. You can easily halve the recipe or double the recipe depending on how many you’re serving and if you want leftovers or not. This recipe can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days and it freezes quite well in an air tight container for up to 3 months. Ideally, freeze in individual portions and warm up for a fast lunch or dinner. I like to use the little deli containers* to freeze individual servings and to give away.
• Add the French fried onions to individual servings right before eating so they stay crunchy.
• I used my pink 4 quart Rio Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 6 or 8 quart pot.
• I like to use whole milk mozzarella for this recipe (it tastes so much better than low fat!). Other recipes you can make with mozzarella are Instant Pot Caprese Chicken and Instant Pot Spinach and Ravioli Lasagna.

Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for. 

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