Chicken and Chorizo Risotto (oven-baked)

Comforting and cheesy oven-baked chicken and chorizo risotto, on the table in just 35 minutes! No stirring required, so it’s perfect for busy weeknights.

Italians look away now! This is definitely not what you would call an authentic Italian risotto, stirred continuously on the hob, adding ladlefuls of stock at a time, until you reach that perfect creamy risotto consistency!

Instead, this tasty and super easy chicken and chorizo risotto recipe is baked in the oven, leaving you time to get on with other jobs around the house!

Jump to:

• ✔️ Why should you try it?
• 🥘 Ingredients
• 🔪 Instructions
• 💭 Top tips
• 🍴 Serving suggestions
• ↔️ Substitutions
• 🥡 Storage
• ❓ FAQS
• 😋Related recipes
• Recipe

✔️ Why should you try it?

• Oven baked so no need for continous stirring
• Filling and comforting
• On the table in just 35 minutes

🥘 Ingredients

Olive Oil – 1 tablespoon is needed.

Garlic – I like things garlicky so I’ve used 2 cloves.

Onion – 1 small white onion, chopped finely.

Dried Thyme – goes so well with chicken.

Chicken Breasts – 2 chicken breasts, chopped into bite size pieces.

Chorizo – 100g chorizo sausage, cut into 1cm slices.

Frozen Petit Pois – or use frozen peas if you prefer.

Arborio Rice – essential for any risotto recipe.

White Wine – gives the risotto a lovely depth of flavour but can be omitted from the recipe.

Chicken Stock – I use stock pots to make stock, as they tend to be a lot more flavourful than ordinary stock cubes.

Parmesan – sprinkled over the risotto at the end of cooking.

Salt & Pepper – for seasoning.

🔪 Instructions

One: Preheat the oven to 180°c (160 fan). In a lidded casserole, heat the oil and fry the onion and garlic for a few minutes to soften. Add the chicken, chorizo and thyme and cook until the chicken changes colour.

Two: Stir in the arborio rice before pouring in the white wine if using.

Three: Once the white wine has evaporated, pour in the stock, bring to the boil then cover with a lid and bake in the oven for 25 minutes.

Four: Add the petit pois for the final 5 minutes of cooking. If the rice is looking a little bit dry, also add some recently boiled water from your kettle. Season and serve with grated Parmesan.

💭 Top tips

• If you see the risotto has absorbed all the stock when you go to add the petit pois, splash in some recently boiled water from your kettle to prevent it from drying out.
• Use leftover roast chicken instead of chicken breast pieces, if you have some leftover from your Sunday roast. Stir in at the same time as the petit pois. You’ll need about 200g grams.

🍴 Serving suggestions

Garlic bread, a green salad, and a crisp dry white wine (for the adults) always go down well with oven-baked risotto. More often than not though, we’ll just eat it as it is, with lots of grated Parmesan.

↔️ Substitutions

Instead of using chorizo, try smoked streaky bacon or pancetta.

Increase the veggies per serving by adding in tinned sweetcorn or some roasted summer vegetables such as courgette and peppers.

🥡 Storage

Risotto is best eaten the day it’s made, but if there are any leftovers, they can be reheated for the lunch the next day. Leftover cooked risotto can also be frozen for up to 3 months.

❓ FAQS

Do you cook risotto covered or uncovered?

Traditionally, risotto is cooked on the hob and stirred continuously, therefore not requiring a lid. Oven baked risotto is best cooked with a lid however, to ensure the risotto doesn’t dry out too much in the oven.

Can I make this with regular white rice?

The chicken and chorizo risotto can be made with regular white rice instead of arborio rice if you prefer, but you will lose a bit of texture and creaminess. Cooking times will also need to be altered.

😋Related recipes

Some more family-friendly chicken dinners to try;

• Chicken Penne Arrabbiata
• Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas
• Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake
• Mild Chicken Curry
• Creamy Cider Chicken
• Slow Cooker Honey and Garlic Chicken
• Chicken Pie

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