Greek Chicken and Lemon Rice🍗🍚👇

| Ingredients |

Chicken

-1.5 lb skinless boneless chicken thighs

-1 teaspoon dried oregano

-1 teaspoon paprika

-¼ teaspoon salt

-¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

-2 tablespoons olive oil

Greek lemon rice

-1 tablespoon olive oil

-8 oz grape tomatoes sliced in half

-5 cloves garlic minced

-1 teaspoon dried oregano

-¼ teaspoon salt

-5 oz fresh spinach chopped

-3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

-2 cups cooked jasmine rice

-15 oz chickpeas canned

Feta cheese mixture

-6 oz feta cheese diced into small cubes

-1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

-1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

-¼ teaspoon dried oregano

-2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano optional

fresh oregano for garnish

| Instructions |

How to cook chicken

-Season the chicken thighs with dried oregano, paprika, salt, and red pepper flakes.

-Heat an empty, high-sided, heavy-bottomed skillet (such as a cast-iron or stainless steel pan) over medium heat for 2 minutes.

-Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add chicken thighs. Cook the chicken on medium heat for 5 minutes on one side, undisturbed. Important note: make sure the oil does not burn. If the skillet gets too hot (depending on your stovetop), reduce heat to low-medium. You don't want the juices from the chicken to be burnt, as you will use those juices to flavor the rice.

-Flip the chicken thighs over, reduce heat to low-medium, and cook for about 5 more minutes or longer on the other side, without moving it, until it's cooked through.

-The meat thermometer should register 165°F (74°C) in the thickest part of the chicken. Remove the chicken from the skillet.

How to make Greek lemon rice

-Add half of the halved grape tomatoes, minced garlic, 1 teaspoon of dried oregano, ¼ teaspoon of salt, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the same, now empty, skillet. Cook the tomatoes on medium heat for about 2 minutes until they soften and release juices.

-Stir in fresh spinach until it wilts.

-Add cooked rice and drained chickpeas.

-Add 3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice and the remaining uncooked halved grape tomatoes. Reheat on medium heat, stirring everything to combine. Add 1 extra tablespoon of olive oil if you like.

How to make a feta cheese mixture

-In a medium bowl, combine cubed Feta cheese with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon of dried oregano (add more to taste), 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh oregano (if using).

-Mix so that the herbs and olive oil coat the cubed Feta cheese.

| Assembly |

-Mix half of the feta cheese mixture into the skillet with lemon rice.

-Add sliced cooked chicken to the skillet with rice and reheat on medium heat.

-Top the Greek chicken and lemon rice with the remaining feta mixture. Sprinkle fresh oregano on top.

-Season with salt and black pepper, to taste.

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