Beat the winter chill with this creamy rosemary orzo
Warmer weather calls for hearty dinners and this creamy rosemary orzo is a meal you'll want to eat straight from the dish!
Because this dish is made with common pantry ingredients and only takes 30 minutes to cook, its a dish you can whip up on a moments notice!
Ingredients
Orzo - this is a short cut pasta that closely resembles grains of rice. You can find it at any grocery store near the pasta. And in a pinch, you could substitute ditalini pasta or even small elbow macaroni.
Shrimp - I always have Costco's frozen shrimp stocked in my fridge so it's ready to go when I need it. You defrost frozen shrimp very quickly by submerging them in warm water. For this dish, you can use shrimp with tails or without.
Chicken Broth - I prefer to use low sodium so that I can adjust the salt as needed.
Butter - I use butter instead of oil in this dish because I prefer the comforting, nutty flavors of browned butter. But if following a Mediterranean diet, you could substitute for your favorite neutral oil.
Onion and Garlic - I used a big yellow onion, but a sweet onion or even a shallot will work with this dish. You can also keep it easy for yourself and use pre chopped garlic.
milk - I used 2% milk because I prefer to keep this dish lighter, especially since I will be adding in parmesan cheese. However, any milk will work - non fat, heavy cream (though I would use ¼ cup), or coconut would all be nice.
Spices - This dish calls for a spice medley of paprika, nutmeg, red pepper flakes, pepper, fresh rosemary, and salt to taste. I also like to stir in a squeeze of lemon juice at the end to brighten up the dish.
What to serve with creamy rosemary orzo with shrimp
This dish is substantial enough to be the star of the meal. But it doesn't hurt to have healthy side dishes or small soups to serve with it.
Creamy Rosemary Orzo with Shrimp
Equipment
- Dutch Oven optional
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Cups Orzo
- 1 ½ Lbs Shrimp deveined and tails removed
- 4 Cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth substitute vegetable broth
- 4 Tbs Butter
- 1 Yellow Onion Chopped
- 4 Garlic Cloves Minced
- 1 Tbsp Fresh Rosemary Chopped
- ½ Cup Shredded Parmesan Use ¼ cup cheese for lightened up version
- ½ Cup Milk See Notes
- ¼ Lemon Juiced
- ½ Tsp Black pepper
- ½ Tsp Paprika
- ½ Tsp Red Pepper Flakes
- ¼ Tsp Nutmeg
- Salt As needed
Instructions
- Brown butter in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium high heat. Then add the chopped yellow onion. Cook until translucent, roughly 5 minutes then add the minced garlic. Cook for another 3 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the dry orzo to the pan and toast it by stirring it around in the butter, onions, and garlic for 1 minute. Then add in the chicken broth.
- Stir in the chopped rosemary, paprika, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Let the orzo cook through until the chicken broth is mostly gone
- When the orzo is 90% cooked through, add the milk and shredded parmesan cheese. Stir to combine. Add the juice of ¼ lemon.
- Add the shrimp to the dish and stir so that the shrimp are cooked through. You want the shrimp to be pink all the way through.
- Add extra rosemary or salt if desired. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Any milk will work for this recipe. I prefer to use 2% milk, but you can substitute heavy cream or half and half - use ¼ cup instead. You can also use coconut milk - use ½ cup.
Would love to try, looking at the way it’s presented here makes me feel good.