How much orzo to cook

Bring a big pot of salted water to the boil, add the orzo and cook until done, usually 8 to 10 minutes. Whole-wheat orzo packs more fiber and protein than regular orzo, which makes it the healthier choice. In the picture below, you can see lightly toasted pieces of orzo which make this pasta extra tasty!

Once the orzo is lightly golden, you add water or stock using the same ratio as rice: 1 cup orzo, 2 cups liquid , and let it simmer until all the broth is gone. Orzo is traditionally made from white flour, but it can also be made of whole grain. These are all low in fat. Brown rice provides nearly twice the fibre of white rice. When cooled, orzo, like all pasta, produces resistant starch, an important type of fibre. This vs that: Orzo vs rice. If you want a slightly creamier result, orzo can be cooked as you would rice.

Bring a big pot of salted water to the boil, add the orzo and cook until done, usually 8 to 10 minutes. Boil the orzo about 10 minutes or until it has a firm, chewy texture, stirring occasionally to prevent it from sticking together. Drain orzo in a colander. For the best flavor and texture, serve the orzo immediately after cooking.

Whole-wheat orzo packs more fiber and protein than regular orzo, which makes it the healthier choice. Orzo is traditionally made from white flour, but it can also be made of whole grain.

Orzo is really easy to prepare. You can boil it like you would regular pasta and drain off the water, but I prefer to prepare it in a skillet. And for reference, one cup of dried orzo yields about two cups cooked.

If you want to impress your family, this small pasta can be a substitute to make a pseudo version of risotto. Risotto requires a specific type of rice — arborio — as well as plenty of patience and continual stirring to get the texture just right.

However, using orzo can be more forgiving and takes less time. Plus, the starch from the pasta will give a nice creamy texture to your meal. Prepare as you would a typical risotto recipe, and after adding in the mock rice, reduce the temperature to simmer, occasionally stirring to avoid the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

And if you add orzo to soups , it's best to add this pasta near the end so it doesn't become overcooked or mushy. As an alternative, cook it separately and ladle it in when dishing up the soup. If you have a recipe that calls for orzo but you don't have any on hand, you can use rice in its place. Just account for the cook time difference. Boil-in-bag rice is a faster-cooking alternative that will most closely resemble orzo.

If you need a quick-cooking pasta alternative rice can take too long in some cases , look for ditalini , pastina , or the petite star-shaped stelline.

By Lauren David December 27,