Pesto Orzo
This easy pesto orzo recipe is a one pot meal with chicken, pasta, and so many incredible Italian flavors for a quick weeknight family dinner!
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 cup DeLallo Orzo Pasta uncooked
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1/4 cup DeLallo Simply Pesto
- 1/3 cup DeLallo Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Extra Virgin Olive Oil drained & chopped
- 6 spears asparagus cut into quarters, see note
- 2 cups cooked chicken (try rotisserie) shredded/chopped
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the oil, butter, and onion to a pot over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, and orzo. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
- Stir in the chicken broth, cream, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, and asparagus. Once it starts to bubble, continue cooking for 10 minutes, uncovered, stirring fairly often. You will likely need to turn the heat down a bit (to medium or even medium-low). You want it to gently bubble vs. furiously boil, and you don't want the liquid to reduce too much before the pasta has cooked.
- Stir in the cooked chicken (let it warm through for a minute or so).
- Take the pot off the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese. Give it a taste, and if the pasta is firmer than you'd like or you want the sauce to be thicker/more absorbed, cover the pot and let it sit for a few minutes. If the sauce has reduced too much, add in a splash of cream. Season with salt & pepper as needed and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- If you're using very thin asparagus or you prefer it to be more crisp, add it in a few minutes later than suggested.
- Every stove and pot varies, so if you notice that the liquid has absorbed before the pasta has cooked, I recommend turning the heat down and adding a little more chicken broth and/or cream. If there's too much liquid, simply leave it a bit longer as the orzo will soak it up quickly.
- Orzo is pasta. If you want to make this with rice, you may have to adjust liquid measurements and cooking time.
- Serves 4-6 depending on how much people eat/what else it's served with.