Delicious Orzo with Cherry Tomatoes

Orzo is one of those kinds of pasta that much resembles rice. It’s very easy to cook and can be used for many dishes such as salad, or soups. This is one of our favourite simple, yet delicious recipes. The sweet freshness of the cherry tomatoes along with the fresh herbs and the salty cheese make this a perfect dish. It’s a great kid friendly recipe.

The Ingredients for Orzo with Cherry Tomatoes

Fresh ingredients that will make your meal absolutely delicious.

The Ingredients List for Orzo with Cherry Tomatoes:

• 1 cup uncooked orzo
• 1 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large crimini mushrooms (about 1/2 cup sliced)
• 1/4 cup coriander (or parsley)
• 4 tablespoons fresh grated parmesan
• fresh basil leaves
• salt and pepper to taste

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The Pasta

Let’s start with boiling the pasta. Liberally salt the water in which you boil it. This usually takes about 8 or so minutes to cook it al-dente. I generally cook it for 1 less minute than the package instructions, because it will be cooking again when we add it to the tomatoes.

The Cooking Process for Orzo with Cherry Tomatoes

While it is boiling, we can start cooking the vegetables. Let’s start by finely chopping the onions and slicing the garlic. Heat the olive oil and add the onions and garlic to the pan. Cook them for about 4 or so minutes – just till they start softening. We don’t want to cook them till they brown. That changes the flavour of this fresh dish.

The Mushrooms and Tomatoes

While the onions are cooking, we can wash and finely chop the mushrooms. I like to chop them to about the same size as the onions, but you can slice them if you prefer. Some people don’t like mushrooms, so you can totally omit them from the recipe without taking much away. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook for just 1-2 minutes. Again, just to allow them to soften a little. We don’t want to over cook the mushrooms, or else they start to get watery and will ruin the dish.

Now we are ready to add the delicious fresh cherry tomatoes. Wash and chop them. I tend to quarter them cause that helps in evenly distributing them into the meal, but you can chop them as you like. We can wash and chop the coriander (or parsley and basil if using) at this point. We have some non-parsley lovers in the family, so I use fresh coriander and basil, but feel free to use whichever you prefer.

Bringing the Pasta Recipe Together

Once the mushrooms have cooked, we can add the tomatoes and the herbs to the pan. At the same time, we can add the pasta to the pan as well. At this point, the idea is just to ensure that everything gets tossed together and gets evenly distributed. We do not want to cook the tomatoes. Once tomatoes cook, they get juicy and we do not want that. We just cook them for about 1-2 minutes.

Now we can add the salt to the pan and sprinkle the parmesan onto the pan and toss to coat the pasta with it. I use a liberal amount of salt when I boil the orzo so that it is well salted. We add the salt to the cooked and ready to serve pasta in order to avoid the vegetables from getting watery. As soon as you add the salt, the vegetables will start to lose their water, so best to wait to do this just when you are ready to serve.

Serving Suggestions for this Kid Friendly Recipe:

Great some more fresh parmesan onto the pasta and grind some fresh black pepper onto each plate before you serve. Enjoy hot with a side of protein. Try it with my

• oven roasted chicken thighs
• or my honey mustard chicken.

Tried and Liked the Recipe?

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