Pesto shrimp orzo is a straightforward, flavorful, creamy meal that’s prepared in simply 20 minutes with 4 primary components. This orzo pasta is coated with pesto and paired with plump shrimp and tomatoes for a easy weeknight dinner. Excellent for weekday meals but in addition excellent to feed a crowd.
In case you love fast and simple recipes like this, you need to strive my Pesto Tuna Pasta recipe or do that Pesto Hen Skillet with rice or pasta on the facet for a easy meal.
Recipe highlights
- 4 components
- 20 minutes
- Straightforward to make
- Eye-catching meal
- Nice for busy weeknights
- Versatile
Elements
- Orzo – this small pasta appears like rice however it’s pasta. Generally discovering a gluten free orzo might be robust, so you might additionally use gluten free pasta.
- Pesto – use your favourite pesto or make your personal.
- Shrimp – I like to make use of giant Argentinian Pink Shrimp from Dealer Joe’s. I like this as a result of it’s peeled and deveined. Be sure you enable the shrimp to defrost utterly earlier than cooking.
- Tomatoes – I really like including tomatoes to any dish with pesto. It’s an important pop of coloration and the flavors pair completely.
make pesto orzo with shrimp
Prepare dinner orzo: Carry water to a boil, prepare dinner orzo in accordance with the package deal instructions.
Prepare dinner the shrimp. Warmth a medium to giant skillet over medium warmth. When scorching, spray with avocado oil (or olive oil) and add shrimp, salt and garlic powder. Prepare dinner 2-3 minutes, flip and prepare dinner 1-2 extra minutes. Flip off warmth.
Lower tomatoes in half.
Reserve pasta water: When orzo is finished cooking, reserve 1/4 – 1/2 cup of the pasta water earlier than draining.
Assemble the dish: Drain orzo, add shrimp, pesto and tomatoes to the pot. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the pasta water and stir properly. Add extra pasta water if wanted.
High ideas
- Make this with shrimp, rooster, chickpeas or salmon.
- Use retailer purchased pesto to make this tremendous easy. When you’ve got an extra quantity of basil at dwelling, make your personal pesto!
- To save lots of time, you’ll want to purchase peeled, deveined shrimp. I all the time purchase frozen and defrost in below an hour or in a single day (in the event you keep in mind to defrost the evening earlier than).
- In case you overlook to defrost your shrimp, you possibly can prepare dinner frozen shrimp within the air fryer.
Variations
- Add extra veggies: Add cooked zucchini, broccoli, bell peppers, asparagus, roasted crimson peppers, child spinach, kale, artichoke hearts
- Spice: Add crushed crimson pepper flakes
- Different protein: You should use cooked rooster (diced rooster or shredded rooster), chickpeas, Italian tofu or salmon bites.
What to serve with pesto orzo
Frequent questions
The place to search out gluten free orzo
Orzo is pasta that’s cooked quick and resembles rice. Till just lately, there weren’t a ton of gluten free choices. Nevertheless, I’ve discovered 2 actually scrumptious gluten free choices:
Can you employ home made pesto
Sure! When you’ve got an abundance of basil and would favor to make use of home made, use your favourite recipe or you possibly can strive:
What in the event you don’t have orzo?
In case you don’t have orzo pasta, you need to use rice, pasta, spaghetti squash, or cauliflower rice.
★ Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star ranking beneath!
- 1 pound giant shrimp – peeled and deveined
- 1 cup pesto
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 8 oz orzo
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes – reduce in half
- 1/4 cup pasta water
Carry water to a boil, prepare dinner orzo in accordance with the package deal instructions.
Whereas orzo is cooking, prepare dinner the shrimp. Warmth a medium to giant skillet over medium warmth. When scorching, spray with avocado oil (or olive oil) and add shrimp, salt and garlic powder. Prepare dinner 2-3 minutes, flip and prepare dinner 1-2 extra minutes. Flip off warmth.
Lower tomatoes in half.
When orzo is finished cooking, reserve 1/4 – 1/2 cup of the pasta water earlier than draining.
Drain orzo, add shrimp, pesto and tomatoes to the pot. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the pasta water and stir properly. Add extra pasta water if wanted.
Serve scorching or at room temperature.
- Make this with shrimp, rooster, chickpeas or salmon.
- Use retailer purchased or home made pesto.
- To save lots of time, you’ll want to purchase peeled, deveined shrimp. If frozen, defrost in below an hour or in a single day.
- In case you overlook to defrost your shrimp, you possibly can prepare dinner frozen shrimp within the air fryer.
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- Fridge: Retailer leftover shrimp orzo pesto pasta within the fridge for as much as 3 days in an hermetic container.
- Freezer: You’ll be able to freeze leftovers in a freezer protected container, nonetheless I don’t love the feel of the shrimp when frozen and defrosted after being cooked.
Diet Data
Diet Details
Quantity per Serving
The place does vitamin data come from? Diet details are offered as a courtesy, sourced from the USDA Meals Database.
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