Pesto shrimp orzo is a straightforward, flavorful, creamy meal that’s prepared in simply 20 minutes with 4 primary elements. This orzo pasta is coated with pesto and paired with plump shrimp and tomatoes for a easy weeknight dinner. Excellent for weekday meals but additionally good to feed a crowd.
In the event you love fast and straightforward recipes like this, it is best to attempt my Pesto Tuna Pasta recipe or do this Pesto Chicken Skillet with rice or pasta on the facet for a easy meal.
Recipe highlights
- 4 elements
- 20 minutes
- Straightforward to make
- Attention-grabbing meal
- Nice for busy weeknights
- Versatile
Elements
- Orzo – this small pasta seems to be like rice but it surely’s pasta. Generally discovering a gluten free orzo might be powerful, so you might additionally use gluten free pasta.
- Pesto – use your favourite pesto or make your individual.
- 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. Make sure you enable the shrimp to defrost fully 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.
How you can make pesto orzo with shrimp
Prepare dinner orzo: Convey water to a boil, cook dinner orzo based on the package deal instructions.
Prepare dinner the shrimp. Warmth a medium to giant skillet over medium warmth. When sizzling, spray with avocado oil (or olive oil) and add shrimp, salt and garlic powder. Prepare dinner 2-3 minutes, flip and cook dinner 1-2 extra minutes. Flip off warmth.
Reduce tomatoes in half.
Reserve pasta water: When orzo is completed 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 suggestions
- Make this with shrimp, rooster, chickpeas or salmon.
- Use retailer purchased pesto to make this tremendous easy. When you have an extra quantity of basil at house, make your individual pesto!
- To save lots of time, you’ll want to purchase peeled, deveined shrimp. I all the time purchase frozen and defrost in underneath an hour or in a single day (in the event you bear in mind to defrost the night time earlier than).
- In the event you neglect to defrost your shrimp, you possibly can cook dinner frozen shrimp in the air fryer.
Variations
- Add extra veggies: Add cooked zucchini, broccoli, bell peppers, asparagus, roasted pink peppers, child spinach, kale, artichoke hearts
- Spice: Add crushed pink 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
Widespread questions
The place to search out gluten free orzo
Orzo is pasta that’s cooked brief and resembles rice. Till lately, there weren’t a ton of gluten free choices. Nonetheless, I’ve discovered 2 actually scrumptious gluten free choices:
Can you utilize do-it-yourself pesto
Sure! When you have an abundance of basil and would like to make use of do-it-yourself, use your favourite recipe or you possibly can attempt:
What in the event you don’t have orzo?
In the event you don’t have orzo pasta, you need to use rice, pasta, spaghetti squash, or cauliflower rice.
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- 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 – minimize in half
- 1/4 cup pasta water
Convey water to a boil, cook dinner orzo based on the package deal instructions.
Whereas orzo is cooking, cook dinner the shrimp. Warmth a medium to giant skillet over medium warmth. When sizzling, spray with avocado oil (or olive oil) and add shrimp, salt and garlic powder. Prepare dinner 2-3 minutes, flip and cook dinner 1-2 extra minutes. Flip off warmth.
Reduce tomatoes in half.
When orzo is completed 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 sizzling or at room temperature.
- Make this with shrimp, rooster, chickpeas or salmon.
- Use retailer purchased or do-it-yourself pesto.
- To save lots of time, you’ll want to purchase peeled, deveined shrimp. If frozen, defrost in underneath an hour or in a single day.
- In the event you neglect to defrost your shrimp, you possibly can cook dinner frozen shrimp in 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, nevertheless I don’t love the feel of the shrimp when frozen and defrosted after being cooked.
Vitamin Info
Vitamin Information
Quantity per Serving
The place does diet data come from? Vitamin details are offered as a courtesy, sourced from the USDA Meals Database.
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