Pesto shrimp orzo is a simple, flavorful, creamy meal that’s prepared in simply 20 minutes with 4 predominant components. This orzo pasta is coated with pesto and paired with plump shrimp and tomatoes for a easy weeknight dinner. Good for weekday meals but additionally excellent to feed a crowd.
Should you love fast and straightforward recipes like this, you need to strive my Pesto Tuna Pasta recipe or do that Pesto Rooster Skillet with rice or pasta on the facet for a easy meal.
Recipe highlights
- 4 components
- 20 minutes
- Simple to make
- Attention-grabbing meal
- Nice for busy weeknights
- Versatile
Elements
- Orzo – this small pasta seems like rice but it surely’s pasta. Typically discovering a gluten free orzo may 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 massive Argentinian Pink Shrimp from Dealer Joe’s. I like this as a result of it’s peeled and deveined. Make sure to permit the shrimp to defrost utterly earlier than cooking.
- Tomatoes – I like including tomatoes to any dish with pesto. It’s an excellent pop of coloration and the flavors pair completely.
Methods to make pesto orzo with shrimp
Prepare dinner orzo: Carry water to a boil, prepare dinner orzo in line with the package deal instructions.
Prepare dinner the shrimp. Warmth a medium to massive 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 prepare dinner 1-2 extra minutes. Flip off warmth.
Minimize 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 nicely. Add extra pasta water if wanted.
High suggestions
- Make this with shrimp, hen, chickpeas or salmon.
- Use retailer purchased pesto to make this tremendous easy. When you have an extra quantity of basil at dwelling, make your personal pesto!
- To avoid wasting time, make sure you purchase peeled, deveined shrimp. I all the time purchase frozen and defrost in underneath an hour or in a single day (in case you bear in mind to defrost the evening earlier than).
- Should you neglect to defrost your shrimp, you’ll be able to prepare dinner frozen shrimp within the air fryer.
Variations
- Add extra veggies: Add cooked zucchini, broccoli, bell peppers, asparagus, roasted purple peppers, child spinach, kale, artichoke hearts
- Spice: Add crushed purple pepper flakes
- Different protein: You need to use cooked hen (diced hen or shredded hen), 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 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 selfmade pesto
Sure! When you have an abundance of basil and would favor to make use of selfmade, use your favourite recipe or you’ll be able to strive:
What in case you don’t have orzo?
Should you don’t have orzo pasta, you need to use rice, pasta, spaghetti squash, or cauliflower rice.
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- 1 pound massive shrimp – peeled and deveined
- 1 cup pesto
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 8 oz orzo
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes – reduce in half
- ¼ cup pasta water
Carry water to a boil, prepare dinner orzo in line with the package deal instructions.
Whereas orzo is cooking, prepare dinner the shrimp. Warmth a medium to massive 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 prepare dinner 1-2 extra minutes. Flip off warmth.
Minimize 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 nicely. Add extra pasta water if wanted.
Serve sizzling or at room temperature.
- Make this with shrimp, hen, chickpeas or salmon.
- Use retailer purchased or selfmade pesto.
- To avoid wasting time, make sure you purchase peeled, deveined shrimp. If frozen, defrost in underneath an hour or in a single day.
- Should you neglect to defrost your shrimp, you’ll be able to 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 may freeze leftovers in a freezer secure container, nonetheless I don’t love the feel of the shrimp when frozen and defrosted after being cooked.
Diet Info
Diet Details
Quantity per Serving
The place does diet information come from? Diet info are offered as a courtesy, sourced from the USDA Meals Database.
