A light and easy meal to make for lunch or dinner, the courgette is barely cooked to add a bit of texture to the very soft and almost buttery orzo grains.
Serves 2 people
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 150 g orzo
- 500 ml hot vegan stock
- 2 large courgettes, cut into thin strips or coarsely grated
- Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
- ¼ tsp chilli flakes
- Salt and pepper
- 8 basil leaves, to serve
Method:
- Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan or large frying pan, add the onion and cook over a medium heat for about 8 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Stir in the orzo, pour in the hot stock and simmer for 10 minutes until the orzo is cooked but with a slight bite to it. Add the courgettes, lemon zest and juice and chilli flakes. If the orzo has absorbed all the liquid, add a little water until it is the consistency you prefer. Simmer for 2 minutes, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve in bowls, drizzled with olive oil and topped with the basil leaves.
For pea and spinach orzo
- Put the orzo in a medium‑sized saucepan or large frying pan, pour in 400 ml of the hot vegan stock and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, put 150 g (5 oz) defrosted frozen peas, the remaining 100 ml (stock and 50 g roughly chopped spinach in a blender and blitz until you have a smooth puree. Add the spinach blend to the orzo with an additional 150 g peas and 50 g (2 oz) spinach and cook for another 5 minutes. Season and then stir in the zest and juice of 1 lemon with ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes.
Recipe from Broke Vegan: One Pot: Over 100 simple plant-based recipes that don't cost the Earth, by Sam Dixon, published by Aster, December 2022, £12.99 hardback (octopusbooks.co.uk)
Photographer: Charlotte Nott–Macaire