Orzo With Caramelized Vegetables

Orzo With Caramelized Vegetables
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There are few pastas more satisfying than orzo, with its plump, chewy grains so much like rice, but on a grander scale and more tender. But it's often overlooked even by convenience-minded cooks, which is silly, given how fast it can be to prepare. One of my favorite ways to eat it is with caramelized onions, garlic, mushrooms and sweet potato. —Faith Durand, TheKitchn.comThis recipe is by Faith Durand and was originally published in the Chicago Tribune.
Prep Time
10
minutes
Cook Time
50
minutes
Servings
4
servings
Orzo with Caramelized Vegetables recipe - The Daily Meal
Total time: 60 minutes
Ingredients
  • salt
  • 1/2 pound orzo pasta
  • grapeseed, peanut or vegetable oil
  • 1 large sweet potato (about 3/4 pound)
  • 2 medium onions, finely diced (about 1 pound)
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated (about 1 tablespoon)
  • 6 ounce shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps diced
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 3 big leaves chard or kale, stalks removed, leaves finely chopped (about 2 cups)
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • parmesan cheese (optional)
Directions
  1. Heat a large pot of water to boiling and salt it generously. Cook 1/2 pound orzo pasta until barely al dente, about 6 to 7 minutes. Drain and toss with a generous drizzle of oil so that the grains of orzo are lightly coated with oil. Set aside.
  2. Peel 1 large sweet potato and dice it finely into cubes about 1/4 to 1/2 inch to a side. Heat a large saute or frying pan (the largest you have—you want plenty of room and hot surface) over high heat. Drizzle in a little grapeseed or vegetable oil (not olive oil—you want an oil with a high smoke point) and heat until very hot. Add the sweet potatoes and arrange them in one layer. Cook them over high heat until they are beginning to caramelize and turn brown, about 4 minutes. Flip them over and cook for another 3 minutes or so.
  3. Turn the heat down to medium and push the sweet potatoes up in a pile against one side of the pan. Add 2 medium diced onions to the center of the pan and sprinkle them lightly with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions begin to turn brown. Add 4 cloves minced garlic and 1 tablespoon grated ginger and stir them into the onions. Push the onions off to the side of the pan, next to the sweet potatoes, where they will continue to caramelize.
  4. Add 6 ounces diced shiitake mushrooms to the hot center of the pan and cook them for 4 minutes without turning them. Then flip and stir them and cook for another 4 minutes. At this point, everything should be getting well cooked; the onions should be quite dark brown and the garlic should be golden and soft. The potatoes should be softening.
  5. In a bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons soy sauce and 2 tablespoons oil. Pour this into the pan with the vegetables and mix everything together, scraping the bottom as you go. Cook all the elements together for about 3 minutes on medium heat. Then turn the heat up to high, as high as it will go.
  6. Add the orzo gradually, shaking in a cup at a time, and stirring and scraping constantly. Cook the orzo over high heat with the rest of the vegetables for about 5 minutes, letting the orzo get browned on the bottom of the pan, then scraping it up. You are developing a little more color and flavor on the pasta, and helping all the flavors combine.
  7. Finally, toss 2 cups chopped greens into the mix and cook for 1 more minute or until the greens are barely wilted. Turn off the heat and taste. Add salt and pepper if needed. Serve hot, with shavings of Parmesan cheese, if desired.
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