Bolognese Style Orzo (HC)
Ingredients
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 120g minced beef (or pork, turkey, chicken) – or 75g Quorn mince
- ½ onion, finely chopped
- 80g courgette, chopped
- 7 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 heaped tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- Pinch of black pepper, to taste
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 ½ tsp paprika
- 120ml vegetable stock (low sodium)
- 60g orzo pasta
- 1 heaped tbsp cream cheese *
- A handful of baby spinach, chopped (or 1-2 blocks frozen, defrosted)
Instructions
Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the mince and onion and cook for 3–4 minutes until starting to brown.
Add the courgette and cherry tomatoes and cook for a further 3–4 minutes until softened.
Stir in the tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, cayenne, onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning and paprika. Cook for 1–2 minutes to combine the flavours.
Pour in the stock and stir in the orzo. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook on low heat for 10–12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the orzo is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. If it becomes too thick or starts to stick, add a splash of water to loosen it.
Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Once the orzo is cooked, stir in the cream cheese (or leave it out and top with grated cheese at the end) and the spinach. Cook until the spinach has wilted. Then serve.
* Note - You can add 30g of grated cheese on top when serving instead of stirring in the cream cheese in step 6.
Batch Cooking Tip: This recipe is perfect for batch cooking! To make multiple servings, simply increase the orzo, vegetables and mince according to how many you’d like to prepare.
For the stock, tomato puree, Worcestershire sauce, herbs and spices, increase gradually and adjust to taste – it’s easier to add than take away.
Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or frozen for up to 2 months.