Garlic & Parmesan Sausage Orzo
Creamy orzo loaded with roasted garlic, soft & juicy sausage and plenty of parmesan!
Servings: 4
Cost: £3 / $3.50
Equipment
- Large Deep Cast Iron Skillet or Large Pot
- Wooden Spoon
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Aluminium Foil
- Fine Cheese Grater
- Jug (for stock)
Ingredients
- 2 cups / 400g uncooked Orzo
- 1.3lb / 600g Ground Sausage Meat (see notes)
- 3 1/2 cups / 875ml Chicken Stock, plus more if needed (make 5 or so mins ahead of time)
- 1 cup / 250ml Heavy/Double Cream, at room temp
- 1/2 cup / 120ml Dry White Wine
- 3/4 cup / 60g freshly grated Parmesan
- 2-3 tbsp finely diced Fresh Parsley
- 1 small bulb Garlic
- Olive Oil, as needed
- Salt & Pepper, as needed
Instructions
- Slice the tip off the garlic bulb to expose the cloves and drizzle with oil. Wrap in foil then place in the oven at 180C/356F for 50-60mins, or until super soft, golden brown and caramelized. Leave to cool for a few mins, then squeeze out as much as you can, making sure the outer peel doesn't mix in. Sprinkle over a pinch of salt then mash with a fork to smooth out any lumpy parts.
- Meanwhile, add a drizzle of oil to a large deep pan or pot over medium-high heat. Tear small chunks from the sausage meat and add to the pan (size of mini meatballs). Fry until deep golden with a nice crust (important to develop flavour). Pour in the wine and lower heat slightly to medium. Simmer until it mostly evaporates, using your wooden spoon to scrape off any flavour from the base of the pan.
- Stir in orzo, then pour in stock and cream. Give it a good stir then bring it to a simmer. Turn the heat down slightly and simmer until the orzo is al dente and the sauce has thickened to a risotto-style consistency, stirring occasionally. Stir in parmesan, parsley and roasted garlic, then check for seasoning and adjust if desired. Stir in a splash of stock or water if you over-reduce the sauce.
- Serve up with more parsley and/or parmesan if desired then tuck in and enjoy!
Video
Notes
a) Sausage - If you're in the UK I recommend grabbing a pack of plain sausage meat. Failing that, just squeeze the meat from some pork sausages. US - if you can get plain sausage meat use that, if not I imagine mild Italian sausage will work just fine.
b) Parmesan - Make sure it's freshly grated. The powdery stuff doesn't always melt into a silky sauce and can sometimes turn it grainy.
c) Stock/Cream - Important your cream is at room temp and your stock isn't piping hot or it'll curdle the cream. Also just make sure you're definitely using heavy (US) or double (UK) cream. Anything thinner (i.e. half and half or milk) may curdle.
d) Calories - Based on 1.5 tbsp olive oil total and shared between 4.
Nutrition
Calories: 1228kcal | Carbohydrates: 86.89g | Protein: 35.39g | Fat: 80.62g | Saturated Fat: 34.199g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8.491g | Monounsaturated Fat: 33.089g | Trans Fat: 0.167g | Cholesterol: 210mg | Sodium: 1445mg | Potassium: 797mg | Fiber: 11.2g | Sugar: 2.02g | Vitamin A: 1428IU | Vitamin C: 7.9mg | Calcium: 243mg | Iron: 3.11mg