One Pot Creamy Ham Mushroom Orzo

One Pot Creamy Ham Mushroom Orzo - a delicious creamy orzo dish, with tender pieces of ham and flavoursome mushrooms, for an easy meal that is ready and on the table in less than 30 minutes.

One Pot Creamy Orzo Recipes

Ever have those times of the year where you decide to totally reorganize and tidy your entire kitchen, including pantry and store cupboards?

Yep here too!! Strangely I always get the urge at the same time every year which is around March time, what on earth is that all about.

Anyway organizing all my dried pulses, lentils and pasta, I had some orzo leftover that wouldn't fit in the jar, so placed it on my countertop to remind me to make a yummy dish for dinner this week using it up. 

Raiding the fridge for inspiration I grabbed some thick cut ham, mushrooms and really fancied a creamy sauce and low-fat cream cheese is always on my radar to use for a quick easy creamy sauce. 

Ingredients for One Pot Creamy Ham and Mushroom Orzo

For this easy one pot recipes, grab the following ingredients:

• ham (thick cut)
• onion
• garlic
• cremini (or baby bella or chestnut) mushrooms
• dried thyme
• fresh parsley
• orzo
• chicken or vegetable stock
• low fat cream cheese
• sea salt and black pepper
• cooking oil spray (I used olive oil)

See the recipe card for full quantities.

Once all the ingredients are prepared, you can get ready to begin this delicious one pot recipe.

What is Orzo?

Some of you may be wondering, what exactly is orzo?

It's a type of pasta similar in shape to a grain of rice which is also, known as risoni or Italian barley. It's a great ingredient to use in pasta dishes, soups or can even be enjoyed the same way as rice, except it is not gluten-free because like pasta it is made from white flour. 

There are some newer products however that I have seen in Costco and Trader Joes where the orzo is made from chickpea flour or a combination of chickpeas and red lentils for a gluten-free alternative. Those varieties tend to be named risoni rather than orzo. 

Substitutes for Mushrooms in One Pot Orzo?

Like the look of this dish but hate mushrooms? Then this dish is totally versatile and works with many different vegetables.

Some great swaps are:

• Spinach
• Asparagus
• Zucchini (Courgette)
• Broccoli
• or Peas (although the latter is more a legume than a vegetable, so be sure to include some healthy vegetables as your 5 a day)

or feel free to offer other suggestions in the comments below. 

Substitutes for Ham

I use a thick-sliced ham in the one-pot creamy orzo dish. But regular bacon will work perfectly too or even some pork, prawns or chicken.

You can even keep it vegetarian-friendly and use a meat substitute or just keep at to purely vegetables if you prefer. 

Ideas for Sides

I enjoyed this dish just as it is, straight from the pan. A perfect filling and decadent meal, but if you want to make it a bit more substantial or include some more healthy vegetables, some great side ideas to serve are:

• Grilled Zucchini (Courgette) or Asparagus
• Roasted Broccoli
• Sauteed Shredded Garlic Brussel Sprouts
• Roasted Butternut Squash
• A mixed salad (greens, cucumber, tomatoes etc)
• Roasted Green Beans

More Orzo Recipes

Love orzo? Check out some of these other recipes:

• BEEF CELERY ORZO STEW
• CREAMY TOMATO AND ORZO SOUP
• HARVEST GRAIN BLEND WITH CHICKEN AND SHRIMP

or if you would like more recipe ideas or sides to make with this recipe - head on over to the FULL RECIPE INDEX where you will find over 900 delicious recipes with calories and you can search by meal type, ingredients, course, diet and more..

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