This Pesto Orzo recipe is made with fresh ingredients like summer squash and zucchini, making this a fun summer main dish or an easy side dish. The cooking time on this pasta dish is less than 20 minutes, so you can easily make it anytime.
When I miss eating pasta, I always turn to orzo pasta. That’s because Orzo cooks in just 10 minutes and this recipe requires just a handful of simple ingredients.
This pasta is a very low-effort meal making it a filling and delicious recipe!
The best part is that it can become an orzo pesto salad taken to a summer BBQ. It’s also a great recipe to serve as a side at fall dinners.
🛒 Ingredients
Here is a quick look at the ingredients. It is to understand why these specific ingredients were chosen. For the full recipe, go to the bottom of this recipe card.
Orzo Pasta – I used regular orzo pasta for this recipe because I couldn’t find a gluten-free pasta near me. Look for (Affiliate Link) DeLallo orzo pasta which is gluten-free. Barilla makes chickpea orzo, but I haven’t tried it. Add an extra Tbsp of pesto when using this pasta.
Squash & zucchini – These veggies add texture, flavor, and nutrition to the recipe. Since there are many squash varieties, choose the one in season to add to the pasta. I have tried it with butternut squash and it was so good.
Pesto sauce – I used a quick homemade pesto in my food processor, but store-bought pesto is fine too. You don’t have to restrict yourself to a homemade basil pesto either. Try flavorful pesto like red bell pepper pesto or even an arugula pesto.
Sun-dried tomatoes – I love the tang that these tomatoes add to this pesto orzo recipe. I always use the dry sun-dried tomatoes instead of those in oil. Don’t like these dried tomatoes? Juicy cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes will work great in this recipe too.
🍅 Handy Tip: Use dry sun-dried tomatoes because they are natural. Those with oil use processed oils and add ingredients that alter its flavor.
🪜 Step-by-step Instructions
1. Cook orzo pasta (al dente) per the package directions. When the orzo is golden brown, it’s ready. (it should take about 12 minutes). While it’s cooking, wash and cut the zucchini and squash.
2. Heat a (Affiliate Link) stainless steel pan for 30 seconds on medium heat. Add the oil (avocado or extra virgin olive oil) and chopped squash and zucchini.
3. Cook for squashes for 7 minutes on medium heat, stirring constantly. Make sure they don’t burn on one side.
4. Add the drained orzo, salt, sun-dried tomatoes, and pesto to the pan.
5. Mix gently and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the pesto sauce has coated evenly.
6. Turn off the heat and transfer to a large bowl. Garnish with fresh basil leaves and black pepper. I prefer to hand grind my whole peppercorns in a (Affiliate Link) mortar and pestle.
Optional – squeeze some fresh lemon juice on top.
⚖️ Measuring Info: Do you use a food scale for your food? I put the measurements of each ingredient in the recipe card below.
❓ Answering Common Questions
Looks can be deceiving! Orzo may look like it might be part of the rice family, but it’s actually part of the pasta household. That’s because it’s made with flour whereas rice is grown in paddies. Orzo is manufactured in factories, so it’s not grown.
Both these ingredients can easily be found in your local grocery store. Orzo will be in the pasta aisle and pesto will be in the sauce aisle. All the ingredients in this recipe can be found easily in grocery stores and big box stores.
– Pastina pasta
– Farfalle pasta
– Brown rice or Basmati rice
– Penne pasta
– Casarecce
– Gnocchi
Want even more good substitutes? Check out even more pasta shapes you can experiment with for this recipe.
👩🍳 Cooking tip: Cook orzo on one side while you cut the veggies. This will cut down on the total cooking time.
➕ Additional ingredients to add
- Red bell peppers would be the perfect addition
- Nutritional yeast
- Feta cheese or Fresh Mozzarella cheese pearls for extra protein
- Sunflower seeds
- Baby spinach
- Artichoke hearts
- Red onion, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese for garnish.
What other great options would go well with this pasta?
🍝 Pasta Tip: You are not limited to orzo to make this recipe. Pick your favorite pasta shape and use it. The pesto sauce will need to be adjusted based on your pasta type.
⏰ Make ahead and storing a leftovers
One of the best things about this pesto orzo pasta recipe is that it can be made ahead of time! It works as a hot meal that you serve right away. Or, it’s the best of all cold pasta salads because it tastes good when cold.
Make a big batch on Sunday and put it into meal prep or airtight containers. Use it up in 3-4 days because it will maintain fresh flavors for that time.
The orzo pasta will go stale after 7 days, so discard it.
Reheat leftovers stove top or in the Instant Pot. If you microwave it, don’t tell me! I think the microwave will heat it unevenly.
📦 Storing Tip: Store this orzo pesto pasta in a glass airtight container. This will ensure their freshness.
🍽 How to serve this pesto orzo
This pesto orzo can be served by itself because it’s a very hearty meal. I will serve garlic bread with it. Serving a simple side salad like arugula salad or kale salad will make this a more complete meal.
Easy vegetables like green beans and asparagus or pan-fried broccoli can be a great side. The idea is to pair it with light ingredients because this pasta can be somewhat heavy.
This is one of my favorite easy weeknight meals. How will you serve this pasta dinner?
🍽 Serving tip: Pair this pasta with light ingredients to enhance the taste experience. Salads and vegetables go great with this pasta.
😋 Try these pasta recipes
- 6-Ingredient Lemon Orzo Pasta – When you are short on time, make this quick lemon orzo pasta because it needs just 6 ingredients and 26 minutes.
- Orzo Soup – This hearty, nutritious soup will hit the spot! It’s so easy to make using vegetables and tomatoes.
- Stuffed Poblano Casserole – One of the heartiest dinner recipes to make. It’s packed with orzo, veggies, and so much more.
If you love pasta, I have a few best pasta recipes that you will love.
💌 Sharing is caring
Don’t be shy, chime in below in the comments. Let me hear your opinion on this recipe. If you enjoyed this, please give it a 5 star rating and share it on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Flipboard, and Instagram.
Pesto Orzo Pasta Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 cup orzo pasta 195g
- ½ squash 67g
- ½ zucchini 69g
- 2 Tbsp avocado oil 30ml
- ¼ cup basil pesto
- 1 tsp salt 3g, optional
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes 19g
For Garnish
- 3 basil leaves optional
- 1 tsp crushed black pepper optional
Instructions
- Cook orzo pasta as described on the package (it should take about 12 minutes).1 cup orzo pasta
- While it's cooking, wash and cut the zucchini and squash.½ squash, ½ zucchini
- Heat a stainless steel pan for 30 seconds on medium heat.
- Add the oil to the pan.2 Tbsp avocado oil
- Gently add the chopped squash and zucchini to the pan.
- Cook for squashes for 7 minutes on medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Add the drained orzo, salt, sun-dried tomatoes, and pesto to the pan.1 tsp salt, ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, ¼ cup basil pesto
- Mix gently and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the pesto sauce has coated evenly.
- Turn off the heat and transfer to a serving bowl.
- Garnish with fresh basil leaves and black pepper.3 basil leaves, 1 tsp crushed black pepper
Notes
Pair this pasta with light ingredients to enhance the taste experience. Salads and vegetables go great with this pasta.
I had a bunch of zucchini to use up and I found this recipe! Used store bought pesto and garnished with fresh basil and some fresh parsley. Very good! We will be making this a lot this summer when our garden squash is ready, thank you for a good one!
Thank you, Rachel.