The orzo goes into the grated tomato liquid raw and absorbs everything as it cooks, emerging creamy and deeply flavored in the way that risotto-cooked rice does. A little crème fraîche and provolone cheese at the end add the richness that turns it from a tomato pasta into something more; a crispy clean tomato flavor with a creamy finish.

One pot, two servings, and a recipe that uses a fresh tomato more thoroughly than anything involving dicing or slicing. Grate the tomato, cook the orzo in it, finish with a little cheese, and eat immediately. It is the kind of dish you wonder why you never made before, which is the best thing any recipe can be.

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Key Ingredients in This Recipe

Key ingredients to make Creamy Orzo with Grated Tomatoes

You’ll find the complete list of ingredients and exact quantities in the recipe below.

Fresh tomatoes
Orzo
Shallot
Garlic – fresh or garlic paste.
Provolone cheese – alternatively: Mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano.
Crème fraîche – alternatively: cream cheese or Mascarpone.

How to Make Creamy Orzo with Grated Tomatoes

Step 1 – Grate the fresh tomatoes. This may be something you haven’t done before and I can tell you it is a messy exercise, but it is worth it. Grating tomatoes is giving you all the goodness of a tomato; the skin, the seeds, the meat, the liquid, the flavor. Use a box grater and grate your tomatoes on the largest holes. Place the grater in a bowl to catch all of it and keep grating until the only thing left in your hand is that thin, flattened piece around the stem.
Step 2 – Cook, the orzo. First sauté shallot and garlic in butter and once tender and fragrant, add the fresh tomato pulp into a pan. Make sure the ratio liquid (tomato pulp) and orzo is approx. 2.5 : 1. If you don’t have enough pulp, add some chicken or vegetable stock. Cook the liquid and add the orzo, salt and pepper and cook on low heat according to the directions on the package (not every orzo has the same cooking time). Stir occasionally.
Step 3 – Add creaminess by adding crème fraîche and cheese and stir together, allowing the cheese to melt and the pasta to thicken.
Step 4 – Taste and garnish. Taste the pasta and add more seasoning of salt & pepper if needed. Add oregano, thyme, rosemary or Italian seasoning if that’s what you prefer. Transfer the creamy orzo to a bowl, sprinkle with chopped chives and enjoy.

Creamy Orzo with Grated Tomatoes with sliced chicken

Serve the creamy orzo as a side dish with chicken, turkey, beef or enjoy it as a vegetarian main dish.

I hope you will enjoy this one-pot-pasta.

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