Comfort food at its best, this easy one pot Beef Orzo is inspired by the traditional Greek dish Giouvetsi. With subtle warming spices, savoury beef mince and tender orzo, this one pan pasta is a great family dinner for busy weeknights.
If you need some new ideas for beef mince recipes that are not bolognese or chilli con carne, I have you covered. It is my current mission to share more family friendly dinners using ground beef that are quick, easy and great for batch cooking.
Just like my Beef Picadillo, this one pot beef orzo makes excellent leftovers. So make a double batch and freeze some for another day.
Since having a baby my motto has been ‘cook once eat three times’. I love to make enough for dinner, leftovers the next night then a freezer portion for a speedy supper later. Consistently doing this whenever I’m cooking an appropriate meal means I only need to actually cook dinner a couple times a week! Amazing if you have a busy schedule.
Greek Beef Mince Giouvetsi
I love Greek cuisine, and though it is maybe much more famous for its warm weather dishes (think Greek salad, tzatziki and gyros etc) I do find the warming spices used in a lot of Greek meals to lend themselves well to cold weather comfort food. This delicious one pot beef and orzo is no exception.
Giouvetsi or Youvetsi, is a traditional Greek stew with meat and orzo. Chunks of beef or lamb are most common for Giouvetsi, cooked low and slow in a wood burning oven for a hearty Sunday dinner. I’m using ground beef in this recipe for ease. This speeds up the cooking process to make a quick and easy dinner, ideal for a weeknight.
Ingredients
Beef Mince/Ground Beef – I use a lean 5% mince, or another ground meat like lamb or turkey mince.
Orzo – small pasta also known as risoni. Orzo looks a bit like rice and is great for one pot dishes like this. If you prefer you can substitute another small pasta shape.
Onion, Garlic and Carrots – diced and cooked off for the sofrito or base of the dish.
Chopped Tomatoes, tomato puree and chicken stock – To flavour the broth the orzo and mince cooks in. Instead of chicken stock/broth you can use beef broth if you prefer.
Oregano, paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg and bay leaf – Flavourful herbs and spices to create a delicious and warming dish. I know adding cinnamon to a beef mince dish may sound very weird to some but trust me on this – it really tastes amazing so don’t skip it!
Lemon Juice – a splash at the end of cooking really brings this beef orzo to life. Again, this may seem an odd addition to a mince dish but please trust me!
Grated Cheese – To garnish. Traditional Giouvetsi is served with Kefalotyri cheese, which is a hard and salty white cheese made from sheep or goat milk. Pecorino romano or parmesan is the best substitute for Kefalotyri as they have a similar taste and texture. You can also use crumbled feta cheese to top this Youvetsi inspired beef and orzo.
Serving and Substitutes
Serve beef mince Giouvetsi with some warm crusty bread and a nice side salad. I love to pair it with my Chopped Feta Salad or even a Simple Green Salad.
If you want to upgrade your ground beef orzo with a richer sauce, swap out 250ml of stock for red wine. Add the wine just after the tomato paste and spices. Allow to cook for a couple of minutes before you add the stock and tomatoes.
You can add additional chopped veggies to the orzo – try some diced celery or red pepper.
This Youvetsi inspired orzo works well with most types of mince or ground meat, including vegetarian substitutes. Try it with lamb, turkey or quorn mince.
Storing
One Pot Beef and Orzo is great for meal prep as it will keep in the fridge for 3 days and makes excellent leftovers. Simply reheat until piping hot on the stove or in the microwave. You may wish to add a splash of water or stock as the orzo tends to soak up a lot of the sauce.
Freeze Beef Orzo for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat as above.
If you prefer, you can prepare the beef sauce in advance, store in the fridge or freezer, and add the orzo to reheat and serve.
More Easy Orzo Recipes:
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One Pot Beef Orzo (Giouvetsi)
Equipment
- Spatula or wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 350 grams beef mince
- 750 ml chicken stock
- 250 grams orzo
- 1 onion - diced
- 3 carrots - diced
- 4 cloves garlic - diced
- 1 400 grams tin chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato paste - (tomato puree)
- 2 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 2 bay leaf
- 1 tbsp oil - olive or vegetable
- Juice of 1 lemon
- grated Kefalotyri or parmesan cheese - to serve
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot and add the onion, garlic and carrots with a generous pinch of salt. Cook over medium heat until softening but not browned, about 10 minutes.
- Add the beef and break up with a wooden spoon as it cooks until the meat is browned all over.
- Stir in the tomato paste, paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg, oregano and a generous pinch of black pepper.
- Pour in the chopped tomatoes and stock, add the bay leaf and stir well then pop the lid on. Cook for about 15 minutes on medium heat until the carrots are tender.
- Stir in the orzo and put the lid back on. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the orzo is cooked through. Stir every so often to make sure the orzo doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
- Discard the bay leaves, stir through the lemon juice and serve with plenty of grated cheese.
Notes
Nutrition
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