One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo

4.80 from 5 votes

One Pan Cacio e Pepe Risotto Orzo

Risotto is made using rice, but this version uses orzo which is rice-shaped pasta to create the most crave-worthy bowl of cacio e pepe goodness!

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Total Time35

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Cheese, Mascarpone, One Pot, Orzo, Pasta

Servings:

Author: Carolyn Stilwell

Equipment

Pan I used my Our Place Always Pan for this dish
Box Grater
Chef Knife
Cutting Board
Wooden Spoon

Ingredients

2 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
2 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Shallot diced
4 cloves Garlic minced
1 teaspoon Black Pepper coarsely ground, adjust to taste; additional to serve
1 cup Orzo Pasta uncooked
1/4 cup Dry White Wine dry such as Sauvignon Blanc
3 to 4 cups Chicken Broth chicken broth or stock of choice - use good quality, adjust as needed to cook orzo
Kosher Salt to taste
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese very finely grated on the smallest holes of a box grater; additional to serve
1/4 cup Mascarpone Cheese
Graza "Drizzle" Finishing Oil optional; but highly recommended to serve

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a large pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced shallot and minced garlic. Cook for for 2 minutes, stirring often.
Add a generous amount of coarsely ground black pepper. Stir to combine and let the pepper toast for 30 seconds. Add the uncooked orzo, stir to combine, and toast for another minute.
Pour in the white wine. Stir to combine and cook for about 2 minutes until the wine is absorbed.
Pour in good-quality chicken stock about a 1/2 cup at a time. Stir often so the orzo doesn't stick. Once most of the stock is absorbed, add another 1/2 cup of chicken stock. Continue this process until the orzo is cooked through. I added a pinch of kosher salt because I used very low sodium stock. This took me about 15 minutes. The orzo should look creamy and still have some liquid left when finished.
Turn the heat to low. Add a few more cracks of black pepper then add the finely grated parmesan cheese and mascarpone cheese. Stir until well combined and all of the cheese is melted. Taste and add another pinch of salt as desired.
Serve immediately with additional black pepper, parmesan cheese, and a drizzle of finishing olive oil.

Video

Notes

This isn't a traditional Cacio e Pepe recipe. Cacio e Pepe is traditionally made with Pecorino Romano, but I prefer parmesan. Feel free to use Pecorino Romano instead or a combination of Parmesan and Pecorino Romano.

Nutrition