Mediterranean Pork and Orzo

Name: Mediterranean Pork and Orzo
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 6 servings.
Ingredients: 1-1/2 pounds pork tenderloin; 1 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 3 quarts water; 1-1/4 cups uncooked orzo pasta; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1 package (6 ounces) fresh baby spinach; 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved; 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

On a really busy day, this meal-in-a-bowl is one of my top picks. It's quick to put together, leaving a lot more time to relax at the table. —Mary Relyea, Canastota, New York

Ingredients

1-1/2 pounds pork tenderloin
1 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 quarts water
1-1/4 cups uncooked orzo pasta
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 package (6 ounces) fresh baby spinach
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions

Rub pork with pepper; cut into 1-in. cubes. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add pork; cook and stir 8-10 minutes or until no longer pink.
Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, bring water to a boil. Stir in orzo and salt; cook, uncovered, 8 minutes. Stir in spinach; cook 45-60 seconds longer or until orzo is tender and spinach is wilted. Drain.
Add tomatoes to pork; heat through. Stir in orzo mixture and cheese.

Nutrition Facts

1-1/3 cups: 372 calories, 11g fat (4g saturated fat), 71mg cholesterol, 306mg sodium, 34g carbohydrate (2g sugars, 3g fiber), 31g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 2 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 fat.

Originally published as Mediterranean Pork 'n' Pasta in Light & Tasty June/July 2006

Reviews

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Average Rating:

Emmilie

Jul 30, 2018

After reading reviews on this recipe, I decided to proceed with caution. Looking at the ingredients, I could tell this dish would need a little something extra. A little TLC if you will. Instead of cooking pork in the skillet, I decided to slow cook mine for about 8 hrs (I cant stand to eat big chunks of pork), so that it would practically melt in your mouth. Also, while boiling the orzo, I added garlic a dash of garlic powder, onion powder, and olive oil to the water. Later, I added the spinach as instructed to do so. Might I add, when slow cooking the pork tenderloin, add an onion to the mix. It will make the tenderloin extra tender (2 cups of water, tenderloin, half an onion cut into two, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp salt, and ground red pepper-- just a dash). I transferred the pork to a skillet and shredded (pulled it apart), added halved grape tomatoes. Cooked for about 3 minutes then added orzo mixture to the skillet. Feta cheese added, a sprinkle more of salt... and left over feta sprinkled on top. It was absolutely delicious done this way. Hope this helps! -E
Sheila

Jun 18, 2018

Loved it!
Kelly

Jun 15, 2018

This was delicious, and something to change up the usual pasta and sauce. Loved it! I added some Italian seasoning and oregeno to the final product and I think that did add some good flavor. One thing I will say though, even though this is fairly quick and you technically eat it in a bowl, it does require a fair amount of pots/skillets/cutting board usage so it's not like a one skillet kind of thing. So worth it though! I'm trying to break the habit of cooking everything with chicken so this was a nice experiment! Also, I actually used less feta because I ended up not having as much as this calls for. Instead I sprinkled on some parmesean cheese and I think it turned out great! It might have been too cheesy otherwise, and it really didn't need it! I don't get the hate on the seasoning...if you can tell by the recipe it needs more seasoning, just be creative and add some. It's *okay* to use a recipe as a base and add your own flavor.
Jilly22

Apr 22, 2018

Lots of yummy ingredients go into this recipe but not enough flavor. Needs something to spark it up.
Charity

Jan 3, 2018

My whole family loves this dish. However, I did make a few tweaks: I throw the spinach in the with the tomatoes to wilt it. It holds its flavor better. I also squeeze fresh lemon juice (juice of one lemon) over the orzo after I drain it, and I add a bunch of red pepper flakes and about a half teaspoon of dried basil to the pork mixture right before I add the orzo. It's fantastic. We make it about every two weeks and it's so quick to make.
Joe

Nov 7, 2017

I don't understand recipes that need other people to tell you how to season the dish. You don't have to make the dish to see that the feta cheese would not be enough to add flavor.
TRISTEN

Oct 17, 2017

Loved it!
my4sweetys

May 10, 2017

made this last night. It was very light and filling. recipe could use a boost in flavor (like some lemon and garlic) for those liking this more zest but also tasty as is for a light summer meal.
sngevans

Apr 24, 2017

I followed recipe as written. I dislike that other reviewers give good reviews after changing the original recipe, this is very misleading. My husband and I thought very bland and this will not be a repeat.
lshaw

Apr 11, 2017

Wonderful-the family loves this entree! Based on some reviewers' suggestions to add to the seasonings, I went ahead and automatically added minced garlic, lemon-pepper, and an additional bag of fresh spinach without trying this recipe as originally written. Also added the baby spinach to the skillet the pork was cooking in and cooked orzo separately. Easy to prepare--no new cooking techniques to learn and uses ingredients you're already familiar with. Husband said next time add more feta cheese and artisan bread to soak up that fabulous broth!