Mediterranean Pork and Orzo
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
Reviews
It was very good but it needed more flavor. I followed the recipe and the end result was very bland. I added oregano and a few splashes of lemon juice and it made a big improvement! I will be making this again for sure!
My family was skeptical but loved it. I did add garlic, salt and adobo for a little more flavor. Will definitely repeat
This was easy and delicious! I added two cloves of minced garlic to the oil before cooking the pork. I cooked the orzo separately and mixed the spinach in after draining it. I added Greek seasoning, some extra salt and a squeeze of lemon juice to the mixture before serving.
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
Loved it!
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.
Lots of yummy ingredients go into this recipe but not enough flavor. Needs something to spark it up.
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.
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.
Loved it!