The orzo or risoni is a type of pasta that resembles rice, because of its shape. I must confess that I met it living in Berlin and I liked it a lot because you can make many delicious recipes with it and its cooking time is relatively fast.
Always missing the taste of the Colombian Caribbean and Pacific coast, I have been inspired to make this recipe based on coconut cream and seafood.
If you don't have risoni, don't worry, you can use normal rice or rice for risotto or another type of pasta, just keep in mind the cooking process of these and adapt them to the process.
Ingredients:
1/2 chopped white onion
1 green onion stalk (long onion)
1 tablespoon of olive or coconut oil
1 finely chopped garlic clove
1/2 red bell pepper
2 ripe tomatoes, grated
1 cup of risoni or orzo (see notes for substitution)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 can coconut cream
Fresh cilantro to taste
250 g seafood of choice
Preparation:
In a hot frying pan add the oil and sauté the onions and garlic, until they are a little transparent. Then add the tomato and paprika and sauté for about 3-4 minutes. Add the risoni and stir it well into the sauce. Then add the coconut milk and stir. Lower the heat and cover. Stir occasionally.
After about 8 minutes check if the risoni is al dente or as you like it (I don't like it too al dente, for example...). Then if you feel it still needs to cook a little more, add a splash of water, stir and cover again until you feel it has the desired texture.
Important: To add the seafood, make sure if the seafood you bought is raw or pre-cooked, as this changes the process of the recipe. For example, in this case I used frozen and pre-cooked seafood. So first I thawed them and when I had almost the desired texture in the risoni (after more or less 10-13 minutes) I added the seafood, stirred and let it cook for about 3-4 minutes since they do not need to be pre-cooked for a long time because they can be rubbery.
To finish, adjust the flavor with salt and pepper and serve immediately. Garnish with cilantro or Parmesan cheese.
Thanks for visiting my website! Let me know if you liked this recipe. If you want to know what else I cook on an every day basis and other details about my life in Germany follow me on my social media channels.
Con amor y sazón, La Negrita.