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This one pot ground beef orzo recipe comes together in just 30 minutes and is a creamy, comforting, and delicious meal for busy weeknights!
Try my Italian Sausage Orzo, Lemon Chicken Orzo, and this Creamy Garlic Spinach Orzo next.
Why you’ll love it
A quick, cozy, and hearty meal that the kids will eat too, and it’s made all in one pot!? Yes please. Since I know you guys are very fond of ground beef, it was a natural fit to pair it with orzo and a homemade creamy tomato sauce. You can’t really go wrong with beef and pasta.
This orzo with ground beef recipe is sort of like a quick risotto, to give you an idea of the texture. Of course, orzo is pasta and not rice, but I find it so much easier to make than risotto after a long workday when you don’t have the energy to put in a ton of effort!
What you’ll need
- Ground beef – I prefer at least 90% lean
- Onion and garlic – for a tasty aromatic base. Sweet (Vidalia) onion is my go-to.
- Red pepper flakes – it’s optional, but they add a mellow, gentle heat without being spicy
- Italian seasoning – it comes in a single jar and has a blend of dried herbs
- Orzo – it’s a small oval-shaped pasta that you’ll find in the pasta aisle
- Canned tomato sauce – the foundation for the tasty tomato sauce. For my U.K. and Australian readers, it’s similar to passata.
- Beef broth – it adds a deep, rich layer to the sauce
- Cream – heavy cream gives this sauce a luxurious creamy touch
- Worcestershire sauce – gives savory, umami flavor. Don’t skip it!
- Parmesan cheese – to top it all off
- Spinach – for some contrast and freshness
Pro tip
As with any one pot pasta recipe, I recommend keeping an eye on it since stoves/cookware/etc. vary. If it seems like the liquid is getting too low and the orzo isn’t cooked yet, you may want to turn the heat down and/or add a splash more liquid. If the cooking time has elapsed and there’s a lot of liquid, I recommend taking it off the stove, covering the pot, and letting it sit for a few minutes (the orzo absorbs liquid quite quickly).
How to make ground beef orzo
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Add the ground beef to a soup pot and let it brown, undisturbed, for a few minutes. Stir in the onions, breaking up the beef with a spoon, and cook for a few more minutes. Stir in the garlic, crushed red pepper, Italian seasoning, and orzo. Cook for another minute.
Pour in the tomato sauce, broth, cream, and Worcestershire sauce. Letting it gently bubble, cook until the sauce reduces and the pasta is cooked through, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat, and stir in the parm and spinach. Cover for a few minutes to thicken, then season with salt & pepper.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- Use a classic wooden spoon to stir this orzo and a garlic press to mince the garlic with ease.
- Grating your own parmesan cheese is a game changer. It tastes and melts much better than the pre-grated kind. I use my handy Microplane to grate it.
- This is the Dutch oven I use.
Substitutions and variations
- There’s a chance that replacing the cream with something lower fat will lead to curdling due to the acidity of the tomatoes and the heat the dish is cooked at, so be aware of that if you make a substitution. It’ll also be less rich, so I don’t recommend it.
- I have not tested this recipe with rice. If you want to attempt it, you may need to adjust cooking time and liquid measurements.
- You can leave out the red pepper flakes if that’s not your thing (or increase them if you’re a fan).
What to serve with ground beef orzo
- It’s fairly rich, so I recommend enjoying with a side salad. Try mixed greens with my Creamy Balsamic Dressing or Honey Mustard Dressing.
- A side of Garlic Bread is a classic choice as well.
- Any basic veggie side dish would work too! Try steamed vegetables, Easy Roasted Cauliflower, or my Easy Stovetop Asparagus.
Leftovers and storage
- They will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days in an airtight container. Keep in mind that as time goes on, the orzo will soak up more liquid. You could revive it with a splash of cream when warming it up.
- Reheat over a low heat in a saucepan, or try microwaving in smaller increments.
- I wouldn’t recommend freezing leftovers since the texture will get soft and weird.
More ground beef recipes
If you made this ground beef orzo recipe, talk to me in the comments below! Please leave a star rating and review. You can also tag me #saltandlavender on Instagram.
Ground Beef Orzo with Tomato Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 3-4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
- 1 (14 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 3/4 cup beef broth
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 2 cups (packed) fresh baby spinach
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the ground beef to a soup pot/Dutch oven and break it up a little bit with your spoon. Let it cook, without stirring, over medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes.
- Add the onion to the pot and stir/break the beef up into small pieces. Let it cook for another 5 minutes or so. If there's a lot of excess fat (like if you didn't use lean beef), spoon some of it out. Otherwise, leave it in the pot.
- Stir in the garlic, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, and orzo. Cook for about a minute.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, beef broth, cream, and Worcestershire sauce. Once it starts to bubble, continue cooking for 10 minutes, uncovered, stirring fairly often (so the orzo doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot). You will likely need to turn the heat down a bit (to medium or even medium-low). It should gently bubble vs. boil (you don't want the liquid to reduce too much before the pasta has cooked).
- Take the pot off the heat, stir in the parmesan and spinach, and cover the pot for about 3-5 minutes or until it has thickened up to your liking. Season with salt & pepper as needed and serve immediately. See more troubleshooting tips in the blog post and notes below.
Notes
- Serves 4-6 depending on portion size/what else it’s served with.
- Tomato sauce in North America is similar to passata in the U.K./Australia/etc.
- As with any one pot pasta dish, the liquid quantities work as tested in my kitchen, but pots/stoves/temperatures can vary, so if you feel like it needs more liquid, add another splash of cream or broth. If it seems too liquidy, let it sit for a bit longer, and it’ll soak any excess liquid up within a few minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I haven’t made this yet but cannot find orzo anywhere…think small elbow macaroni would work just as well?
Hi! I think you could try, but you may need to add more liquid/keep an eye on it if it’s looking kinda dry.
Delicious. This has quickly become a family favorite. I use ground chicken, a tsp or two of Trader Joe’s Calabrian Chili Sauce, and shredded zucchini in place of the spinach.
That’s great to hear! Glad you were able to adapt it to your liking. 🙂
Typing this as I am eating this for the first time. Oh. Em. Gee!! Sooo delicious!! I love a genuine one pot meal and this is it. Came together so quickly and bonus points for minimal mess. This is a quick, flavorful, and hearty meal! 10/10
I’m thrilled you enjoyed it! Thanks for your review!
I have to thank you for this recipe. As someone who is anemic this meal has been in our weekly rotation to help get that iron intake and it’s sooo yummy. Even the kids go for seconds and they love that they are eating “seaweed from the ocean”
So glad it’s a family favorite, Nisha! 🙂
Absolutely delicious! I’ve made this at least weekly for the past several months and it never fails! I passed the recipe on to my son whose fiancé frequently requests this dish! I double the recipe and add a can of petite-diced tomatoes (undrained) and simply add a little less broth. I also use sweet and hot Hungarian paprika in place of the red pepper flakes. Thank you for sharing.
I love that it’s become a family favorite, Melissa!! Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to write me a review. 😀
Can I use ground turkey instead of beef?
Sure!
I made this tonight – only substitution was using half and half instead of heavy cream (it’s what I had on hand).
It is a tasty, but very rich/heavy dish. I will make again but will probably do 1.25c beef broth and .5c half and half to lighten it a bit more to meet our tastes.
I sautéed spinach on the side and added to my bowl, which was great. My green adverse kids and husband liked the dish with the spinach far on the side 🤣.
I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it! Hahahaha “far on the side”… I like it.
What other stove top pan can you use besides a Dutch oven?
In the recipe I specify “in a soup pot/Dutch oven”… so any soup pot or pot you have will work fine as long as it’s not super small. The one pictured is 5.5 quarts. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Can you use rice instead of orzo? And if so what kind what he best?
Hi! Orzo is pasta and so cooks faster than rice. I haven’t tested with rice. If using rice, you’d likely have to add more liquid and keep a close eye on it to make sure it cooks through. This is a total guess, but Minute Rice could be an option if you really need to sub the orzo as it doesn’t take long to cook vs. regular white rice, for example, but the dish is intended to make with pasta so I can’t speak for what the results would be.
This has been one of my fave new recipes this year! Had to alter the measurements slightly for what we have in Australia but still turned out delicious! Thank you 🙂
Wonderful!! I’m so glad it’s a new favorite for you, Jaime!