Orzo
{{Short description|Type of pasta}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Infobox food
| name = Orzo
| image = Orzo.jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = Uncooked orzo
| alternate_name = Risoni, pépinettes, piñones, ptitim, riewele
| country = Mediterranean Basin
| region =
| creator =
| course =
| type = Pasta
| served =
| main_ingredient = Durum wheat
| variations =
}}
Orzo ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɔːr|z|oʊ|,_|ˈ|ɔːr|t|s|oʊ}},{{cite web|url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/orzo|title=ORZO|work=Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary|publisher=Cambridge University Press|access-date=February 10, 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/amp/english/orzo|title=Orzo|work=Collins English Dictionary|publisher=HarperCollins|access-date=February 10, 2019}}{{Cite Merriam-Webster|orzo|access-date=February 10, 2019}} {{IPA|it|ˈɔrdzo|lang}}; {{literally|barley}}; from Latin {{lang|la|hordeum}}), also known in Italy as {{lang|it|risoni}} ({{IPA|it|riˈzoːni|lang}}; 'large [grains of] rice'), and popular in Greek cuisine as kritharaki (κριθαράκι), is a form of short-cut pasta shaped like a large grain of rice.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zQEkAAAAIBAJ&dq=%22Orzo%22&pg=PA8&article_id=1151,2341247 |title=Gadsden Times |publisher=Gadsden Times |language=en}} Orzo is traditionally made from flour,{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j5BPAAAAIBAJ&dq=%22Orzo%22&pg=PA22&article_id=6757,806052 |title=The Times-News |publisher=The Times-News |language=en}} but it can also be made of whole grain. It is often made with semolina, a type of flour made from durum wheat.
The name {{lang|it|orzo}} is common for this pasta shape in North America, but less so in Italy, where the word usually still means 'barley'.{{Citation needed|date=June 2023}}
Preparation
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2025}}
There are many different ways to serve orzo. It can be an ingredient in soup, including avgolemono, a Greek soup,{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m7gSAAAAIBAJ&dq=%22Orzo%22&pg=PA1 |title=Spokane Chronicle |publisher=Spokane Chronicle |language=en}} and in Italian soups, such as minestrone. It can also be part of a salad, a pilaf, or giouvetsi, or baked in a casserole.{{cite web |last1=Alfaro |first1=Danilo |title=What Is Orzo? Cooking and Recipes |url=https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-is-orzo-and-how-to-cook-it-4160739 |website=The Spruce Eats |access-date=9 July 2020}}
It can also be boiled and lightly fried, to create a dish similar to risotto.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}}{{Cite web |last=Kang |first=Kiran |date=17 September 2022 |title=What is Orzo and how to prepare |url=https://homerecipespoint.com/orzo-rice-pasta-salad-healthy/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230401041714/https://homerecipespoint.com/orzo-rice-pasta-salad-healthy/ |archive-date=1 April 2023 |access-date=17 September 2022}}
When the pasta is made, orzo can be colored by saffron, chilies, and black beans to yield yellow, orange, or black pasta.{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}
Other names
Orzo is essentially identical to the {{lang|el|κριθαράκι}} ({{Transliteration|el|kritharáki}}, {{literally|little barley}}), or {{lang|el|μανέστρα}} ({{Transliteration|el|manestra}} when in soup) in Greek cuisine, {{lang|tr|arpa şehriye}} ({{literally|barley noodle}}) in Turkish cooking, and {{lang|ar|لسان العصفور}} ({{Transliteration|ar|lisān al-ʿaṣfūr}}, {{literally|sparrow tongue}}) in Egyptian cooking. In Spain, the equivalent pasta is called {{lang|es|piñones}} (also the Spanish word for 'pine nuts', which orzo resembles{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-40-AAAAIBAJ&dq=%22Orzo%22&pg=PA13&article_id=3828,3174022 |title=Bangor Daily News |publisher=Bangor Daily News |language=en}}). Ptitim is a rice-grain-shaped pasta developed in the 1950s in Israel as a substitute for rice.{{Cite web |date=2012-07-30 |title=Spicy ptitim (Israeli couscous) |url=http://food.lizsteinberg.com/2012/07/30/spicy-ptitim-israeli-couscous/ |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=Cafe Liz |language=en-US}}
It is also part of the traditional cuisine of the east of France, from Lorraine to Provence, where orzo is called {{lang|fr|pépinettes}} or {{lang|gsw|riewele}} depending on the region. In Alsace, orzo is typically served in a chicken broth.{{Cite web |title=Riewele soupe {{!}} Pâtes Grand-mère |url=https://www.patesgrandmere.com/recettes/riewele-soupe |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=www.patesgrandmere.com}}
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Pasta|state=collapsed}}
Category:Middle Eastern cuisine
{{Pasta-stub}}
{{Italy-cuisine-stub}}
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