orzo shmorzo

truth be told, i forgot about orzo for a while, even though it's one of my favourite pastas to eat! orzo/kritharaki is a rice shaped pasta traditionally made of barley, but now mostly made with wheat. they're so cute! i really couldn't find it anywhere in the grocery store, but it turns out i just wasn't looking in the right places. finally one day i had to ask for some, and it was in the pasta isle the whole time! i don't know. i'm a bit blind i guess. you can also find it in any greek shop, but don't look for orzo, look for kritharaki. one of the best, best ways to make orzo, in my opinion, is in youvetsi, a greek beef or lamb stew with tomato sauce. i'm going try and make it soon... i can't wait!!

kritharaki means 'little barley' in greek

what you need:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 cup orzo
1/2 a zucchini cut thinly into quarters
4 cloves garlic (i like a lot of garlic!)
1 tsp thyme
lemon juice
1 tsp chili flakes

step 1:
put a pot of water on to boil for the orzo. it should only taken about 10 minutes to be al dente. strain into a colander.
step 3: 
in the same pot set to medium heat, add in the olive oil and garlic. cook down for a few minutes and then add in your thyme, chilli flakes and zucchini slices. once the zucchini is cooked, add your orzo back into the pan and mix. squeeze a nice bit of lemon juice over the top and set aside.
step 4: 
the orzo can be served warm, or as a cold salad. i served mine with lemon/thyme salmon and it was delicious!