Orzo pasta is traditionally cooked in boiling water, but cooking it in chicken broth adds much more flavor. The short-cut pasta resembles grains of rice, and like rice, it absorbs the liquid it's cooked in and expands in size. However, it cooks much faster than rice, roughly within 10 minutes like most other types of pasta. Once cooked, season it and enjoy it as is, chill it for a salad or add it to your favorite soup.
Fill a medium saucepan with chicken broth and bring to a boil.
Add orzo pasta to the boiling chicken broth, about 3/4 cup for every 2 cups of chicken stock.
Cook the orzo in the chicken stock for eight to 10 minutes, until the orzo is al dente. Add more chicken stock as needed once the orzo starts to absorb the liquid.
Drain the orzo in a colander over the sink, then serve or add it to recipes.
Tips
Make orzo soup by adding 2 to 4 additional cups of broth to the pot, vegetables and cooked chicken shredded or cut into chunks. Bring the stock to a boil until the orzo is cooked.
