Five items · Tested twice

Five-Ingredient Sausage Orzo

Name: Five-Ingredient Sausage Orzo
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 bag baby spinach, about 5 oz; 1 lb Italian sausage, casings removed; 1 wedge Parmesan, or a tub of grated; 1 lb orzo; 1 jar marinara sauce, about 24 oz; Olive oil; Salt and black pepper; Water or broth

The orzo cooks directly in the sauce, which means one pan, no draining, and a starchy sauce that thickens itself while you do nothing.

5 minPrep

25 minCook

4Serves

5Items to buy

Method

Heat a drizzle of oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high. Add the sausage, breaking it into rough pieces, and brown 6-7 minutes. Do not rush this — the browned bits are most of the flavour.
Add the orzo and stir for 1 minute to coat it in the rendered fat.
Pour in the marinara plus 2 1/2 cups of water or broth, and season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat and cook 10-12 minutes, stirring often, until the orzo is tender and the sauce has thickened around it.
Stir in the spinach a handful at a time; it wilts in about a minute.
Off the heat, fold in a generous handful of grated Parmesan, which melts into the sauce and pulls it together. Season again and serve.

If the store is out

Italian sausageGround beef or turkey plus 1 tsp fennel seed and 1/2 tsp chili flakes

OrzoAny small pasta — ditalini or small shells, same method

Baby spinachFrozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry, or chopped kale added earlier

Jarred marinara1 can crushed tomatoes plus a pinch of sugar and dried oregano

The bit that matters

Stir more often than feels necessary in the final five minutes. Orzo sinks and sticks to the bottom of the pan, and a scorched base is the only way this recipe goes wrong.

*Approximately 610 calories per serving. Calories are an estimate from standard ingredient databases; actual values vary by brand and portion. See our disclaimer.