086Orzo risotto with prawns

Method

Seafood home style with ouzo. Serve at once, as the orzo will continue absorbing liquid as it sits.

You will need

• wide shallow pan or sauté pan
• small saucepan
• fine sieve
• wooden spoon

1. Place the reserved prawn shells and heads in a saucepan with 1000 ml water and a pinch of salt, bring to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes to create an aromatic stock, then strain and keep hot. 15 min Ready when: fragrant pink-tinted stock
2. In a wide shallow pan, heat 30 ml olive oil over high heat and sear the peeled prawn tails for 1 minute per side until just pink, then remove to a plate immediately. 2 min Ready when: just turned opaque and pink
3. Lower heat to medium, add the remaining 30 ml olive oil, 1 chopped onion, and 2 sliced garlic cloves, sweating gently for 4 minutes until soft. 4 min Ready when: soft and glossy
4. Stir in 350 g orzo and 1 tsp tomato paste, toasting the grains for 2 minutes while stirring constantly until glistening. 2 min Ready when: grains glossy and lightly toasted
5. Pour in 50 ml ouzo, stirring briskly to deglaze the base, and allow the alcohol to bubble off for 1 minute. 1 min Ready when: steam smells sweet rather than alcoholic
6. Add 250 g grated tomatoes, then begin adding the warm prawn stock a ladleful at a time, stirring frequently and letting the orzo absorb the liquid before adding more, for about 12 to 14 minutes. 14 min Ready when: orzo tender with slight bite and creamy sauce
7. Return the seared prawns and any resting juices to the pan, cook for 1 minute to warm through, then remove from heat. 1 min Ready when: prawns warmed through
8. Season with salt, black pepper, 1 tbsp lemon juice, and chopped parsley, cover with a clean kitchen towel for 2 minutes to settle, then serve immediately. 2 min Ready when: glossy and flowing, not dry

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Make ahead and storing

The prawn stock can be prepared several hours ahead, but the dish itself must be cooked à la minute.

Best enjoyed fresh; keep leftovers in fridge up to 1 day, loosening with a little hot water when reheating.

Substitutions

• dry white wine or tsipouro for ouzo. White wine gives a cleaner, less aniseed-forward finish.
• calamari or mixed seafood for raw prawns in shell. Adjust cooking time so tender seafood does not turn rubbery.

Common mistakes

• Overcooking the prawns by simmering them in the sauce the whole time. Prawns toughen easily; searing them briefly first and folding them back at the very end ensures succulent texture.
• Letting the orzo sit off heat before serving. Orzo absorbs sauce aggressively and turns into a solid, gluey block if left standing.

Regional variants

• Some island cooks fold in crumbled feta or fresh dill right at the end.

About the dish

While baked orzo dishes like giouvetsi have centuries of heritage in Greece, kritharoto is a modern culinary portmanteau of kritharaki (orzo) and risotto. Emerging in Greek tavernas and urban kitchens during the late twentieth century, it treats tiny pasta as an absorption grain, slowly cooking it in fragrant prawn stock. Often flambéed with an aniseed spirit such as ouzo and finished with fresh tomatoes and herbs, it offers the luscious starchy texture of risotto without requiring heavy cheese, making it especially cherished during seafood feasts and summer gatherings.

Found in all of Greece. Cooked for everyday, summer, sunday lunch.

Cousins elsewhere

• Risotto ai gamberi (Italian). Kritharoto borrows the slow-ladling absorption technique of risotto but applies it to Greek barley-shaped pasta.

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

602 kcal · protein 36.8 g · fat 15.9 g (saturated 2.3 g) · carbohydrate 71.2 g (sugars 5.7 g) · fibre 4.1 g · sodium 172 mg

An estimate (summed from ingredient estimates) that varies with the exact ingredients. It is not dietary advice.

Written fresh by Epikouria editors from general culinary tradition. Recipe by the Epikouria editors. Contemporary Greek tavern cookery combining classic Aegean seafood with modern risotto-style pasta methods..

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