This Quick Orzo Soup is hearty, healthy, and makes a delicious side dish or light meal. You'll love the way the tender vegetable mix with the pasta and tasty broth.
If you love a hot soup that's filling, warming, and tastes great, then this Quick Orzo Soup is for you. Not only is the recipe nice and simple, but it's also a delicious thing to serve for a light lunch or as a side dish to a larger main course. You can enjoy it either way because the orzo pasta and vegetables are truly satisfying.
This soup is versatile, too, making it easy for you to tweak it and toss in additional ingredients depending on what you have on hand or what you're serving it with. I love how convenient a quick soup is, perfect for busy days or cold ones when you want to warm yourself from the inside out. Let's talk about what you'll need to make this tasty and Quick Orzo Soup.
Video Tutorial
Main Ingredients
- Carrots. Diced.
- Scallions. Also diced.
- Garlic clove. Freshly minced.
- Veggie Broth. Or water will work, too.
- Olive Oil. Or whatever oil you prefer..
- Orzo Pasta.
- Baby Spinach.
- Salt & Black pepper. To taste.
How to Make Quick Orzo Soup
1. Saute the carrots and scallions in olive oil in a medium pot for about 5-7 minutes.
2. Then add the garlic, and saute for another 1-2 minutes.
3. Add the broth and bring the soup to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Now, add the orzo pasta and cook for about 5 minutes.
5. Finally, season the soup with salt and pepper to taste. Add the spinach leaves and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Serve garnished with lemon wedges or parmesan cheese.
Helpful Tips & Tricks
- Use regular carrots. Dicing baby carrots is not easy, so do yourself a favor and use regular full-sized carrots for this dish for an easier time dicing them up.
- Season to your preference. Every broth is different in their amount of seasoning, so taste test your Quick Orzo Soup before adding extra salt and pepper to make sure you want more.
- Use baby spinach. These spinach leaves are nice and tender without any tough stems. They also wilt easily and have a delicious flavor that works well with this soup.
- Don't add the spinach until the end. If cooked too long, spinach can get bitter, slimy, and lose its color. Make sure to add it last so it only has enough time to wilt and soften before serving.
Variations to this Recipe
- Substitute frozen spinach. Even though fresh spinach is best for this Quick Orzo Soup, you can also use frozen spinach. Just thaw it and drain out the excess water before adding it in.
- Make it allergen-friendly. Using gluten-free orzo or rice in its place will make this gluten-free. And using a veggie broth makes it vegan.
- Substitute other pasta types. You can also make this recipe with other smaller pasta, like midolline, fideo, elbow, alphabet pasta (for the kids!), acini di pepe, or pastina.
- Add different vegetables. Try this soup with veggies like asparagus, kale, mushrooms, zucchini, or broccoli. Chop them up into smaller pieces so they don't overpower the dish.
How to Store and Reheat it
To store this Quick Orzo Soup, just place it in an airtight container once it has cooled and it will last in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. You can also freeze this soup by adding it to a freezer ziplock bag, freezing flat, then storing upright to save freezer space. It will last for up to 6 months. Thaw and reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop.
What to Serve this Quick Orzo Soup with
- Bread. Serve this soup with some crusty bread and whipped butter. Or enjoy it with some Potato Flatbread.
- Main dishes. Serve this as a side with some Chicken Burgers with Avocado Corn Salsa, Whole Roasted Cauliflower, Easy Baked Cabbage Steaks, or Baked Cod.
- Vegetables. Enjoy this dish with some Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Crunchy Baked Broccoli, Air Fryer Asparagus, or Roasted Potatoes and Carrots.
- Salad. Pair this soup with a salad, such as this Iceberg Lettuce Salad, Amazing Kale Salad, Refreshing Cucumber Salad, or Roasted Zucchini Salad( Video).
I hope this Quick Orzo Soup is satisfying, flavorful, and convenient for you. It really is delicious. Enjoy!
More tasty soup recipes:
Quick Orzo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced carrots
- ½ cup chopped scallions
- 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup orzo pasta
- 8 oz. baby spinach, roughly chopped
- ½ tsp. sea salt or to taste
- ¼ tsp. pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Saute the carrots and scallions in olive oil in a medium pot for about 5-7 minutes.
- Then add the garlic, and saute for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add the broth and bring the soup to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Now, add the orzo pasta and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Finally, season the soup with salt and pepper to taste. Add the spinach leaves and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Serve garnished with lemon wedges or parmesan cheese.
Notes
Variations to this Recipe
- Substitute frozen spinach. Even though fresh spinach is best for this Quick Orzo Soup, you can also use frozen spinach. Just thaw it and drain out the excess water before adding it in.
- Make it allergen-friendly. Using gluten-free orzo or rice in its place will make this gluten-free. And using a veggie broth makes it vegan.
- Substitute other pasta types. You can also make this recipe with other smaller pasta, like midolline, fideo, elbow, alphabet pasta (for the kids!), acini di pepe, or pastina.
- Add different vegetables. Try this soup with veggies like asparagus, kale, mushrooms, zucchini, or broccoli. Chop them up into smaller pieces so they don't overpower the dish.
Susan C. says
Omg, delicious! I used chicken broth instead of spinach I threw in some bok choy, DELICIOUS! (Added some basil to give it a bit of Italian flare too) Thank you!
Tania Sheff says
All great additions, Susan! Thank you for the feedback!
Jessica Wallace says
Simple and tasty. I used kale instead spinach bc that’s what I had and added a few extra herbs it was very tasty Ty
Tania Sheff says
Awesome! Thanks, Jessica!
Vera S Kahn says
Awesome soup! I added a small can of diced tomatoes because I didn't have enough broth. We loved the flavor. It is so much better than canned soup. It's certainly quick, easy and very tasty.
Tania Sheff says
Thank you so much, Vera!