Lemony Orzo With Asparagus and Garlic Bread Crumbs

Maybe I’m stoned but this was incredible. Added some mushrooms too.

We loved this! I sautéed the asparagus in olive oil, salt, and pepper and a tad bit of the minced garlic. I just prefer this way of preparing asparagus rather than boiling. I used a very large lemon, which produced lots of zest, and I felt it was needed. I only had a bit of fresh parsley, so that was all I used and it was still good. Be generous with the salt and fresh ground pepper. I would use a large garlic clove. Also sprinkled on feta and fresh tomatoes with extra lemon squeeze. Yum!!

This was surprisingly really good for how simple it is. Cements my opinion that orzo is the best pasta, it soaks up all that lemony dressing soooo well. I boiled the asparagus because I'm depressed and that's all I deserve.

Yes, double/quadruple everything! 1 cup orzo not enough for 1 lb asparagus, plus desired add-ins. As a shortcut, make 'dressing' ahead using all 5 TBSP oil, mashed garlic, lemon juice/zest & desired seasoning. Remove 2 TBSP oil & sauté asparagus (& add-ins if desired...I used mushrooms) for few min, leaving hot pan on to quickly crisp bread crumbs. Toss together veggies, orzo, spices & remaining 3 TBSP oil then top with cheese & bread crumbs. Amazing!

We loved this! Only complaint was not enough, because we like pasta/veg mixtures to be the whole meal deal. and we added more lemon and garlic. Notes for next time: double everything, quadruple garlic. Lemon wedges on the table

This was excellent. Thank God for Panko! Used Italian parsley, since I was using that also for the main course. Mint would have made this even more awesome. The asparagus was very tender. Did the asparagus the day before. Paired this with Moroccan Chicken with Preserved Lemon and Olives (also from NYT Cooking). What a superb meal. Be careful with the orzo and test it to make sure it is at the al dente stage, rather than relying on just time.

It's always nice to find a new NYT recipe and quickly realize that you have all the ingredients! Made it exactly as printed - with lots of dill, and tried not to eat too much of it. Goes nicely with a white wine spritzer on a warm NYC evening.

Agree with other comments that orzo doesn't need as much time as the box suggests. 7 minutes (putting the asparagus in after 5) seemed to work.

Comments: Don't cook orzo more than 7minutes Double/quadruple everything! 1 cup orzo not enough for 1 lb asparagus, plus desired add-ins. As a shortcut, make 'dressing' ahead using all 5 TBSP oil, mashed garlic, lemon juice/zest & desired seasoning. Remove 2 TBSP oil & sauté asparagus (& add-ins if desired) for few min, leaving hot pan on to quickly crisp bread crumbs. Toss together veggies, orzo, spices & remaining 3 TBSP oil then top with cheese & bread crumbs.

I made this with vegetable broth-cooked farro instead of orzo since I had that on hand. I also opted to saute the asparagus (plus a yellow squash I needed to use) with onion and garlic. Definitely dug the combo of mint, dill and parsley. Topped with kalamata olives and a bit of feta. Delicious!

Like someone else said - this is definitely missing something. I added tomatoes, extra panko, another lemon, more oil, more salt... it's still missing something. I added green onions too - don't do that, it's not missing onions at all haha

So this is a delicious dish that I’ve made several times, but I’ve found that adding an extra salty, umami flavor to it really makes everything pop. If you’re not strictly vegetarian, I recommend chicken Better Than Bouillon or a couple dashes of fish sauce. You can add it right into the dressing.

This needed something... more garlic, more salt, more lemon, maybe broth? Something missing. I used Italian parsely, boiled the asparagus, used panko. Panko gave a nice crunch. Paired with baked salmon. No one was over the moon on it. Maybe... kalamata olives?

I substituted crushed ritz crackers for the breadcrumbs. Super yummy!

Halved the recipe, and followed it. Delicious! Boiled the asparagus - which was fine - because I was stressed and it was easiest. Next time I'll sautee asparagus, but the lightly boiled was just fine. Used my homemade focaccia for the breadcrumbs (put in the nutrabullet) with the garlic. Used parmesan & mint. Really liked the crunch from the breadcrumbs. Easy Peasy, and had an all-in-one side for my simply grilled seafood. Tasty & Easy = Winner.