Spanakorizo With Jammy Eggs

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

Published April 30, 2024

Spanakorizo With Jammy Eggs
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell.
Total Time
30 minutes
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes
Rating
5(260)
Notes
Read community notes

Bright and soulful, spanakorizo is a beloved Greek dish, with a name that reflects its combination of two key ingredients: spinach and rice. This version is fairly traditional in its essence, relying upon rice, spinach, lemon and herbs, but includes some flourishes. Though the addition of the jammy egg is not traditional, it injects a sunny burst of color, as well as added protein. For ease, this recipe calls for baby spinach (or chopped mature spinach), but frozen spinach can also be used (simply thaw it and squeeze out the water), or try a hardy green like chard or kale. A whole bunch of scallions delivers a richly aromatic base for the rice. Basmati is used here for its quick cooking time and light finish, but if you would like to use more traditional medium-grain rice, simply add an extra ½ cup of stock (2 cups total). As with any recipe, the timing is a guideline, but you should use your senses: Check your rice at the 15-minute mark, as some brands of rice will cook quicker than others.

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Ingredients

  • 3tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 1bunch scallions (6 to 9 stems), trimmed and thinly sliced
  • 1pound baby spinach (or 1 pound mature spinach, trimmed and roughly chopped)
  • 2garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1cup basmati rice
  • 1½cups vegetable stock
  • 4large eggs
  • 1lemon, juiced (3 to 4 tablespoons)
  • 1cup roughly chopped dill or parsley
  • 1(6-ounce) block Greek feta, crumbled (about 1⅓ cups)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

202 calories; 11 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 19 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 8 grams protein; 372 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat a large, wide Dutch oven or deep skillet on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and scallions and stir until fragrant and softened, 2 minutes. Add the spinach (depending upon the size of your pot, you may need to add it gradually, throwing in more as it cooks down), garlic and about 1 teaspoon salt; toss until wilted, about 2 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Stir in the rice, then pour in the stock. Bring to the boil and then cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the liquid has been absorbed and rice is cooked, 15 to 20 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high. Add the eggs in their shells to the boiling water and continue to cook over medium-high for 7 minutes. (Make sure you set a timer.) Set up an ice bath. Using a spider ladle or slotted spoon, remove the eggs from the water and immediately add them to the ice bath. Cool for 3 to 4 minutes and then peel them.

  4. Step 4

    When the rice is ready, turn off the heat. Uncover and add the lemon juice and half of the herbs and gently toss them through the rice. Taste to check seasonings, adding salt if needed.

  5. Step 5

    Divide the spinach rice among bowls. Halve the eggs and place the halves on top of the rice; top each with feta and additional herbs. To finish, drizzle over some olive oil and season well with pepper.

Ratings

5 out of 5
260 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

ilk

If you want those photogenic jammy eggs, take them out of the fridge and let them come to room temperature before cooking.

Johanna

Please do not treat baby spinach interchangeably with regular spinach. If you use baby spinach just add it after rice is cooked and stir till wilted.

Audra

This is in regular rotation especially during leafy greens season. We measure everything with our hearts and go heavy on alliums and lemon. I recommend a dash of red pepper flakes too; and, as others suggested, a crunchy element: fried onions in a jar (like you find in Asian markets and Ikea) or pine nuts, walnuts, etc. A cozy, quick favorite!

carl

i make the spanakorizo portion of this recipe nearly once a week adding dill at the end. i dont do the jammy eggs and will instead to chicken sausage or marinated grilled chicken. a quick weeknight meal we love! my husband even says it’s better than his greek grandmothers version of spinach and rice!

AM

Tasty, healthy and beautiful! This is quick and easy to make. I subbed chard for the spinach, but otherwise followed the recipe, and it's delightful. The jammy egg is the perfect addition.

Brushjl

Delicious. I served it with a chicken curry and it went well

Ruthstory

This is a dish that keeps on giving. Great with feta, great with eggs, great with tuna in olive oil. Added slivered almonds for crunch.

Christina

I’ve made this recipe twice and loves it. I will say the rice is undercooked after 20 minutes. This is because mixing it with the spinach keeps some of the grains above the liquid. Next time I will try removing the spinach, adding the rice and broth, and putting the veggies back on top (p.s. you need the spinach in there for the moisture while the rice is cooking).

Judy

I've made a similar dish, but more breakfast-y. On a bed of grains (farro, steelcut oats, for ex.), I add avocado and chopped tomato along with these same ingredients. Excellent either way, but I do enjoy the mouth feel of farro and oats.

C

This was great! Used frozen chopped spinach and added a can of chickpeas. The simplicity of it is delightful.

Tyler

Delicious, and I got to use a bunch of delicious parsley from the backyard. And a little dill. Eggs were cooked perfectly.

Carol

If the nutritional information and serving size was correct, I would have given it 5 stars. It was a very nice dish. As almost 99% vegans, we enjoyed this vegetarian meal. I reduced the rice a bit and upped the spinach. The dill was a bit overpowering; I will reduce it, or go with the parsley next time.

Audra

This is in regular rotation especially during leafy greens season. We measure everything with our hearts and go heavy on alliums and lemon. I recommend a dash of red pepper flakes too; and, as others suggested, a crunchy element: fried onions in a jar (like you find in Asian markets and Ikea) or pine nuts, walnuts, etc. A cozy, quick favorite!

Bill B

Great dish. The jammy egg recipe was perfect; 7 mins in boiling water + ice bath. The yolks came out perfectly!

Amy

This was an awesome recipe. I used more vegetable broth than called for (about 2 1/4 cups) but other than that, I followed the recipe and it was great!

Colleen

Didn’t bother chopping the baby spinach, to avoid the sogginess others mentioned—worked fine! Eggs were perfectly jammy at 6 minutes. Excellent, tasty, easy recipe!

Peter

Excellent combination of tastes. Watching my weight, I only used 1 tbs of oil. Reduced the cost to 9 Points (WW)

Cara

Sauté a large diced onion with double garlic, spinach and a diced tomato until wilted and moisture is reduced. Tomato adds another touch of sweet and acid and colour. Steam brown basmati rice separately in vegetable broth, then combine with spinach, feta, herbs and lemon juice. Stays colourful and bright. Skip the eggs and sub diced rotisserie chicken or steamed shrimp. Quick, inexpensive, nutritious and tasty - 5 stars.

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