Enjoy the flavors of the classic dip in a hearty vegan dinner with this savory spinach artichoke orzo! This recipe takes 40 minutes to make and everything happens in one pot on the stove. Simple ingredients like baby spinach, canned artichokes, garlic, spices, orzo pasta, vegetable stock, miso, and lemon come together for a luscious and simple vegan pasta. Chickpeas make the dish a touch more filling and dense. Finishing this one-pot recipe with unsweetened cashew milk really amps up the creamy and rich texture, while a dash of Worcestershire sauce deepens the savory qualities.
I think we could all use some extra simple, back pocket-type of dinners. Orzo is such a powerhouse ingredient when it comes to streamlining one-pot meals. It cooks quickly, fills out a dish, and can be endlessly remixed with what you have on hand. Check out my vegan orzo risotto with butternut squash or my creamy lemon orzo with broccoli as examples!
Remixing familiar flavor combinations into a new and exciting dish is something that I love to do. Crowd pleasing and ultra savory vegan artichoke dip was the perfect inspiration (see this spinach artichoke pizza!). I knew that those flavors would work well with orzo, a rice-shaped pasta made out of wheat flour. It cooks quickly and has a pleasant, toothsome texture. As you stir, the orzo pasta releases starch, which contributes to the overall creamy texture of the dish.
Recreating that rich flavor profile without dairy is surprisingly simple. I use light miso, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, and a finishing dash of vegan Worcestershire sauce to add depth of flavor and hints of umami. The starch from the orzo and a finishing pour of unsweetened cashew milk (I like Elmhurst brand) makes for a smooth and velvety final texture.
One of my favorite aspects of this spinach artichoke orzo recipe is how pantry-friendly it is. You could take this a step further and use thawed frozen spinach instead of fresh! In my home kitchen recipe tests, it performed just as well. As long as you thoroughly squeeze out excess moisture, you’ll be good to go. Fresh baby spinach is a vegetable that I tend to always have on hand though, so that’s why it’s specified here.
Hope you love this simple spinach artichoke orzo!
One-Pot Spinach Artichoke Orzo with Chickpeas (Vegan)
Enjoy the flavors of the classic dip in a hearty vegan dinner with this savory spinach artichoke orzo! This recipe takes 40 minutes to make and everything happens in one pot on the stove.
Servings 3 -4
Ingredients
- ½ cup water
- 5 oz (142 grams) baby spinach
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large shallot, fine dice
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon ground chilies or chili flakes, optional
- 1 tablespoon light miso
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 8 oz (227 grams) dry orzo pasta
- 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas (from a 15 oz/443 ml can)
- 2 cups chopped artichoke hearts from a can/jar
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- ½ cup unsweetened rich non-dairy milk, such as cashew
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
Notes
- This recipe may behave differently with a gluten-free orzo (Delallo makes one) or other tiny pasta. Regular wheat-based pasta lets off a lot of creamy starch as you stir. If you’re using GF pasta, I’d start with only 2 cups of the vegetable stock and add more as it cooks if necessary.
- I find that one-pot orzo recipes like this just love to stick to the bottom of the pot. Stir often, scraping up the bottom of the pot, to avoid this!
Instructions
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Set a large, deep skillet or braiser pot over medium heat. Pour in the water and add the baby spinach. Place a lid on top. Steam until spinach is wilted, about 1-2 minutes. Remove the spinach from the pot. Once the spinach is cool enough to handle, squeeze out the excess moisture and give it a rough chop. Set aside.
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Pour the remaining water in the pot into the sink before carefully wiping the pot out and returning it to medium heat on the stove. Pour the olive oil into the pot and swirl it around.
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Add the shallots to the pot and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, lemon zest, and ground chilies. Sauté for 1 full minute. Add the miso, Dijon mustard, orzo, chickpeas, and chopped artichokes. Season with salt and pepper and stir.
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Pour in the vegetable stock and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil and then lower heat to a simmer. Simmer and stir often, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the orzo is tender/al dente and most of the liquid is absorbed, about 8 minutes.
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Pour in the non-dairy milk, lemon juice, and Worcestershire sauce. Add the chopped spinach. Give everything a good stir to combine. Taste the orzo and adjust the seasoning if needed (more salt, lemon etc).
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Serve the spinach artichoke orzo hot with extra chili on top if you like.
