Orzo with Grilled Shrimp

05 Mar 2014

photo by Mitchell Feinberg

yield
Servings: Makes 6 servings

Serve this cold or at room temperatureperfect for a picnic or barbecue.

Preparation

Cook orzo in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain. Rinse with cold water; drain well. Transfer to large bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon oil.

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Whisk 2 tablespoons oil and 2 tablespoons vinegar in small bowl. Brush zucchini and bell pepper with oil mixture, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Whisk pesto, lime juice, remaining 3 1/2 tablespoons oil, and remaining 2 tablespoons vinegar in small bowl for pesto vinaigrette. Place shrimp in medium bowl. Add 2 tablespoons pesto vinaigrette; toss to coat.

Grill zucchini and bell pepper until crisptender, about 3 minutes per side for zucchini and 4 minutes per side for bell pepper. Transfer to work surface. Sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper; grill until charred and cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Place shrimp in bowl with orzo. Chop zucchini and bell pepper; add to bowl with orzo. Add remaining vinaigrette, tomatoes, sliced basil, and mozzarella; toss to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Cover; chill.

Garnish with basil sprigs and serve cold or at room temperature.

Reviews

write your own review ^[1]

I brought this to a Halloween party. There weren't a lot of people and about half got eaten. It is good but not a rave and needed a plenty of salt and pepper. I would coarsely chop the shrimp next time so it mixed in better with everything else. I used 31-40 size shrimp to they were med/small. I think the feta sounds like a good flavor improvement.